Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Knights Templar And The Freemasons: An American Myth, Elizabeth Persinger

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This project is an in-depth look at the influence and impact of the Knights Templar and the Freemasons on early American history. This thesis provides an overview of the conspiracy theories surrounding both groups and their involvement in United States history as well as the history behind these theories and how they formed, with the ultimate goal of comparing these popular culture myths with the verifiable influence of the groups.

Genocide Museums And Memorials: How The Politics Of Victimization And The Entertainment Factor Of Certain Institutions Cause Misinterpretations Of Genocide, Shauna Lachendro

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This piece analyzes the mission statements of four institutions that commemorate Genocide: The United states Holocaust Memorial Museum, Kaligi Genocide memorial, Tsitsernakaberd, and S-21. The paper first plays out serious topics, such as dark tourism, the politicization of museums, the entertainment factor of museums, the definitions of genocide, and the Americanization of the Holocaust. Each institution is critically examined independently following the definitions of terms in the introduction.

The Akron Roundtable: Bringing The World To Akron For Forty Years, David Lieberth

University of Akron Press Publications

For 170 years, Akron has been linked to the wider world—ever since John Brown, the famous abolitionist and Akron’s most consequential resident, traveled on behalf of Colonel Simon Perkins to the European capitals in 1846 to market the wool that became Akron’s first international export. In the late nineteenth century, Akron industrialist Lewis Miller captured international accolades for the farm machinery manufactured at his Buckeye Mower Works, located where E. J. Thomas Hall stands today. In 1912, Goodyear Superintendent Paul Litchfield established a beachhead for the company in Europe, and through the twentieth century, all Akron tire makers delivered rubber …

Ohio State Football, Robert J. Roman

University of Akron Press Publications

“THE Ohio State University.” That’s how Buckeyes in the NFL introduce themselves on nationally broadcast football games. And this incredible history of the team will only increase that pride in Buckeye football for players, coaches, students, alumni, and fans who love the team.

Author Robert J. Roman draws on extensive archival research to tell the untold story of the early days of football at Ohio's flagship public university. The game was different. Fields were rarely level and often rocky. Eleven men played both sides of the ball, quarterbacks were often the smallest men on the team, and coaches were …

Algerian, Tunisian, And Moroccan Students Abroad In France: The Importance Of History In Understading The International Student Experience, Hannah M. Ulrich

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

In the wake of two major terrorist attacks in the past year, the presence in France of a large Arab-Muslim population has gained new global attention. Whether or not the perpetrators of these events held French or other European nationalities, their names and faces all said “Arab” to the public and raised questions about immigration, terrorism, Islam and the presence and status of Arab-Muslims in France. These questions are nothing new, even if they seem to take on new urgency. Since North Africans began coming to France in significant numbers in the 1920s and 1930s their place in France has …

Conservation Of A Lady’S Wrap From The Hower House Museum, Natalie Mallinak

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The paper documents the pre-conservation analysis of the garment and conservation performed on the trim of an 1880s lady's outer garment from the Hower House Museum.

Culture, Rhetoric, And Voting: The Presidential Election Of 2012, Douglas M. Brattebo, Tom Lansford, Jack Covarrubias, Robert J. Pauly Jr.

University of Akron Press Publications

The presidential election of 2012, one of the most important in American history, was the product of complex and fast-moving changes—demographic, technological, and economic—surfacing in American society. Particularly prominent in the scholarly analyses in this volume (a companion volume to A Transformation in American National Politics: The Presidential Election of 2012) are: the psychology behind Barack Obama’s presidential leadership; the role of religious and cultural divisions in contemporary American politics; the rhetorical approaches of the two nominees; and trends in voting.

A Transformation In American National Politics: The 2012 Presidential Election, Douglas Brattebo, Tom Lansford, Jack Covarrubias

University of Akron Press Publications

The presidential election of 2012, one of the most important in American history, was the product of complex and fast-moving changes—demographic, technological, and economic—surfacing in American society. Particularly prominent in the scholarly analyses in this volume (a companion volume to Culture, Rhetoric, and Voting: The Presidential Election of 2012) are: the status of the two main political parties and their core constituencies; demographic forces and geographic trends; the strategies and tactics of the two campaigns; and the decisive impact of economic, domestic, and foreign policies.

Inspiring Piety: The Influence Of Caravaggio’S Paintings In Santa Maria Del Popolo, Cara Coleman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This article looks at the way Italian Baroque painter, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio broke from the artistic conventions of the Renaissance and Mannerist styles in his religious paintings to create an entirely new style that reflected the needs of the post-Tridentine Catholic Church. Caravaggio pushed painting throughout Europe in a new direction, away from the idealization of the Renaissance and the artistic extremes of Mannerism, by popularizing realism in art. Caravaggio’s unique style is examined through comparisons of his paintings, The Conversion of Paul, c.1601 and The Martyrdom of Saint Peter, c.1601 in the Roman basilica, Santa Maria del Popolo …

Life Histories Of Refugees From Burma In Akron, Ohio, Megan Powley

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper examines the life histories of members of the Karen refugee community in Akron, Ohio. This research was done to better understand the difficulties the community faces as the Karen adjust to life in the United States. The larger historical context of ethnic conflict in Burma, the country they fled, is explored before a discussion of the anthropological work that was undertaken by the author. Life histories, collected through interviews, were analyzed thematically. Finally, suggestions are made for ways to aid in the transition of the Karen with a focus on the process to gain U.S. citizenship.

Honoring The Victims: How The Change In Ethics Ruined Science In The Third Reich And What To Do With The Remaining Medical Data, Kathleen M. Mitchell

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper analyzes both sides of the debate over using the Nazi medical data and brings forth one possible compromise. While using the data can provide the scientific community information that can be beneficial for society—and thus salvaging some good out of the evil—are the survivors’ sentiments on the subject truly being heard? The idea that the victims are once again being abused by using the information without their consent is not a matter to be taken lightly. On the other hand, if the data is valuable, it can be detrimental to scientific experimentation to deny access or destroy the …

Perversions Of The American Dream In The 20th Century Novel: Requiem For A Dream And The Great Gatsby, Mary C. Menzemer

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The American Dream’s outlines are pretty clear: find a good job, make enough money, raise a good family, love your neighbors and friends, and uphold American laws. In this essay, I am going to explore what happens when the dream’s goals are darkened, corrupted, and attempted to be found by unconventional means and shortcut through the lens of two novels written in the 20^th century, at the height of the American Dream’s popularity: Requiem for a Dream and The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby was published in 1925, at a time when a slew of immigrants were seeking better …

The Butterflies That Saved The Dominican Republic, Rachel A. Bodenschatz

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Analysis of the Dominican Republic during Trujillo’s regime and the effect of the Mirabal sisters. This paper is the culmination of the research and analytical skills I learned throughout my four years as a history student. I choose the topic because the Massillon Museum wrote a grant for the 2016 Big Read and chose Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies, as the book the community would read. In the Time of the Butterflies follows the Mirabal sisters on their quest to save their country from an evil dictator.

Bankruptcy In An Industrial Society: A History Of The Bankruptcy Court For The Northern District Of Ohio, M. Susan Murnane

University of Akron Press Publications

Not a history of bankruptcy law, Murnane's work is a social and institutional history of the Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio. The work explains the development of the court and the story of the people who worked there and of those who sought refuge in the bankruptcy court, within the context of northern Ohio's changing economy. The story of this particular bankruptcy court also illustrates the historical evolution of bankruptcy as an American institution.

From Séance To Science: A History Of The Profession Of Psychology In America, Ludy T. Benjamin, Jr., David B. Baker

University of Akron Press Publications

This book is intended to round out the picture of American psychology's past, adding the history of psychological practice to the story of psychological science. Written by two well-recognized authorities in the field, this book covers the profession and practice of psychology in America from the late 19th century to the present. FROM SÉANCE TO SCIENCE tells the story of psychologists who sought and seek to apply the knowledge of their science to the practical problems of the world, whether those problems lay in businesses, schools, families, or in the thoughts, emotions, and behaviors of individuals. Engagingly written and full …

A Brief History Of Akron's Tuesday Musical, Thomas Bacher

Akron History

The Tuesday Musical Club was founded in 1887 by thirteen young Akron women who had an overwhelming desire to share their love of music. With further support of Gertrude Penfield Seiberling, the wife of industrialist Frank Seiberling, the organization grew like many other musical organizations across the country. Unlike similar clubs, the Akron-based entity continued to expand and is one of a very few that have survived.

Among the artists who have appeared as a part of the rich history of Akron's Tuesday Musical Organization are Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Yehudi Menuhin, Jascha Heifetz, Glenn Gould, Van Cliburn, Isaac Stern, …

Rave Reviews The History Of Akron's Tuesday Musical, Thomas Bacher, Cynthia Harrison, Sharon Cebula

University of Akron Press Publications

The Tuesday Musical Club was founded in 1887 by thirteen young Akron women who had an overwhelming desire to share their love of music. With further support of Gertrude Penfield Seiberling, the wife of industrialist Frank Seiberling, the organization grew like many other musical organizations across the country. Unlike similar clubs, the Akron-based entity continued to expand and is one of a very few that have survived. Among the artists who have appeared as a part of the rich history of Akron's Tuesday Musical Organization are Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Yehudi Menuhin, Yascha Heifetz, Glenn Gould, Van Cliburn, Isaac Stern, …

Union And States’ Rights: A History And Interpretation Of Interposition, Nullification, And Secession 150 Years After Sumter, Neil H. Cogan

University of Akron Press Publications

Edited by Neil H. Cogan, who is a well-versed legal scholar of constitutional law, civil rights, and civil and criminal procedures, this volume is a collection of papers on a central issue of governance in the United States; namely, what is the power of the States to object to and cancel Federal law with which they disagree. For eighty-one years, from the ratification of the Constitution to the end of the Civil War, this issue of State power was the central issue of governance. Chapters address the history and legal arguments for three assertions of such State power: interposition, nullification, …

The Akron Offering: A Ladies' Literary Magazine, 1849-1850, Jon Miller

University of Akron Press Publications

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From 1849 to 1850, Calista Cummings edited and published Akron's first literary magazine, The Akron Offering. At the time, Akron was a booming canal town on the verge of even greater prosperity. By turns religious, comic, romantic, and political, this extraordinary collection of early midwestern creative literature expresses a wide range of sometimes contradictory opinions on both the important questions of its day and the important questions of today: historical events such as the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the 1848 revolutions in Europe are considered alongside more timeless contemplations on truth, justice, and …

Slaves To Contradictions: 13 Myths That Sustained Slavery, Wilson Huhn

Akron Law Faculty Publications

People have a fundamental need to think of themselves as “good people.” To achieve this we tell each other stories – we create myths – about ourselves and our society. These myths may be true or they may be false. The more discordant a myth is with reality, the more difficult it is to convince people to embrace it. In such cases to sustain the illusion of truth it may be necessary to develop an entire mythology – an integrated web of mutually supporting stories. This paper explores the system of myths that sustained the institution of slavery in the …

The Final Journey Of The Saturn V, Andrew R. Thomas, Paul N. Thomarios

University of Akron Press Publications

The Saturn V rocket carried men to the moon, and its history reflects the US space program's rise, success, and demise. In 1961, John F. Kennedy challenged America to put a man on the moon and win the space race. Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon in 1969 in the culmination of a concerted scientific and technological effort.

A little over a decade later, the Saturn rocket was tossed aside to rot in a field near the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket's carcass became the home to flora and fauna. Like the space program itself, the rocket …

The Rest Is History: True Tales From Akron's Vibrant Past, Mark J. Price

University of Akron Press Publications

This collection is as much about the present as it is about the past. Award-winning journalist, Mark J. Price, whose popular weekly column "This Place, This Time" has appeared in the "Akron Beacon Journal" since 1998, explores the history of Akron, Ohio and Summit County through compelling vignettes, bringing to life bygone days through painstaking research of archival materials, local histories, newspaper records and vintage photographs, plus contemporary interviews. The real-life stories range from quirky to poignant, from humorous to tragic, and all points in between. Read about the U. S. president who strolled through the countryside, the Akron stagehand …

Steps In Time: Ninety Years Of Metro Parks, Serving Summit County, Sarah Vradenburg

University of Akron Press Publications

What started in 1921 in an effort to "encourage forestry," conserve natural resources and protect the "comfort and welfare of the citizens" of Summit County has, in ninety years, grown into one of the largest and most popular metropolitan park districts in Ohio. Today, Metro Parks, Serving Summit County manages 10,000 acres, including 13 developed parks, six conservation areas, and more than 120 miles of trails, including 21.5 miles of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail. Annual attendance averages 4.5 million visitors.

Since 2007, author Sarah Vradenburg, a former editorial writer for the Akron Beacon Journal, has studied …

Infinite Hope And Finite Disappointment: The Story Of The First Interpreters Of The Fourteenth Amendment, Elizabeth Reilly

University of Akron Press Publications

Infinite Hope and Finite Disappointment details the aspirations and promises of the 14th Amendment in the historical, legal, and sociological context within which it was framed. Part of the Reconstruction Amendments collectively known as "The Second Founding," the 14th Amendment fundamentally altered the 1787 Constitution to protect individual rights and altered the balance of power between the national government and the states. The book also shows how initial Supreme Court interpretations of the Amendment's reach hindered its applicability. Finally, the contributors investigate the current impact of the 14th Amendment.

Contents Infinite Hope: The Framers as First Interpreters The Antebellum Political …

Champions, Cheaters, And Childhood Dreams: Memories Of The Soap Box Derby, Revised Edition, Melanie Payne

University of Akron Press Publications

From 1934 to the 1970s, the All-American Soap Box Derby pushed thousands of youths to use their curiosity, ingenuity, and determination to become the most famous kid in America. Through first-person accounts, Champions, Cheaters, and Childhood Dreams chronicles a history of the race from a hillside in Dayton to the corporate-sponsored, star-studded event it would become in the 1950s and 1960s. The influence of the Great Depression, World War II, the Civil Rights and feminist movements, Vietnam, and Watergate helped shape and transform the race from a simple amateur event into an American icon. The revised edition has been updated …

How I Saw It: My Photographic Memory Of The Soap Box Derby, Jeff Iula, Bill Ignizio

University of Akron Press Publications

Jeff Iula grew up around the Soap Box Derby. His memories of the race events over the past forty years are a treasure trove of the history of the gravity race, but also other aspects of the the Derby Downs race that are rarely covered. Aided by writer, Bill Ignizio, Iula has delved into his collection of Derby memorabilia to identify the most compelling images of cars and contestants, programs and tickets, and celebrities and ceremonies. This collection is unique and informative. A must for Soap Box Derby fans.

Pedaling On The North Coast: Biking The Streets Of Greater Cleveland, Stan Purdum, Murray Fishel

University of Akron Press Publications

Grab your bicycle, start pedaling, and prepare to explore Ohio's North Coast. Stan Purdum returns with more great rides around Northeast Ohio. Pedaling on the North Coast is your guide to the best routes in the Greater Cleveland Area. From lakeside rides to trips to Cleveland landmarkls like the historic West Side Market, Pedaling on the North Coast is the perfect companion for everyone from the casual cyclist to the seasoned vet. The eighteen rides offer a diverse selection to discover Cleveland and the surrounding area: crank over to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Cleveland Browns stadium; …

Elizabeth Cady Stanton And The Notion Of A Legal Class Of Gender, Tracy A. Thomas

Akron Law Faculty Publications

In the mid-nineteenth century, Elizabeth Cady Stanton used narratives of women and their involvement with the law of domestic relations to collectivize women. This recognition of a gender class was the first step towards women’s transformation of the law. Stanton’s stories of working-class women, immigrants, Mormon polygamist wives, and privileged white women revealed common realities among women in an effort to form a collective conscious. The parable-like stories were designed to inspire a collective consciousness among women, one capable of arousing them to social and political action. For to Stanton’s consternation, women showed a lack of appreciation of their own …

Law, History, And Feminism, Tracy A. Thomas

Akron Law Faculty Publications

This is the introduction to the book, Feminist Legal History. This edited collection offers new visions of American legal history that reveal women’s engagement with the law over the past two centuries. It integrates the stories of women into the dominant history of the law in what has been called “engendering legal history,” (Batlan 2005) and then seeks to reconstruct the assumed contours of history. The introduction provides the context necessary to appreciate the diverse essays in the book. It starts with an overview of the existing state of women’s legal history, tracing the core events over the past two …

Law, History, And Feminism, Tracy A. Thomas

Tracy A. Thomas

This is the introduction to the book, Feminist Legal History. This edited collection offers new visions of American legal history that reveal women’s engagement with the law over the past two centuries. It integrates the stories of women into the dominant history of the law in what has been called “engendering legal history,” (Batlan 2005) and then seeks to reconstruct the assumed contours of history. The introduction provides the context necessary to appreciate the diverse essays in the book. It starts with an overview of the existing state of women’s legal history, tracing the core events over the past two …