History Commons^™

Reconciliation And Reunion, Myron K. Jordan

Dissertations and Theses

Throughout the period of the American Revolution, Great Britain pursued a policy of reconciliation and reunion toward its North American colonies. While this was but one of the several policy alternatives open to British leadership, it was always an element of British strategy toward the colonies from 1775 to 1783.

This thesis follows the evolution of reconciliation and reunion in the final days of crisis in 1774-1775. It seeks to define its development during the war itself, and especially during the abortive American Peace Commission of 1778. By tracing this policy from its emergence through to the peacemaking in 1782-1783, …

Truman's Election In 1948, Mary Peter Kump

Dissertations and Theses

You can't judge a book by its cover. The cliche may be trite, nonetheless it is applicable to Harry s. Truman. The feisty Missourian wrested greatness from the hands of his challengers who would have denied it to him because of his background. His lack of a college degree seemed to rankle the press, and as far as they were concerned disqualified him as President of the United States.

Based largely on contemporary accounts, this thesis traces the color and drama of Truman's 1948 campaign. In order to appreciate fully the triumph of the President’s victory, it was necessary to …

Labor Violence: The Centralia Case, The Iww And Its Enemies, Lawrence C. Skoog

Dissertations and Theses

Armistice Day 1919 was enthusiastically celebrated in Centralia, Washington. The Principle event of the day’s activities was a parade organized under the leadership of the newly formed American Legion. But the parade was to be more than the simple affirmation of the victory in France, it was to be a reaffirmation of the patriotism of the newly returned sailors and soldiers and their home-town supporters.

Centralia was a troubled city in 1919. Organized labor of the most militant and extreme sort was challenging the oligopoly of the lumber trust. The Industrial Workers of the World had been successful in their …

Irish Families In Portland, Oregon, 1850-1880 : An Immigrant Culture In The Far West, Michael Kazin

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is an attempt to begin an examination of the social history of immigrant families in the cities of the West Coast. I chose to study Irish families in particular because they were the first group of migrants to come in large numbers to the United States from a primarily peasant culture, and because studies of Irish in the cities of the East have emphasized their resistance to assimilation into the dominant Anglicized Protestant society.

Chicanos In Oregon: An Historical Overview, Richard Wayne Slatta

Dissertations and Theses

Spaniards were the first Europeans to explore the Pacific Northwest coastline, but the only evidence of these early visits is a sprinkling of Spanish place names commemorating the intrepid voyagers. The more than four centuries of recorded history since that time are nearly devoid, of references to Spanish-speaking people, especially Mexicans and Americans of Mexican descent (Chicanos). Even the heavy influx of Chicano migrant farm workers in the 1950's and 1960's failed to attract the attention of historians or social science researchers. By 1970, the Spanish-language population had become Oregon's largest ethnic minority and was exerting influence in most areas …

The Background And Development Of The 1871 Korean-American Incident: A Case Study In Cultural Conflict, Robert Ray Swartout Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

This study is an attempt to combine the disciplines of Asian history and United States diplomatic history in analyzing the 1871 Korean-American Incident. The Incident revolves around the Low-Rodgers expedition to Korea, and the subsequent breakdown of peaceful negotiations into a military clash of arms.

To describe the Incident as merely another example of American "imperialism,'' or as a result of narrow-minded Korean isolationism, is to oversimplify its causes and miss the larger implications that can be learned from it. A basic premise of this paper is that the 1871 Incident is an example of East-West cultural conflict. As such, …

State Response To The Civil Right Issue, 1883-1885, Robert Lionel Rowe

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to reexamine the assumption in American historiography that the United States Supreme Court's monumental decision in the Civil Rights Cases striking down the 1875 Civil Rights Act represented the end of the Nineteenth Century commitment to "equality under the law" and the civil rights issue. The evidence shows that while the decision had overwhelming support, much of this was support for the Court’s view that such legislation was not within the scope of Federal power.

Eleven states responded to the Supreme Court’s decision by rapidly enacting civil rights legislation. The research centered on gathering …

Oregon And The Blue Eagle: A Study Of The Response Of Oregonians To The National Recovery Administration, John Craig Bledsoe

Dissertations and Theses

The original response of Americans to the National Recovery Administration (NRA) was almost unbounded enthusiasm in mid-1933. But the enthusiasm of the public, business and labor for the NRA noticeably declined by early 1934 and it continued to decline until the NRA was declared unconstitutional in May of 1935. The primary objective of this study is to determine whether the response of Oregon to the NRA followed that of the nation.

Focusing mainly upon the Portland metropolitan area, this study is based on information drawn from newspapers and other primary source materials available for the period during which the NRA …

An Analysis Of The Interrelationship Between The Oregon School Law Of 1922, The Press Of Oregon, The Election Of Walter Pierce And The Ku Klux Klan, Robin Huffman

Dissertations and Theses

Oregon in 1922 was the scene of significant Ku Klux Klan activity. This thesis examines the interrelationship of the Klan, the press of Oregon, the gubernatorial race of that year and the passage of the Compulsory School Act. In addition, one chapter covers the ultimate fate of the Compulsory School Act in the courts.

Specific material in this thesis is derived principally from newspapers and periodicals of the time, although general sources on the Ku Klux Klan were utilized for the broader discussions of the situations.

The existence of the Ku Klux Klan in Oregon in 1922 directly affected both …

The Diplomatic Stalemate Of Japan And The United States: 1941, David Hoien Overby

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis contends from the time of September 1940 to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States and Japan offered each no workable concessions that might have deterred war. A stalemate was finally established between the two countries. The position of the Japanese nation was to expand and control "Greater East-Asia," while the position the United States held was one that claimed all nations should uphold certain basic principles of democracy, that all nations should honor the sanctity of treaties," and that they should treat neighboring countries in a friendly fashion.

This thesis also contends that Yosuke Matsuoka …

The Abolition Of Capital Punishment: A Comparative Study, Michael L. Call

Dissertations and Theses

The thesis is a comparative study of two campaigns waged against capital punishment. Specifically, it is an examination of the public arguments and legislative action which transpired in Oregon and Great Britain when their respective legislatures considered and then approved laws to abolish the penalty of death for the crime of murder -- Oregon in 1963 and Britain in 1965.

The Siletz Indian Reservation, 1855-1900, William Eugene Kent

Dissertations and Theses

The aim of my study was to try to bring forth the basic aspects and characteristics of the Siletz Reservation as it was in the nineteenth century. Concentration was placed on the life activities and concerns of a typical resident, while at the same time extremes in behavior and actions were also noted. Thus an entire spectrum of human life was recreated. Government policies and events and changes of the time were noted as to how they affected the life at the reservation.

I did not include all of the information available to me .and all information is not known …

The Grim Security Of The Past: The Historiography Of Henry Cabot Lodge, Claude Singer

Dissertations and Theses

By birth, education, and association, Henry Cabot Lodge belonged to an established New England tradition of attention to history and respect for historical writing. He lived during troubled times, and he realized, as his writings indicate, that America was rapidly changing, that old habits were disappearing, and that powerful new forces were at work in the nation and the world. How Lodge reacted to these circumstances is reflected, in part, in his historical writing.

This thesis is an examination of Lodge's historiographic efforts. It is an attempt, through an analysis of style and predominant themes, to describe the cultural values …

Orestes A. Brownson: An American Traditionalist, Marianne Oswald

Dissertations and Theses

Orestes A. Brownson was an American journalist who converted to Catholicism in 1844, at the age of forty-one. He had been writing editorials and occasionally managing publications since 1828 in

connection with religious activities as minister to various sects, Brownson, from the 1830's on, read, reviewed, and kept abreast of European literature concerned with philosophy, social, political, and

economic theory. It was assumed that he continued that practice after his conversion in 1844 and that he would enlist the aid of European Catholic theorists to develop an acceptable Catholic system of thought—particularly since American Catholic literature in the mid-nineteenth century …

The Nixon "Shocks": Implications For Japan's Foreign Policy In The 1970'S, Richard Douglas Partch

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines the implications that the Nixon “shocks” may have on Japan’s foreign policy. The data used consisted of books, articles, periodicals, government publications and newspapers. Examined were such important factors as: the attitudes of the political parties in Japan on foreign policy questions, the rapid rise of the Japanese economy and the implications this has had on Japan's relations with other countries, and the question of Japan's possible remilitarization, both in conventional and nuclear terms. In addition, Japan's relations with the other three Great Powers in Asia, (China, the Soviet Union and the United States), are also studied. …

A Gold Dream In The Blue Mountains : A Study Of The Chinese Immigrants In The John Day Area, Oregon, 1870-1910, Chia-Lin Chen

Dissertations and Theses

More than one hundred years have passed since the Chinese laborers first landed in this country in the mid-nineteenth century. Yet their history remains cloudy. This phenomenon is quite understandable if one considers the facts that most of the laborers were illiterate, did not have the ability, and never intended, to speak for themselves. It is true that many scholarly works have been published, but few were written by Chinese historians. As a matter of fact, Chinese scholars are unaware that a small number of their countrymen played a strange, pitiful role in American history. The published works reflect the …

The Policy Of Containment And The Middle East, 1946-1958, Ahed George Samaan

Dissertations and Theses

The main objective of American foreign policy in the Middle East, during the post-War period of 1946-1958, was to safeguard the area against Soviet intrusions. This thesis attempts to examine the causes for the failure of the United States to achieve this objective. It concludes that this failure is the result of an alienation of the major national forces in the Middle East. The United States alienated the Arab world by openly and unreservedly supporting Zionist aims in Palestine. She alienated newly independent states by establishing close cooperation with Britain and France, their former colonial masters. She alienated revolutionary nationalists …

Minority Without A Champion: The Kanaka Contribution To The Western United States, 1750-1900, Janice K. Duncan

Dissertations and Theses

Kanakas, Owhyees, Blue Men, were all names given to laborers from Hawaii, or the Sandwich Islands, who contributed significantly to the economic, cultural, and political history of the United States territory west of the Mississippi River in the period 1750-1900.

The Sandwich Islands first entered the international economic scene in the latter eighteenth century when its excellent ports and favorable climate made the Islands an ideal winter harbor and stopover for merchant ships, whalers, and explorers' vessels who needed to replenish food and water supplies, or make necessary repairs. Just as frequently the crews of these vessels needed to be …

Foreign Policy Decisions Which Led To United States Military Occupation Of The Dominican Republic, Bert Lewis Junior Farrar

Dissertations and Theses

To achieve independence, the Dominican Republic had to first endure three centuries of heavy-handed Spanish rule and period of Haitian domination that lasted for twenty-two years. Fear of Haitian reconquest, however, convinced the leading Dominican politicians that the new nation could not long endure without foreign protection.

Encouraged by Dominican offers of a naval base, the United States toyed with the idea of expansion in the Caribbean as early as 1850, but civil war cut short these notions and allowed Spain to reassert control over her former colony. Although Spanish occupation ended in failure the United States became more determined …

The Political Role Of Religious Pacifism During The Inter-War Years, Ancil K. Nance

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to make a judgment concerning the effectiveness of the selected political actions of certain religious peace groups during the inter-war years. Information was obtained from the Portland State University Library, the Multnomah County Library, the Methodist Episcopal Church of Oregon office, the national offices of the American Friends Service Committee, the National Council of Churches, and the Fellowship of Reconciliation. Conversations with people who had been involved with the peace movement included Roland Bainton, Jerome Davis, G. Bernhard Fedde, Carlin Kapper-Johnson, and Mark Chamberlin. Periodicals that provided much of the information about …

Patrick J. Hurley And China, 1944-1945, Robert T. Handy

Dissertations and Theses

On November 26, 1945, the Ambassador to China, Patrick J. Hurley, announced his resignation to the American press. In doing so, he leveled charges against the State Department and a number of its Foreign Service officers—charges which questioned the integrity of many, in their relation with what Hurley termed the “Imperialist” and communist nations in China. Those charges were the beginning of two and one-half decades of ideological crusading in America by many who developed the theory that those men charged by Hurley had been responsible for America’s “loss of China”

Hurley was sent to China in 1944 as President …

The 1958 Good Offices Mission And Its Implications For French-American Relations Under The Fourth Republic, Lorin James Anderson

Dissertations and Theses

In both a general review of Franco-American relations and in a more specific discussion of the Anglo-American good offices mission to France in 1958, this thesis has attempted first, to analyze the foreign policies of France and the United States which developed from the impact of the Second World War and, second, to describe Franco-American discord as primarily a collision of foreign policy goals--or, even farther, as a basic collision in the national attitudes that shaped those goals--rather than as a result either of Communist harassment or of the clash of personalities.

The Causes Of The Nez Perce War And The Prolonged Exile Of The Captive Indians: An Analysis, Carole Jean Smolinski

Dissertations and Theses

This is a study of the obvious and intimated causes of the Nez Perce War of 1877 in Idaho Territory and a collection of reasons explaining why the terms of surrender agreed upon by Chief Joseph and Colonel Nelson A. Miles were not honored by the United States government. There is a relationship between the events preceeding and following the war as they determined the history of the Nez Perce nation throughout the second half of the nineteenth century. National, state and territorial interests, cultural and religious differences, racial prejudices and white greed for Indian lands all contributed either directly …