This is the second cache in the series Scholarly Pursuits (rest of the series to come later). After four years of high school, I thought it would be nice to make a cache series that reflected my academic experiences.
**THIS CACHE IS NOT AT THE POSTED COORDINATES** - The coordinates listed are the near the high school I attended. The cache itself is within two miles of the start location.
You can get the coordinates by solving the following puzzle. You are given 15 descriptions of significant events, laws, or general information in American History. Identify the event and plug the date into the Roman numeral side of the system of equations below. Solving for the variables will yield the coordinates in the form of:
N AB˚ CD.EFG , W HRJ˚ KL.MNP
To help with the puzzle, you can determine A, B, H, R, and J from the relative distance from the start location (less than 2 miles)
Here are the clues:
- This act effectively destroyed American trade prospects when it was instated. It was supposed to keep America neutral in the ongoing hostilities between France and Great Britain. However, it proved disastrous to the fledgling United States economy. A famous cartoon depicting this act shows a turtle biting a man. The year this act was passed was…
- This rebellion was caused by economic decline, the failures of the American government under the Articles of Confederation, and excessive taxation. Led by a Revolutionary War veteran, this rebellion was crushed after one battle with only one casualty. This rebellion began in the year…
- This amendment to the constitution states that rights from the constitution cannot be manipulated to deny or damage other rights. It was ratified in the year…
- This incident began when United States diplomats visiting France were met with demands for a bribes and a loan. Eventually, negotiations failed and a naval Quasi-War began. This diplomatic incident began when the diplomats were dispatched in…
- This incident began when the namesake to this affair, a French ambassador to the United States, tried to convince America to end its neutrality in the conflicts between Great Britain and France. He recruited Americans to capture British ships and act as privateers in the Atlantic. Due to the changing political climate in France, the French government requested this ambassador to be extradited, which the United States refused, in order to be executed in the year…
- This colony, the birthplace of the first European child born in the Americas and commonly referred to as the “Lost Colony” due to its mysterious disappearance was first founded in the year…
- This battle, often referred to as a massacre, took place towards the end of the Ghost Dance movement among Native American tribes in the Great Plains. This incident, which resulted in over 200 Native Americans killed, is often considered to be the final battle in the Indian Wars of the 19th century and took place in the year…
- The beating with a cane of an abolitionist on the Senate floor after a fiery anti-slavery speech occurred in the year…
- This famous campaign left the losing side’s infrastructure and moral damaged. Led by a famous general who later had a World War II tank named after him, this campaign occurred in the last months of the year…
- This act severely limited the power of unions and was condemned by the acting president as a “dangerous intrusion on free speech”. The acting president nevertheless used this act 12 times in office after it was passed in the year…
- This act, the third of several in a series and often referred to as the “gag-rule”, was designed to limit the discussion of slavery in congress during the Antebellum Period and severely angered northern abolitionists when it was passed in the year…
- This addition to the nearly century old Monroe Doctrine was presented by its namesake president to justify American intervention in the affairs of Latin American countries. It was presented in the president’s State of the Union Address in the year…
- This scandal, which entailed the shipping of weapons to Iran and the use of the profits generated to fund militant rebels in Latin America, was first brought to light in the year…
- This scandal, which before Watergate was considered the largest scandal in presidential history, further diminished the credibility of the president’s already weak administration. It involved secret land leases and bribery and the verdict on the primary conspirator, a cabinet member, was delivered in the year…
- This act that forbid business practices that the government considered to be uncompetitive was passed in the year…
And the system of equations:
401A – 8B + 62C – 33D = i.
74E + 800F + 448G – 600H – P = ii.
-2B + 523R + 3J – 427K – 88L = iii.
803M + 225N – 2989P + B = iv.
29A + 125C – 87E + 525G = v.
56R – 82K + 412M – 916P + B = vi.
-246B + 712D – 126F + 87H = vii.
56J + 81L + 136N = viii.
-570A + 50D + 111G + 523J = ix.
1359B + 42E + 42H + 42M = x.
13A + 818B + 21C + 34D + 55E + 88F + 143G + 231H = xi.
56R + 76J + 14K – 111L + 28M – 62N +952P = xii.
777A – 10890B + 666C + 555M + 444N – 333P = xiii.
21D + 30E + 43F + 54J + 65K + 131L = xiv.
172G + 172R + 801H – 2B = xv.
All of your answers should be integers, and this system of equations IS SOLVABLE WITHOUT MATRICES OR WOLFRAM ALPHA. It’s probably easiest to solve with a pen, paper, and a 4 function calculator.
You can check your answers for this puzzle on GeoChecker.com.
During soccer season and the school year this area may be busy, so be stealthy. Also, BYOP.
Good luck. If you have any questions or feel that there are ambiguities or errors, message me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
A clue for an eventual final cache is included inside the cache.
Congrats to Squirelegao for FTF!