Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Material Wealth Of Slaves In The South, India Daniel

Symposium of Student Scholars

Since its beginning, enslavement of African peoples in the New World has been a topic of great interest. There are many different routes to go, in terms of researching that era and what went along with it. However, because of its extent and variation in different places, there is a great amount of information and stories that have gone untold. This research will help to unpack some of those stories, particularly as it relates to the slaves of the Conner-Field house in Cartersville, Georgia, whose possessions were not typical “slave possessions”. Their possessions help to shed a light on their …

Researching The Occupations And Lives Of Women In 19th Century Baltimore, Michaela N. Yarmol-Matusiak

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

This blog post focuses on the process and output of the 3 research projects I completed this summer; 2 of which focused on compiling historical data on the occupations and lives of women in 19th century Baltimore. In the document, I walk through the multi-faceted process of sorting an 1858 scanned archival document into an organized Excel spreadsheet that solely represents women. As well, I describe the process of using, compiling, and presenting historic American census data from the 1800s from the Social Explorer Database. In both of these cases, I show how the forces of race, class, and gender …

The Committee On Public Information And The Four Minute Men: How The United States Sold A European War To American People, Madison Mcternan

MAD-RUSH Undergraduate Research Conference

Shortly after America’s entry into World War I, President Woodrow Wilson created the Committee on Public Information to garner public support for the War. This committee was created not only to drum up support for the war, but to ease a public frustrated by an isolationist president’s entry into such a conflict. Notable reporter and writer George Creel served as its chairman, and together with countless others created a massive propaganda campaign. The Committee was incredibly successful in its mission of “selling the war.” This was largely due to the fact that Creel and his men revolutionized the way propaganda …

America Shared, Or Separate? How Martin Luther King And Malcolm X Illuminate Conceptions Of Race Today – And Where We Go From Here, Sarah A. Wall

Helm's School of Government Conference - American Revival: Citizenship & Virtue

In an effort to unearth the roots of disparate conceptions of race in 21^st-century America, this paper analyzes two oppositional paradigms in the Civil Rights Movement – Integrationism and Black Nationalism. The Integrationist movement, led by Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., worked towards a shared America, a multiracial nation in which full citizenship and dignity was bestowed on every individual regardless of skin color. Integrationism was recognized even by its opponents as the Christian answer to segregation and inequality. Its commitment to nonviolence won hearts and minds throughout the latter half of the 20^th century, becoming the …

The Great Awokening, Samuel C. Smith

Helm's School of Government Conference - American Revival: Citizenship & Virtue

The Great “Awokening”[1]

“Were you to see him in his most violent agitations, you would be apt to think that he was a madman just broke from his chains.”—Boston Evening Post on James Davenport, Aug. 2, 1742.

“I'm actually not a fan of the word 'woke.' I think the connotation of that means being socially aware, which is a beautiful thing to be. But it does not take into account being self-aware.”—India Arie

Most of my historical research has been on The First Great Awakening, an eighteenth-century revival movement that played a major role in shaping the …

Session 1: Panel 3: Presenter 1 (Paper) -- Fight For Star Wars: The Reagan Doctrine And The Ending Of The Cold War, Roselyn S. Dai

Young Historians Conference

The strenuous conflict between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, which persisted for over four decades, finally came to a close in the early 1990’s, shortly after the presidency of Ronald Reagan. A common assumption is that Reagan’s hardline foreign policies and weapons buildup finally forced the Soviet Union to back down. However, this assumption is only a small portion of the picture. The cause for the ending of the Cold War is a much more nuanced story centered not only around the arms race but also the collapsing Soviet economy and the domestic issues of …

The “Age Of Rock” Versus The “Rock Of Ages”: Naturalism, Social Darwinism, And Fundamentalism In The Scopes Monkey Trial, Bessie Blackburn

Helm's School of Government Conference - American Revival: Citizenship & Virtue

Greek mythology once predominated the highest forms of culture known to man. Myths of how fire came to be in the hands of humans, or how the peacock got its spotted feathers were beloved cultural tales of origins.[1] With the decline of the ancient cultures, new ones blossomed in their place. However, the question of origin has remained a pertinent, central question of each culture, no matter how modern. The question of origin dictates who a person believes himself to be, where he believes himself to be going, and what he believes himself to be doing. The question of …

Mapping Renewal: How An Unexpected Interdisciplinary Collaboration Transformed A Digital Humanities Project, Elise Tanner, Geoffrey Joseph

Digital Initiatives Symposium

Funded by a National Endowment for Humanities (NEH) Humanities Collections and Reference Resources Foundations Grant, the UA Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture’s “Mapping Renewal” pilot project focused on creating access to and providing spatial context to archival materials related to racial segregation and urban renewal in the city of Little Rock, Arkansas, from 1954-1989. An unplanned interdisciplinary collaboration with the UA Little Rock Arkansas Economic Development Institute (AEDI) has proven to be an invaluable partnership. One team member from each department will demonstrate the Mapping Renewal website and discuss how the collaborative process has changed and shaped …

333— Analyzing The Geography Of The Salem Witch Trials: Studying The Distribution Of People And Places Involved In This 17th Century Witch Hysteria, Hannah Dorn

GREAT Day Posters

Through this research project, I analyzed and studied geographical elements associated with the Salem Witch Trials throughout towns in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the years 1692-1693. With this research, and the data that I collected and mapped throughout the reseach process, I was able to gain a better understanding of when and where the hysteria of the trials spread. Additionally, I was able to uncover where this hysteria of accusations was most concentrated, and how many people were affected as a result of this puzzling and mysterious phenomenon.

Riots, Public Perception And Government Response In The Civil War South, Erik Lorenz

Campus Research Day

This presentation examines bread riots in the Confederacy and political riots in Union-occupied territory. Southern newspapers reveal the Confederacy’s need to maintain order. Northern newspaper accounts used Southern riots to depict the Confederacy as weak, and suggest that the desire to avoid appearing weak shaped the Confederacy’s response. I will demonstrate how the desire to maintain order and avoid appearing weak tempered the Confederate use of military force and ensured riots were always met with welfare measures. In contrast, the conquering government of Union-occupied cities could and did maintain order by force, ignoring rioters’ demands.

Mary Chesnut: A Southern Woman, Jade Gordon

Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Interracial Relations: History And Cultural Identity In The Invention Of Wings, Taylor Hopkins

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

The historical fiction novel The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd displays a notable relationship between feminist and racial ideals during the nineteenth century. The story is based on the historical figure, Sarah Grimké, an American abolitionist and advocate for women’s rights. Over the course of thirty-five years, the narration alternates between the two main characters: Sarah Grimké and Hetty Handful Grimké, a young slave on the Grimké plantation. The interactions between the two begin when Hetty is presented to Sarah as a personal waiting maid for Sarah’s eleventh birthday. As the story continues, the dynamics between the two …

Mary Todd Lincoln: Duty And Depression, Bella Biancone

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln was perceived by Victorian America as materialistic and unbalanced. Behind the closed doors of the Executive Mansion, however, lie a grief-stricken mother struggling to manage an undiagnosed and untreated mental illness. Her fragile condition was exacerbated with each death of her beloved family. Yet, this First Lady played an integral role in the White House, acting as hostess, advisor to the President, and activist in her own right. She was not a passive bystander as her husband worked tirelessly to preserve the Union, but an active participant in the war effort. Following Abraham Lincoln’s premature …

Pacification Gone Awry: The U.S Failure To Underpin Hearts And Minds In South Vietnam, 1966–1968, Simon Mai

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: Throughout the escalation of American involvement in Vietnam from 1964 – 1968, one key strategy focused on pacification – the winning of the allegiance of South Vietnamese civilians to the Saigon-based Government of Vietnam (GVN). This paper will argue that American/GVN implementation of pacification programs at the provincial and village level revealed three fundamental factors that proved fatal and counterproductive. These factors were the political and social entrenchment of the Viet Cong or National Liberation Front (NLF), the provincial cronyism and corruption of GVN, and the indiscriminate application of American firepower in support of General William Westmoreland’s strategy of …

The Revival Of Termination: Fragmenting John Collier’S Bureau Of Indian Affairs, Jacob Taylor

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: The Indian New Deal has been studied through two opposing lenses. Some historians attempt to paint John Collier, Bureau Commissioner under President Roosevelt, as a visionary who attempted to save Native American sovereignty while others denounce his legislation and time in office as ill-fated and corrupt. These two opposing views fail to illustrate the broader context of Collier’s BIA and do not provide an explanation for the ultimate failure of the Indian New Deal. Furthermore, they offer a largely monocausal explanation for the failure of the Indian New Deal. I argue that the BIA had been faltering for a …

Religious Language And The American Presidency, Shinjin Lee

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: The United States is not a theocratic county, yet the importance of, and the emphasis on, religion are a quintessential part of understanding American politics and society. This paper explores the way former presidents of the United States treated and spoke of religion(s) has changed during the history of the nation. In order to discover the role and impact of religion in American history I will analyze a selection of various types of writings of the presidents such as formal letters to Congress or the American people, inauguration remarks, official statements, and other speeches from as early as George …

A ‘Superlicious’ Feast: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Davy Crockett’S Almanacs As An Early Form Of White National Identity, Darren L. Letendre

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: Davy Crockett’s Almanacs, published between 1835 and 1856, have been held as a prime example of nineteenth-century Anglo-American folklore. While authors have commented on their comic qualities and racist content, what has been lacking is a rhetorical analysis, as suggested by Folklorist Stephen Gencarella, which would examine the ways in which “folklore is not something that a folk does, rather… something which constitutes a folk.” This paper analyzes the almanac stories dealing with native peoples in order to understand the political and ideological discourse that was propagated by these publications. Rather than genuine folk-stories faithfully recorded by publishers, these …

The Blood Logs: Factors In The U.S. Decision To Classify The Japanese Biological And Chemical Warfare Program, Linda R. Zhang

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: The Japanese Imperial Army maintained chemical and biological testing facilities during the Asian Pacific War where unwilling civilians and prisoners of war were subjected to human experiments regarding frostbite, germ warfare, syphilis, weapons testing, and human anatomy. As American forces began occupying Japan and restructuring the country, the Allied Powers established an international tribunal to prosecute Japanese leaders deemed responsible for the war. During this time period, American policymakers would classify the Japanese bio warfare program, essentially protecting Japanese participants in the warfare program from facing trial. My research analyzes why American policymakers would classify Japan’s Biochemical Warfare Program …

The No-Color Of Women: Women And Commemoration In The Treasure Valley Of Idaho, Shaina Lynch

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: In this paper, I research the public commemoration of women in the Treasure Valley and Southwest Idaho. Public memorials were sought out, visited, and photographed. A map was created of the locations and added to a website I made as part of this project, www.idahowomeninhistory.com. In order to make an argument for more statuary and monuments to women in Idaho there needed to be an explanation for the omission. I begin with the glaring absence of women in the public sphere and popular history (written and dominated by men), which explains their lack of celebration in public spaces. They …

Fallout From The Wall Street Bombing, Maxwell Mcpherson

Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference

Abstract: On September 16, 1920, a bomb would go off in the middle of Wall Street killing forty people and injuring over a hundred more. To this day the perpetrator remains unknown, and in the absence of resolution one might question how the contemporary public reacted to this terrorist attack in the heart of Manhattan. Through an archival examination of newspapers printed in the period after the attack it can be seen how this unsolved mystery would fuel persecution and public hysteria in the ensuing months targeting “suspect” political dissidents and ethnic minorities. From studying newspapers published following the bombing …

Six Student Projects From The North Florida Editorial Workshop, Marisa Pechillo, Cassidy Bowen, Carol Lynne Hemmingway, Rebecca Nunes, Emilia Thorn, Matthew Welcome

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

In this presentation, six students will discuss digital editing projects they have carried out through the North Florida Editorial Workshop (NFEW). Five of the projects were carried out in the Summer 2020 course DIG3152 Introduction to Electronic Textual Editing, taught by Dr. Clayton McCarl of the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures. Emilia Thom undertook the sixth project separately in fulfillment of her capstone requirement for the Hicks Honors College. We worked to edit and encode transcriptions of items from various archives, including UNF Special Collections, the St. Augustine Historical Society, and the PK Yonge Library in Gainesville. The goals …

Editorial Work And Contextual Research On Materials Related To North Florida History In Unf Special Collections, Marisa Pechillo

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Digital Projects Showcase Exhibitor During the Summer 2020 semester, I participated in the course DIG3152 Intro to Electronic Textual Editing, taught by Dr. Clayton McCarl of the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, during which I worked to edit two letters from the 1840s by Jacksonville resident Elisa Hatch. I transcribed and encoded the documents using TEI-XML, and created the exhibit to explain them. In the Fall 2020 semester, with the assistance of a generous grant from the UNF Office of Undergraduate Research as well as support from Dr. McCarl, Susan Swiatosz, and Jennifer Bibb, I was able to conduct …

Prototype Online Archive Of Documents Related To Indigenous Peoples In Colonial Spanish Florida., Emilia Thom

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Digital Projects Showcase Exhibitor During the summer of 2020, I worked on a project titled “A Prototype Online Archive of Documents Related to Indigenous Peoples in Colonial Spanish Florida.” This project focuses on creating a prototype online archive containing digital editions of primary source documents relating to interactions between Indigenous peoples and Spanish colonists during the eighteenth century in Florida. With the help of Dr. Clayton McCarl and Dr. Denise Bossy, I worked to edit five documents from eighteenth-century St. Augustine. The documents are letters sent from Florida to Spain, to inform the crown of colonial matters. They contain information …

“Yes, Separation! No, Integration!” A Historical Analysis Of Black Nationalist Groups Across The Decades: From The Civil Rights Era To The Contemporary Era, John Mcgee

Undergraduate Research Conference

As tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets with the chants of “Black Lives Matter!” Or “hands up, don’t shoot” issues such as police brutality and institutional racism have once again been thrust into the national spotlight. The strength, longevity, and occasional violence associated with these protests have made Americans from all backgrounds aware of the demands of the protestors. Unsurprisingly, these recent protests, often concerned with issues of race and justice, have drawn comparisons to the powerful protests of the civil rights era. As a result of the success of the civil rights movement and leaders …

Over The Edge: Suburban Planned Communities, The Second Frontier, And The Rise Of 80s High School Films, Daniel Mcclure

Far West Popular Culture Association Annual Conference

While many 1980s youth-oriented films often sold various images of consumption, Over the Edge was one of the early prototypes of the genre, offering a more sober—a more 70s—outlook on youth attempting to find meaning and identity in a corporate-driven, materialistic space called American suburbia. Both a setting for paradise as well as an existential hell for the youth growing up amidst it, the film mobilizes the West and its frontier-like majesty haunting the characters’ space in the planned development of New Granada—a place where families are safe and entrepreneurs can thrive. Specters of the West haunt the film—from the …

The Columbus Monument: A Hermeneutical Analysis, Basil Ugorji

Peace and Conflict Studies Journal Conference

Christopher Columbus, a historically revered European hero to whom the dominant European narrative attributes the discovery of America, but whose image and legacy symbolize silenced genocide of the Indigenous Peoples of America and the Caribbean, has become a controversial figure. This paper explores the symbolic representation of the statue of Christopher Columbus for both sides of the conflict – the Italian Americans who erected it at the Columbus Circle in New York City and in other places on the one hand, and the Indigenous Peoples of America and the Caribbean whose ancestors were slaughtered by the European invaders, on the …

Backfire: How The Rise Of Neoliberalism Facilitated The Rise Of The Far Right, Jacob Fuller

Capstone Showcase

The U.S. far right has become increasingly mainstream in contemporary American politics. In this paper, I analyze the theory that the far right has gained ground due to a backlash from neoliberal policies beginning in the 1980s under Ronald Reagan. Using Process tracing, I operationalize claims made by those arguing that the white working class has moved towards the far right due to their loss of status, as well as the theory that specific wealthy actors have mobilized these groups and altered the movement against neoliberalism to suit their interests. I find that these arguments have merit, and further the …