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Intelligence Versus Impulse: William H Seward And The Threat Of War With France Over Mexico, 1861--1867, Albert Joseph Griffin Jr.

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation argues that U.S. Secretary of State William Seward conceived a diplomatic strategy that enabled the U.S. to oust the French and their puppet emperor, Maximilian, from Mexico in 1867. The genius in Seward's approach lay in accomplishing this goal without committing U.S. forces. Using original diplomatic correspondence, this dissertation shows how Seward capitalized on both the weaknesses of the French, and the strengths of republican Mexico. It demonstrates how Seward bargained for the time needed for his strategy to work, even when many around him were pressing for precipitous action. It argues that Seward's diplomatic strategy succeeded in …

Vocational Science And The Politics Of Independence: The Boston Marine Society, 1754--1812, Matthew Gaston Mckenzie

Doctoral Dissertations

Between 1754 and 1812 the Boston Marine Society developed vocational scientific practices adapted from day-to-day work routines to expand the navigational knowledge of New England's coastlines. For this reason, the Marine Society's navigational work suggests important parallels with the history of colonial science in other areas during the late eighteenth century. Notwithstanding most other studies in the history of American science, the Boston Marine Society indicates that colonial Boston shipmasters were not dependent upon learned societies for their navigational research needs. Rather, they adapted their mutual aid society and developed methodologies to collect navigational observations, analyze them for reliability and …

Asanti Daughter Of Zion: The Life And Memory Of Harriet Tubman, Katherine Clifford Larson

Doctoral Dissertations

We all believe that we know Harriet Tubman (1820--1913): slave, famous conductor on the Underground Railroad, abolitionist, spy, nurse, and suffragist. Her successful, secret journeys into the slave states to rescue bondwomen, men, and children have immortalized her in the minds of Americans for over one hundred and thirty years. One of the most famous women in our nation's history, we have come to know the narrative of her life only through juvenile biographies. These stories made Tubman's life a legendary one by reconstituting her into a historical and cultural icon suitable for mass consumption as the "Mother of her …

"Everybody Get Together": The Sixties Counterculture And Public Space, 1964--1967, Jill Katherine Silos

Doctoral Dissertations

Historians and cultural analysts have traditionally considered the sixties counterculture an apolitical phenomenon by historians and other analysts. Yet concentrated examination of the public activities of the counterculture in San Francisco from 1963 to 1967 reveals that they were engaged in the creation of a public political culture that challenged the power of civil authorities to regulate the uses of parks, streets and sidewalks. In doing so, the counterculture constituted a distinct community with a political agenda.

This thesis is demonstrated through an analysis of the development of an ethos toward public space in the Beat movement and Merry Prankster …

"The Cradle Of Liberty": Faneuil Hall And The Political Culture Of Eighteenth-Century Boston, Jonathan Mcclellan Beagle

Doctoral Dissertations

Built in the early 1740s as a combination marketplace and town hall, Boston's Faneuil Hall became famous for its role in the American Revolution, earning it the affectionate nickname "The Cradle of Liberty." This dissertation examines the building as an expression of Boston's evolving political culture and community identity in the eighteenth century. At the time of Faneuil Hall's construction, the seaport was struggling to reconcile its proud Puritan heritage with the demands of an imperial existence as part of the British Empire, a process that provoked controversy. Among the most explosive issues was that of a fixed and regulated …