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You Do - A formative assessment
An excerpt from It Happened in Washington by James Crutchfield
Prior Knowledge: The Columbia River was said to “guard the west.” To the north and east “stretched a wide expanse of never- ending plains;” And to the south, the foothills of the Blue Mountains protected the location. Fort Nez Perce was located amid this scenery.
The whole establishment was surrounded by a palisade of ponderous planks of timber twenty feet long and six inches thick. The outside of the wall was made very smooth to keep the enemy from climbing it. Built on top of the palisade was a range of balustrades four feet high which served the double purpose of ramparts and loopholes. On the inside, a strong gallery five feet wide, extended all around. Sentinels on guard paced back and forth along this gallery. At each corner was a reservoir that held two hundred gallons of water as a security against fir. Inside the wall were built ranges of storehouses and cabins. The outer gate was cleverly made to open and shut by a pulley, and two double doors secured the entrance.
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