The Mystery of Anastasia Romanov

I watched a television program about the Grand Duchess Anastasia.  She was a princess in Russia in the 1900s.  Her parents were the Tsar and Tsarina.  Their names were Nicolas and Alexandra.  She had three older sisters and a younger brother.  They lived in Russia in a palace.  It was huge.  Her brother had hemophilia, a health condition where the blood does not clot normally.

Anastasia loved the outdoors.

Russia was fighting in World War 1 (1914 -1918).  Even though Russia had a huge army, they didn't have modern guns like other countries had. Tsar Nicolas took charge of the Army and he went to the frontlines in 1915 and fought with the army.   Anastasia missed him so much.  She wrote him letters often.

Not everyone liked Nicolas.  The War was really hard on the Russians because most of the farmers were at war.  All of food they had went to soldiers.  People at home were very hungry and began to blame all of their problems on Nicolas.  They started a revolution.  Nicolas resigned as Tsar.  He didn't want his country to fall apart.

After the Tsar resigned his family was under house arrest.  They lived that way for a year.  The Bolsheviks did not like Anastasia and her family. In the middle of the night in July of 1918 soldiers told Anastasia and her family to get dressed for a photograph.  But then the guards said, "you have been sentenced to death,"  In seconds the room was filled with smoke from the guns.  The entire was killed.

Now the mystery part kicks in.  A few years later a woman showed up in the hospital.  She wouldn't tell them anything about herself, including her name.  She was covered in cuts and bruises.  Doctors gave her a name.  It was Anna Anderson.  About a year after that, she began to say she was Princess Anastasia.  Some people didn't take her seriously.  But others did.  The believed that she could be Anastasia, because she had a scar on her forehead just like Anastasia and the same problem with her foot that Anastasia had.  She also seemed to know things that only the REAL princess could know.

For many years there was a rumor going around that one of the Romanov girls had escaped from the basement where the family had been shot.  People claimed it had to be Anastasia.  Anastasia was a great prankster. She had a vest that she always wore inside her jacket.  People think that she hid the families jewels inside the vest in her jacket and that when the bullets hit her they ricocheted off the jewelry sparing her her life.  No one  was sure that Anastasia's family was killed because they had a hard time finding the bodies.  It took them over 70 years to find the bodies.  But two of the bodies were missing.  They weren't sure if one of the missing bodies was Anastasia or one of her sisters.  But in 2007 another grave was found.  DNA tests proved it was Alexi and Marie (Anastasia's brother and sister).

But, who was Anna Anderson?  If she wasn't Anastasia who was she?  People think she was a polish factory worker pretending to be the royal princess.  She swore she was Anastasia until the day she died.  DNA tests after her death proved she was not Anastasia.  But they are pretty sure she was the polish factory worker.

People wanted to believe that Anna Anderson was really Anastasia because it is a sad story knowing that a bunch of people died because someone hated their father.  They had no right to kill anyone  I wanted to believe the story.  I really want to believe it because if Anastasia has survived I would have been really happy.  And that is why I think other people wanted to believe it too.

Taking a Trip Through History

I just got back from a vacation to Western New York.  We went there to see my family and have a good time.  I like it there because it is pretty.  It is right next to the Niagara River and Lake Ontario.  On a clear day, you can see Toronto across the lake.  We go there every summer, but this time my friend Jacob was also going to be there because he was going to visit his great grandma's house in Lockport, NY.  We visited Lockport last summer and saw the Erie Canal.

We left on a Friday night and arrived around 1:30 in the morning.  It takes longer to get there than before because we don't have passports and now you need passports to go through Canada.  Instead we go through Ohio and Pennsylvania to get to New York.

On Saturday we went to Fort Niagara and Niagara Falls with my friend Jacob. 

Fort Niagara was having a reenactment of the French and Indian War.  This war is also known as the sevens years war.  It was fought mostly in Canada, but since Fort Niagara was so close to Canada it part of the war too.  The French held control of Fort Niagara until July of 1759 when the British attacked with cannons for several days.  In the end, the British won and the French surrendered.

Sunday was the Fourth of July.  We had a party at my Aunt and Uncle's house.  It was cool.  We went swimming a lot.  That night, we went to the fireworks.  It was awesome.  We got ice cream to eat while we watched the fireworks.  It was a fun day.

July 5th is my dad's birthday.  It was Monday. We went to lunch and the food was horrible.  Then we went on a ride and stopped at my dads friend's house.  His name was Lenny.  Lenny's wife was my grandma's best friend.  Her name was Rose.  I was really tired and didn't feel good. We went back to my Uncle Kenny's house and I fell asleep like twice.  

On Tuesday, I was feeling better.  We went to lunch at Apple Granny's with grandma.  Then we dropped my grandma off at Uncle Kenny's and me, mommy, daddy and Alden rode the Trolley around Niagara Falls.  It was really, really, really, HOT!

We learned about "The Point of No Return."  At this spot in the rapids, if you were in the water you would not be able to get out of the water.  You would go over the Falls in three minutes or less.  A lot of daredevils have tried to go over the falls in a barrel or have tried to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope over the Falls.  The first person to go over the falls in a barrel was a women named Annie.  She did in 1901.  She thought she would become famous but she died poor.  The first man to go over the falls survived his attempt but died years later after a slip on an orange peel. NO KIDDING!  In 2003, a man from Michigan went over the falls in nothing but the clothes on his back.  He survived, but he was banned from Canada for the rest of his life.

On Wednesday, we went to the water park.  It was really hot outside so the water felt cold.  That night, we went to watch my cousin Julia's softball game.  It was still hot.  Me, Alden and my cousin Jack played around the soccer field.  We played at the little park and went on the tennis court.  We found a tennis ball and buried in the sand on the volley ball court.

Thursday, it was still hot.  We went to Murphy's Orchard in Burt, NY.  

The orchard was a stop on the Underground Railroad.  In the barn there was a secret room underneath the floor.  Slaves hid in the secret room until they were taken to Lewiston, NY where they could escape to Canada by crossing the Niagara River.  In Lewiston there is a house known to have seven basements.  The house was owned by Josiah Tryon  He helped many slaves escape to Canada from that house and across the River. 

That afternoon, we picked up my Aunt Dawn.  She is my grandma's sister.  Grandma, Aunt Dawn, Alden and I went to the cemetery where my Grandpa and my Great Grandpa are buried.  We planted flowers at their grave.  It was hot and the ground was hard.  But we planted them anyways.  Aunt Dawn treated us to ice cream after we were done at the cemetery. 

Friday it rained.  We drove around the Falls again, but mainly we stayed inside.  Uncle Kenny got a new car that day. 

Saturday is was time to go home.  We had to say good-bye to Uncle Kenny. 

On our way home we drove Buffalo and visited Forest Lawn Cemetery.

A lot of important people are buried there.  We went to find the grave of Millard Fillmore.  He was the 13th President of the United States.  Fillmore was born very poor.  His father sold him to work as an indentured servant.  He taught himself to read by stealing books.  He eventually earned enough money, thirty dollars, to buy his freedom.  He got married and became president.  He only served on term because he supported the fugitive slave law.  He and his wife attended the inauguration of the Franklin Pierce.  His wife caught a chill during that event, caught pneumonia and died.  She is buried there too.

We left the cemetery and drove the rest of the way home.  We stopped for dinner in Cleveland and got home around 8 at night.  I was glad that I got to see all of the historic places, and spend time with my family and friends too.

Before dance Compition

I can't wait, my compition is on Wendsday and I am SOOOO exited! I am in one number it is called Cajon Stomp.  If I make it in the top five, I'll Have to go back and preform again on Friday.  I dance at Dance Explosion.  Next year I will be in 3 compition dances.  I'll tell you more on Wendsday.
Wish me luck.                                             Maxine.

31st: Herbert Hoover and his Times

INTRODUCTION

This book will tell you mostly about Herbert Hoover, but also about the Great Depression and the Stock Market Crash, his family, and some other things too. Hoover lived to be 92 years old.  You will hear all about those 92 years in this book.  So to read about Herbert Hoover, read this book.  

HIS CHILDHOOD and FAMILY

Herbert Hoover's childhood was filled with hard times.  Herbert Hoover was born in West Branch, Iowa in 1874, August 10.  This made him the first president to be born west of the Mississippi River.  When he was just six his father died.  When he was 9, his mother died and he was sent to live with his uncle in Oregon. What a hard life for Hoover.  I sure don't want that to happen to me. 

CAMPAIGNS AGAINST AL and LATER LIFE FAMILY

As Hoover got older, his life got harder.  When Hoover was older he went to Stanford College.  Four years later he married Lou. Two years later he had two children - Alan and Herbert, Jr.  Soon he ran against Alfred E. Smith in the presidential election. He won the election and moved to the White House. Some people were happy Hoover was elected and some were not. 

HARD TIMES AND PRESIDENCY

When Hoover was president many things happened.  First, the Stock Market crashed.  Then, the Great Depression. Those two things caused people to lose their money and jobs. If a person was robbed, they become poor.  Some people did not even have enough money to buy food.  Wow!  I can't believe what Hoover had to manage when he was president.   

BACK HOME

After he was president he and his family moved back to the two-room house where Hoover was born.  They fixed up the house and lived in it until all of the family died, I think.  First his wife Lou died of a heart attack.  Then, Hoover died at the age of 92.  Even though Herbert Hoover died 56 years ago, we will still remember him today.    

I'M RELATED TO HOOVER

Wow! The Hoover's are related to my mom's side of the family.  I can't believe that a person in my family was the 31st president.  Hoover is my grandma Johnson's maiden name.  So...I am related to Hoover.  It is so cool, my great grandma Beatrice's first presidential election she got to vote in was Hoover's campaign.  It is soooo cool!

FUN FACTS

Did you know that Hoover's nickname was chief?

Did you know that Hoover gave 8 million tons of food to starving people in Europe?

He also traveled 35,000 miles across 38 countries in 57 days.

Stanford dedicated the Hoover Tower to Hoover in 1944, because he went to college there. 

HISTORY WEBSITES YOU MIGHT LIKE TO GO TO

Yahooligans.com

Poptropica.com (check out time tangled) 

PLACES YOU MIGHT WANT TO VISIT

Any Presidents House

The White House

The Capitals

Different States

Different Countries

Youngstown, NY is one of my favorite places to go. You might like to go there. 

HERBERT HOOVER ROCKS!

A Book Review by Maxine: Off Like the Wind

       Mike Spradlin just wrote a new kids book about the Pony Express. Me and my mom read it together. It was a really good book. It was a picture book; the title was Off Like the Wind.  Me and my mom both really liked it. I learned how important the pony express was. I learned that it was dangerous for the riders, I didn't know that at first.

     Now, I'm not going to go into all the details, but read it and you might be surprised about how hard it was to communicate with people who live far away. Now we can send e-mails and talk on the phone.  The e-mails you send takes seconds to get to places like Seattle.  Before the Pony expess it took them months. Then, the Pony Express got it down to just a week.  Now, it takes just seconds!

I think you should read the book.  I mean you HAVE to read it.  I LOVE this book!
                     
       So  R-E-A-D  his new book Off Like the Wind now!

Read it!
Maxine

P.S. There is even something about my favorite president A. Lincoln in this book.

321

321 computer class is over!
Peace Maxine

Anne Frank The Masterpiece Classic (on PBS)

I was exited to watch this movie with my mom and stay up untill 10:00.  This movie is true and Fake.  Insted of Dr. Pfeffer (dentist who came to live with the Franks) he was called by another name and the same with the VanPellses.  I have some qestions still, so here they are:(if you know the answers tell me them in the comments)

1.What was Dr. Pfeffers name in the story?
2.In the story, why does Anne be mean to her mother?
3.Did Dr. peffer share a room with Anne or not?
                    and four
Did she like Peter VanPeles?

And later in another blog I will tell you what I think the awnsers are.

So later tonight watch Masterpiece Classic on @ 8:00 or 9:00 on PBS

    PS I'm pretty sure that this is going to be on but it might not