Cultural History Commons^™

The Railsplitter And The Pathfinder: The Relationship Between Abraham Lincoln And John C. Frémont, Kourtney Yantis

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

This study serves as an analysis of the connections between Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States and John Charles Frémont as a Civil War general. Lincoln’s position within history is solid, unlike that of John C. Frémont. The thesis will elevate Frémont to a higher status as a historical figure by arguing that the emancipation edict that he issued for Missouri in August of 1861 would influence Abraham Lincoln’s preliminary emancipation proclamation of September 1862, even though Lincoln repealed Frémont’s decree. In biographies of each man, their interactions are merely a small part of the stories of their …

Working For The Benefit And Advancement Of Women: Three Women's Organizations That Commemorated The American Civil War, 1880-1920, Annette F. Guild

Masters Theses, 2020-current

In the past forty years, scholars and members of the public alike have obsessed over the complex legacy of the American Civil War (1861-1865). As debates over Confederate monuments and the United States’ racial past have frequently emerged in politics, many Americans have disagreed as to how the Civil War should be remembered. In examining the evolution of Civil War memory in American society, numerous scholars have noted the important role that women’s organizations played in influencing the Civil War’s collective memory in the fifty years following the conflict. However, while scholars have noted the significance of these organizations for …

No Happy Endings: Anna May Wong’S American Film Roles From 1931-1942, Kayla G. O'Leary

CSB and SJU Distinguished Thesis

In the 1930s and ‘40s, shifting relations with China, Japan, and the United States drastically impacted American public sentiment towards these Asian countries. US films produced during these decades starring Anna May Wong illuminate how harmful stereotypes about Chinese culture and people were portrayed on screen. I analyze five of Wong’s films from this period to examine how the gendered and racial stereotypes within them provide a cultural lens of changing US-Chinese relations. The stereotypical archetypes of her characters, which include the formidable Dragon Lady, helpless American citizen, and Chinese war hero, demonstrate how American perceptions of China and Chinese …

Weaponizing Ballet: An Episode In American Cold War Diplomacy, Remy Laray Naumann

Senior Projects Spring 2022

In October 1962, as American citizens were building bomb shelters in their backyards, the New York City Ballet toured the Soviet Union, receiving raving applause from Soviet audiences. The tour is just one example of the many ballet exchanges in the late 1950s and early 1960s between the United States and the Soviet Union. In these acts of cultural diplomacy, ballet companies became ideological weapons, selling their country's achievements to audiences abroad.

Tours such as the New York City Ballet’s 1962 trip have been acknowledged in analyses on cultural diplomacy between the US and Soviet Union in the Cold War …

“The Spirit Of Revolution:” The Impact Of Rum On The Formation Of The United States, Charles Streator

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores the impact of rum, be it the distillation, consumption, or trade of it, upon the formation of the American Revolution and the desire of American Colonists for independence. Through the analysis of three distinct subfactors: rum as an economic force, rum as a political tool, and the cultural and societal impacts of the rum trade and its subsequent removal from the American ethos, this project contends that rum as a commodity became a driving factor in the creation of the United States. While much has been written on the roles of stamps, sugar, and tea in the …

Mice Meet World: How Disney And Nintendo Allowed Consumers To Escape From, Re-Enter, And Later Re-Envision A War Torn World, Samantha Constantine

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis examines how Disney and Nintendo appealed to consumers in both the United States and Japan by celebrating ideals that spoke to consumer’s existing perceptions of national identity and national exceptionalism, particularly the dream of upward mobility. This thesis highlights four character traits that both the Japanese and Americans found heroic and that comprised the wider dream of upward mobility: hard work, perseverance, tenacity, and kindness. Through the immersive experiences that Disney and Nintendo provided, consumers became the heroes of their own journeys and brought these characteristics to life both in the fantasy worlds each company created and in …

The Private Navy Of The United States: The Effects Of Privateers On The War Of 1812, Anthony Green

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The declaration of war in June of 1812 brought more questions than it did answers for the United States. Economically, the government was not prepared to fund a war with multiple fronts. To make matters worse, the government’s primary source of income was through import duties, which they expected to decrease drastically as the war progressed. Militaristically, the United States Navy was too small to offer the protection that was needed from Britain, who possessed the world’s strongest navy at the time. Luckily for the United States, Congress in conjunction with President James Madison authorized privately owned ships to participate …

The Shanachie, Volume 30, Number 4, Connecticut Irish-American Historical Society

The Shanachie (CTIAHS)

This 16-page issue of our newsletter commemorates the 100th anniversary of the armistice which ended World War I just 100 years ago.

Contents: Connecticut's Irish in World War I --Hartford Red Cross nurse served amid bombardments --Sgt. Stubby and Cpl. Conroy went off to war --With roots in Canada, Lafferty got into the fight early --Picketing White House in wartime: patriotic or treason? --Ansonia native among nation’s first female sailors --Medals and monument honor Fair Haven Irish lads --Daring young men in their flying machines --Knights of Columbus offered soup and solace for friend and foe alike --Sailor from Roscommon …

Effects Of The United States Reconstruction On Nationalism In The Japanese Education System, Connell Murphy

Voces Novae

When the United States began its reconstruction of Japan after World War II, they consistently put their own interests within the country before what would benefit Japan the most . While the first two years of the occupation led to significant changes inside and outside schools, including the Ministry of Education’s diminished role, increased local involvement in the academic system, and the removal of nationalistic “morality” classes such as shushin. All of these changes were necessary efforts to denationalize and decentralize Japan’s educational system and allow more choices for teachers and schools. When Washington began to take an increased interest …

“After-Ozymandias”: The Colonization Of Symbols And The American Monument, H. R. Membreno-Canales

Theses and Dissertations

After-Ozymandias examines the visual rhetoric of American patriotism through its many symbols, including flags and monuments. My thesis project consists of photographs of empty plinths, objects, products and archival materials. Countless relics remain today memorializing leaders and empires that inevitably declined, from antiquity to modern times. Looking back at distant history feels like a luxury, though: the question for our time in America is whether we have the strength of mind as a society to scrutinize our history, warts and all.

Marching Morally Towards Equality: Perspective Of Bishop Richard Allen, Ernest M. Oleksy

The Downtown Review

The African American's struggle for equality is fraught with contributions from men and women of various ilk. Amongst these early abolitionists were naturalist Benjamin Banneker, freeman orator Frederick Douglass, and Bishop Richard Allen, who is the focus of this paper. Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, the author takes on the persona of the late Bishop speaking to a community of his fellow African Americans as he comments on timely events and characters and advises the listeners on a reasonable course of action.

Introduction To Richard Nixon And Europe : The Reshaping Of The Postwar Atlantic World, Luke A. Nichter

Presidential Studies Faculty Books and Book Chapters

The U.S.-European relationship remains the closest and most important alliance in the world. Since 1945, successive American presidents each put their own touches on transatlantic relations, but the literature has reached only into the presidency of Lyndon Johnson (1963-9). This first study of transatlantic relations during the era of Richard Nixon shows a complex, turbulent period during which the postwar period came to an end, and the modern era came to be on both sides of the Atlantic in terms of political, economic, and military relations.

Forward Myth: Military Public Relations And The Domestic Base Newspaper 1941-1981, Willie R. Tubbs

Dissertations

This dissertation explores the evolution of domestic military base newspapers from 1941-1981, a timeframe that encapsulates the Second World War, Korean War, and Vietnam War, as well as interwar and postwar years. While called “newspapers,” the United States military designed these publications to be a hybrid of traditional news and public relations. This dissertation focuses on three primary aspects of these newspapers: the evolution of the format, style, and function of these papers; the messages editors and writers crafted for and about the “common” soldier and American; and the messages for and about members of the non-majority group.

Sometimes printed …

Ms-200: The Gettysburg Superstar Collection, Devin Mckinney

All Finding Aids

The collection is arranged into three series: I. The Production (materials growing from the 1971 performances); II. The Reunion (materials relating to the Reunion Weekend event); and III. The Book (materials gathered during McKinney’s research and writing). Within these are subseries focusing on such items as research materials and notes; photographs and recordings; interview transcripts; and miscellany.

Special Collections and College Archives Finding Aids are discovery tools used to describe and provide access to our holdings. Finding aids include historical and biographical information about each collection in addition to inventories of their content. More information about our collections can be …

How Civility Works, Keith Bybee

Institute for the Study of the Judiciary, Politics, and the Media at Syracuse University

Is civility dead? Americans ask this question every election season, but their concern is hardly limited to political campaigns. Doubts about civility regularly arise in just about every aspect of American public life. Rudeness runs rampant. Our news media is saturated with aggressive bluster and vitriol. Our digital platforms teem with expressions of disrespect and trolls. Reflecting these conditions, surveys show that a significant majority of Americans believe we are living in an age of unusual anger and discord. Everywhere we look, there seems to be conflict and hostility, with shared respect and consideration nowhere to be found. In a …

Ms – 201: Hauser Collection Of Eisenhower Political Ephemera, Lauren H. Roedner

All Finding Aids

This collection comprises an assortment of President Dwight D. Eisenhower related political materials from the 1960s and 1970s. A few relate directly to the donor’s family (Hauser), but most do not. The collection is predominantly programs from Eisenhower-related events or dedications, a few pamphlets and photographs, and a few political bumper stickers from national elections. There is also the occasional item related to President Ronald Reagan or President Richard Nixon. This collection does not provide a wealth of information about or memorabilia from local politics or political events that Eisenhower attended.

Special Collections and College Archives Finding Aids are discovery …

Haiti And The Heavens: Utopianism And Technocracy In The Cold War Era, Adam M. Silvia

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined technocracy in Haiti in the Cold War era. It showed how Haitian and non-Haitian technicians navigated United States imperialism, Soviet ideology, and postcolonial nationalism to implement bold utopian visions in a country oppressed by poverty and dynastic authoritarianism. Throughout the mid-to-late twentieth century, technicians lavished Haiti with plans to improve the countryside, the city, the workplace, and the home. This study analyzed those plans and investigated the motivations behind them. Based on new evidence discovered in the private correspondence between Haitian, American, and Western European specialists, it questioned the assumption that technocracy was captivated by high-modernist ideology …

American Identity Crisis, 1789-1815: Foreign Affairs And The Formation Of American National Identity, George E. Best

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

When the Constitution was drafted in 1789, Americans did not have a sense of national identity. The process toward achieving a national identity was long and fraught with conflict. Some of the most influential events on the United States were foreign affairs. American reactions to these events reveal the gradual coalescence of national identity. The French Revolution was incredibly divisive and Americans defined their political views in relation to it. The wars spawned by it caused Great Britain and France to seize American ships believed to be carrying contraband. The American public took an active role in making its opinions …

‘Our Sentiments Of Sympathy For The Late Unwarranted, Cruel, And Barbarous Massacre’: The American Jewish Response To The Damascus Affair, Matt B. Darroch

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

By looking at four American Jewish meetings that were convened in the United States, this thesis seeks to understand why they would care about a handful of Jews in a faraway land (Damascus). In so doing, it militates against Jacob R. Marcus’ argument (which dominates the historiography) that holds that American Jews felt a special connection to Damascene Jews by virtue of their shared religion. Instead, this thesis argues the American Jewish attempt to rescue the Damascene Jews was informed by prevailing intellectual currents in Western society. A product of the culture of sensibility and Romanticism, American Jews had a …

History Abroad: How Do Denmark And The U.S. Measure Up?, Louis T. Gentilucci

Student Publications

By viewing bias itself as a product of history, educators and scholars can understand it better in their own times. By studying the historical path of the United States and Denmark, scholars can see that the nature of history can have subtle but important impacts on common education. Even when educators are aware of potential bias, history itself warps its dissemination.

Send In The Mouse, How American Politicians Used Walt Disney Productions To Safeguard The American Home Front In Wwii, Jordan Winters

Jordan Winters

Despite the success of Disney’s first full length featured film Snow White in 1937 , the animators’ strike of the late 1930s and the war in Europe cutting of international profits brought the Walt Disney Company was near bankruptcy by 1941. Walt Disney was faced with the possibility of closing down his studio. However, the entrance of the United States into WWII and the rising threat of the spread of Nazism became the saving grace to the Walt Disney Studio. This essay explores the collaborations between Disney, businessman and politician Nelson Rockefeller, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the 1940s. …

Camels In North America: The Effects Of Islam & Globalism On U.S. State Law, Connor H. Richardson

Student Publications

A paper detailing the introduction of camels to the U.S in the 1850s as part of an army experiment and their effect of Nevada's state laws.

The Impact Of World War Ii On Women's Fashion In The United States And Britain, Meghann Mason

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

World War II (hereafter referred to as WWII) is a fascinating era in fashion, society, and politics. The fashion of the era was truly representative of the events happening in the world in a most visible way. This era made indelible marks on future designers and the science of fashion as the world knows it. Fashion and costume design were influenced and changed due to the many limitations presented and imposed by WWII. WWII represents a great marker of change socially, technologically, economically, and politically. While it affected the entire world, the main focus of this thesis will explore the …

The History Of Ming-Qing Sino-Western Relations: Methods Of Archival Research Using Missionary Collections With A Case Study Of Taiyuan's Diocesan Records, Anthony E. Clark

History Faculty Scholarship

"Cultural Encounters in the Central Plain Region of China: Social Changes and Christianity along the Mid-and-Lower Stream of the Yellow River" The Ricci Institute for Chinese-Western Cultural History & Center for the Pacific Rim.

The Hall Of Fame For Great Americans: Organizational Comatosis Or Hibernation, William N. Thompson, M. Ernita Joaquin

Public Policy and Leadership Faculty Publications

The world’s first organization that has been specifically designated as a “Hall of Fame” was established in New York City in 1900. The Hall of Fame for Great Americans honors 102 Americans. It has served as a model for hundreds of other “halls of fame,” the most prominent being baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, established in 1939. While the Hall of Fame for Great Americans remains the original icon in a history of popular culture museums visited by millions each year, the Hall today is little known, visited by scant few, and in a state of both …

Mcdonald, Kitty (Sc 1645), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 1645. Three letters to Kitty McDonald, Woodburn, Kentucky and Lafayette, Tennessee concerning work, family and social activities. Also includes a 1904 receipt for eye care and her 1921 photograph.

The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints In National Periodicals, 1982-1990, Matthew E. Morrison

Theses and Dissertations

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has continued to receive exposure in national periodicals. This thesis will explore that image from 1982 to 1990. During those years, the church continued to grow in membership and expand its existing programs.

National periodicals can assist in assessing the public image of the Church because they help "mould public attitudes by presenting facts and views on issues in exactly the same way at the same time throughout the entire country." In this manner, they help to form the public opinion about the Church. They also reflect existing opinions because magazine publishers …

Bert Dutil: Washington D.C. Trip 1998, Bertrand A. Dutil

Scrapbooks

Photographs, postcards, brochures, and other mementos

Black Church Politics And The Million Man March, William E. Nelson Jr.

Trotter Review

October 16, 1995 will be recorded as one of the most important days in the political history of African Americans in the United States. This day witnessed the largest mass political demonstration in the history of this nation—the assemblage of more than 1.2 million African-American men in Washington, D.C. under the banner of the Million Man March. Both the size and the overt political objectives of the march set it firmly apart from the pallid, feeble demonstrations in Washington led by the NAACP in the 1980s; in its size and character, the march echoed the focus on power and system …

Signs Of Culture: Deafness In Nineteenth-Century America, Rebecca A. Rourke '90

Fenwick Scholar Program

While there is an abundance of research on twentieth-century manifestations of Deaf culture, the nineteenth-century roots have been largely overlooked. The creation of residential schools for the deaf gave the Deaf population a place to meet and share ideas, for the first time in American history. The close and sustained contact generated cultural development. This thesis addresses the development of a cultural identity among the Deaf population by attempting to compare the experiences and opinions of the Deaf and hearing communities as they existed in nineteenth-century America.