History Commons^™

Japan’S Assimilation Of Okinawa, Alex Thompson

ASPIRE 2024

. My research shows that the initial motivation for assimilating the Okinawan people was to create a national cohesive culture in Japan. Still, it fell short because of the actions of the average citizen in Japan and the governmental strategies. The idea of racial superiority and discrimination kept the Okinawans from ever being recognized as Japanese citizens. In this paper, I will discuss the Japanese government's assimilation practices and how Japanese people contributed to the assimilation policies. After exploring Okinawan culture and how this unique culture was formed, I will examine how the average Japanese citizen's racial superiority complex, humiliation …

Researching & Designing Marketing Materials For Rachel Messer & Connor Dale, Isabelle Bauer

Honors Projects

Isabelle Bauer’s Honors Project, “Researching and Designing Marketing Materials for Rachel Messer and Connor Dale” is split into two components. First, the research paper titled "The American West as a Cultural Phenomenon" explores the fascination with the American West and its integration into various aspects of American culture, particularly in music, film, and art. The essay discusses the historical significance of the West and its transformation into a cultural obsession. Focusing on the resurgence of Western aesthetics in modern country music, the project’s second component involves the creation of marketing materials for country artists Rachel Messer and Connor Dale.

The …

Wartime Welfare Development: The British Beveridge Report And American Wagner-Murray-Dingell Bill, Katerina Dronov

Research Awards

When considering documents to compare to the Beveridge Plan, a report renowned for establishing the British Welfare State, the Wagner-Murray-Dingell Bill is unlikely to come first to mind. In fact, it is often overlooked in secondary literature. However, an overview of primary sources indicates that the two are particularly connected. With the Beveridge Plan published in 1942 and the Wagner-Murray-Dingell Bill first introduced to the American Senate in 1943, both originated from the World War II era. In their proposals, their reception, and outcomes, both serve as illustrations of the course welfare development took in their respective nations. When examined …

The Boy Scout Movement And Indian Nationalism, Ewan Benjamin

Research Awards

No abstract provided.

Equality By Combat Motivations To Fight In The All Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Zachary Watts

Research Awards

No abstract provided.

The Women’S Committee Of The Council Of National Defense In Maryland, 1917-1918, Savannah Scott

Honors Projects

During World War I, the United States created the Women’s Committee of the Council of National Defense to organize and coordinate women’s war work. The Women’s Committee had a federalist structure of national, state, and local committees to organize the different levels of women’s societies in the country. This paper uses the Maryland Section of the Women’s Committee as a case study to argue how how the centralized organization of the Women’s Committee and its flexibility with the local committees led to more productive efforts at mobilizing women. It will expand on the formation and organization of the Maryland Women’s …

Wartime And Womanpower: The Organization Of The Women’S Committee Of The Council Of National Defense, Savannah Scott

Research Awards

When the United States declared war on Germany in 1917 and entered World War I, the federal government understood that civilian mobilization and a strong homefront would be essential for American success in the conflict. The Committee of Women’s Defense Work of the Council of National Defense, commonly known as the Women’s Committee, was created to organize American women for the war effort. This paper argues how the executive Women’s Committee used pre-existing connections to women’s voluntary associations and the fundamental concept of federalism to organize, mobilize, and inform American women for the war effort. The women at the federal …

Sir Edward Grey And The Concert Of Europe: A Final Attempt To Save Europe From War, Katelyn Harrison

Research Awards

In July of 1914, Europe fell into a conflict that resulted in the onslaught of the First World War. British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward called the Great Powers of Europe together in an attempt to de-escalate the tensions. Grey reinvigorated the Concert of Europe System as the foundation of his diplomatic actions. The Concert System involved multilateral negotiations between the Great Powers of Europe. While the Concert had prevented some conflict in the nineteenth century it failed to stop the First World War. This article examines how the July Crisis presented a challenge that the Concert system could not reckon …

Love And Labor: Footbinding In Rural China In The Twentieth Century, Meghann Burgess

Research Awards

No abstract provided.

Cinema And Censorship: Artistic Limitations In Chinese Cinema, Sarah Rodes

Research Awards

No abstract provided.

Folklore Of The Shenandoah Valley, Heather Good

Honors Projects

The Shenandoah Valley of Virginia has a long and storied history, which has resulted in the development of a rich folklore unique to the area. Stories and traditions have been passed down through generations, often by family and community members but also through the few texts that have been written on the subject. As a writer and local of the area, this cultural tradition has played a significant role in helping me to discover my own voice through looking at the voices that came before me.

This project will fist focus on two significant periods in the history of the …

Church Of The Brethren China Relief, Circa 2002, E. Joseph Wampler, D. Eugene Wampler

Digitized Primary Sources

This compiled manuscript details work by Church of the Brethren missionaries and relief workers in China from 1918 to 1951. Missionaries and relief workers include Ernest M. Wampler, nurse Elizabeth Baker Wampler, Dr. Frederick Jacob Wampler, Rebecca Skeggs Wampler, Nettie Mabelle Senger, and Howard E. Sollenberger.

Work chronicled here includes relief in a 1918 bubonic plague outbreak in the Shanxi province, care in the 1920 – 1921 Great Famine in Northern China, work with Chinese road builders, missionary Nettie Mabelle Senger’s wool cooperative, several of Howard Sollenberger’s projects, relief during the Sino-Japanese War, the 1942-43 Henan relief effort, and postwar …

Brethren Education In The Southeast, Paul Haynes Bowman

Brethren Education in the Southeast

An account of the educational endeavors among the Brethren people in the southeastern region, 1857-1955.

In commemoration of the 75th anniversary of Bridgewater College. Advisory committee, John S. Flory [and others].

Peter Nead's 1823-1824 Diary Edited By Glenna Lambert Blackburn, 1950, Peter Nead, Glenna Lambert Blackburn

Digitized Primary Sources

Edited transcript of traveling minister Peter Nead's diary arranged in booklet form. Edited with a preface by Glenna Lambert Blackburn. Compliments of Russell R. Lambert and Glenna. Includes tipped in letter and provenance note from Rev. Reuel B. Pritchett. Includes maps, "Virginia and West Virginia Counties Where Peter Nead Preached 1823-24," "Peter Nead's Journey July to December 16, 1823" and "Peter Nead's Journey April to August 5, 1824." Also includes a Calendar for the text.

Fifty Years Of Educational Endeavor, Bridgewater College

Fifty Years of Educational Endeavor

Bridgewater College 1880-1930

Daleville College 1890-1930

By a Staff of Alumni