Digital Commons Network^™

Billy Bowlegs (Holata Micco) In The Civil War (Part Ii), Kenneth W. Porter

Florida Historical Quarterly

Elias Rector as an ardent partisan of the Confederacy, must have particularly wished in subsequent years that his report of Billy Bowleg’s death had been more than just a rumor, for Bowlegs was one of the principal chiefs of the Five Civilized Tribes who supported the Union in the Civil War. Although a number of Seminole chiefs, along with representatives of all the other Civilized Tribes, were bullied or cajoled into signing a treaty with the Confederacy, before the war was over it was estimated that two-thirds of the Seminole Indians and practically all their Negroes were within the Union …

Federal Expedition Against Saint Marks Ends At Natural Bridge, Edwin C. Bearss

Florida Historical Quarterly

In the last year of the Civil War, the Union forces took advantage of their seapower to carry the conflict to sections of Florida that had heretofore escaped the ravages of war. Operating from bases which they had seized along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of the state, Union columns would strike deep into the interior and fall back before the Confederates could rally a force strong enough to intervene. Raiding parties were likewise put ashore from transports. If they ran into serious opposition, the raiders would fall back to the beach, where they would be covered by the great …

Billy Bowlegs (Holata Micco) In The Seminole Wars (Part I), Kenneth W. Porter

Florida Historical Quarterly

If a group of informed Americans were asked to name a Seminole chief, it is likely that most of them would reply “Osceola.” If asked to recall a second Florida Indian, at least a majority of those responding would name “Billy Bowlegs.” The second choice would be more accurate, for Osceola was a Seminole only by adoption - being by birth a Red Stick Creek from Georgia or Alabama who came to Florida at about the age of ten. He was not a chief by hereditary right, whereas Billy Bowlegs, to use his common white-man’s nickname, was what an army …

Drake Destroys St. Augustine: 1586, James W. Covington

Florida Historical Quarterly

Sir Francis Drake, scourge of the Spanish Main, came to Florida and destroyed St. Augustine in 1586. Judging from other battles that took place during Drake’s swing through Spain’s Caribbean empire, the Florida episode was a relatively minor affair. St. Augustine at the time was a small out-of-the-way village of about 300 persons with its only defense the small outpost, San Juan de los Pinillos. In contrast to the splendid buildings, numerous soldiers, and excellent defenses of Santo Domingo and Cartagena, St. Augustine was not very important. But in defensive tactics and in its use of manpower, the Florida town …

The Man Who Was Pedro Menendez, Albert Manucy

Florida Historical Quarterly

Four sixteenth century sources are the basis for most of the knowledge that we have about Pedro Menendez de Aviles. They include archival manuscripts, biographies by two of his contemporaries, and a priest’s journal of the voyage to Florida. Titian painted him by order of Philip II, and the portrait engraving so often reproduced is based on the painting. He is not a handsome man; his head is small, held quite erect; dark hair, half curly despite a rather close cut, frames a high, round forehead. The beard is also trimmed short. His nose is overlong and the mouth too …

Aftermath Of Military Reconstruction, 1868-1869, Ralph L. Peek

Florida Historical Quarterly

The military reconstruction of Florida ended on July 4, 1868, with ratification of a new constitution and the election of Harrison Reed as governor, William Gleason as lieutenant governor, and Charles Hamilton as congressman. A state legislature with a large Republican majority in both houses was also elected.

The Indian River Settlement: 1842-1849, Joseph D. Cushman, Jr.

Florida Historical Quarterly

No section of the Territory of Florida suffered more than the east coast as a result of Indian deprecations during the Seminole War. The flourishing sugar plantations of the Halifax country were reduced to charred ruins, the tiny port of New Smyrna was entirely deserted, and the infant citrus industry suffered a staggering setback just as it was beginning to show signs of prosperity. After seven years of fighting, many Floridians gravely doubted the truth of General William Worth’s pontifical pronouncement that the Seminole conflict would be “officially” terminated on August 12, 1842. The settlers were alarmed at the naivete …

Space-Praxis: Towards A Feminist Politics Of Design, Mary C. Overholt

Masters of Environmental Design Theses

Outside of the academy and professionalized practice, design has long been central to the production of feminist, political projects. Taking what I have termed space-praxis as its central analytic, this project explores a suite of feminist interventions into the built environment—ranging from the late 1960s to present day.

Formulated in response to Michel de Certeau’s theory of spatial practices, space-praxis collapses formerly bifurcated definitions of ‘tactic’/‘strategy’ and ‘theory’/‘practice.’ It gestures towards those unruly, situated undertakings that are embedded in an ever-evolving, liberative politics. In turning outwards, away from the so-called masters of architecture, this thesis orients itself toward everyday practitioners …

Memories From The Great War: An Analysis Of Jackson Purchase Veterans’ Changes In Perspective Since 1914, David Wallace

Honors College Theses

The First World War affected the lives of millions, creating collective memories of hardships, uncertainty, political tension, and animosity toward foreign enemies. In the United States, World War I was a turning point in the nation’s growth and development, but on a smaller scale it was a critical historical moment in the individual lives of the veterans who served. This research project showcases the experiences of the Jackson Purchase’s WWI veterans with an emphasis on their perceptions during the war, their reasons for enlisting, the countless once-in-a-lifetime experiences they had along the way, the hardships they faced, and the remarkable …

Journeying To A Third Space Of Sovereignty: Explorations Of Land, Cultural Hybridity, And Sovereignty In Ceremony And There There, Jillian Eve Sanchez

English (MA) Theses

In Native American literature, there is a discourse that solely focuses on the relationship between Indigenous people and the land. This relationship is vital to understanding the traditions, rituals, storytelling, and practices of Native Americans. The presence of settler colonialism changes the relationship, effectively changing the nature of cultural and spiritual relationships as well. Indigenous literature provides examples of the modern relationship Native people have with their land; an example of this is Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony and Tommy Orange’s There There Despite modernity, assimilation, and ways of life introduced by settler colonialism, Native people maintain a relationship to the …

The United States And Portuguese Angola: Space, Race, And The Cold War In Africa, Alex J. Marino

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an international history of the role of the United States in the process of decolonization in Angola, a former colony of Portugal. I argue that the United States embraced Portugal, Angola, and neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo as irreplaceable Cold War allies. Decolonization in Africa challenged America’s relationship with all three countries, as competing forces within the American public called for Washington to adopt an anti-colonial, anti- racist ideology, while others demanded their government to support white supremacy at home and abroad. Decolonization in Angola, a protracted liberation struggle that started in 1961 and lasted until 1974, …

Failoure On All Fronts: The United States Army In The First Year Of The War Of 1812, Gary H. Nobbs Jr.

History Theses

The United States declared war on the United Kingdom in the hopes of defending the nation's national honor. However, the United States Army was unprepared to go wage war. The army's supply system, militia system, and field commanders failed and led to a disastrous first year of conflict.

Positive Rhetoric, Prejudiced Policy: The Contradiction Of Islamophobia In American Government After 9-11., Molly Bilz

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Following the tragic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, local and national leaders responded to the security crisis by uniting the country under the American ideals of freedom and democracy while condemning the Islamic terrorist group responsible. With beliefs rooted in historical American and European prejudice, Western scholarship promoted a “clash of civilizations” between Islam and the West wherein the cultures’ supposed irreconcilable differences would inevitably lead to warfare. Simultaneously, many Americans grew suspicious of Muslims after the attacks, including government officials. As hate crimes against Muslim and Middle Eastern Americans soared in the U.S., government leaders used positive rhetoric …

Ephemeral Existence: Tracing Early Twentieth Century Tattoos And Perceptions Of Identity Within The New Orleans Police Department Mugshot Collection, Kaylie M. Mccarthy

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

People have long used tattoos as markers of identification. However, there remain limited scholarly studies on the history of tattoos within the city of New Orleans. This thesis argues that through analysis of the tattoos recorded in the New Orleans Police Department Mugshot Collection, it is possible to situate the early twentieth century arrested population within a greater societal context, allowing for the intimate details of individual lives and personal stories to come to the forefront. Through the synthesis of demographic data from the 152 mugshots that pertain to tattooed arrestees, and three case studies on arrestees with patriotic, nautical, …

The United States And Its Coercive Democratization Attempts In Japan And Iraq, Noah Shepardson

College Honors Program

The United States engaged in coercive democratization (bringing democracy to a country via coercive measures such as occupation) endeavors in both Japan and Iraq, achieving drastically different results. The democratization of Japan is typically regarded as the gold standard of coercive democratization due to Japan’s rapid social and economic development following the United States’ occupation of the country in the years after World War II. The United States’ democratization effort in Iraq, on the other hand, has failed to create such prosperous conditions and has arguably made Iraq more unstable. This thesis seeks to identify why coercive democratization worked in …

They Done A Very Bad Act: Rape In The Civil War And Reconstruction, Nora Elizabeth Grace Williams

Student Scholarship

In this project, the interdisciplinary use of sociology, feminist philosophy, and Southern historiography combine to provide a more complete analysis of rape in the Civil War and 3 Reconstruction than previously discussed in other scholarly works. Each discipline provides a valuable piece to the larger picture. This research examines antebellum gender norms, the intersection of race and gender, the impact of slavery on Black women’s sexuality and agency, the weaponization of rape in war, and the impact of Klan violence on Black communities during Reconstruction. Additionally, this research proposes explanations for how the nature of war created an environment in …

Restoring Balance – Reconstructing Indigenous Strategies In King Philip’S War, William G. Merritt

Honors Program Theses and Projects

King Philip’s War (1675 – 1678) was one of several "Indian Wars" in 17^th-century colonial America. It was also referred to as “the first Indian war." However, there had been a previous conflict known as The Pequot War (1636 – 1638). Unlike the previous war and unrelated skirmishes over the years, King Philip’s War was a regional conflict that quickly spread throughout coastal and interior Native homelands in what is now called New England. While issues that caused the war built up over decades, the war formally began on the 25th of June,1675, when a band of Pauquunaukit …

Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story? A Marxist Analysis Of "Hamilton" And Its Relationship To The Broadway Economic System, Alana Ritt

Honors Projects

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mega-hit Hamilton: An American Musical has been both a critical and academic darling since its premiere in 2015. A historical retelling of America’s inception through the eyes of an oft-ignored founding father, the musical weaves together a diverse cast and hip-hop musical stylings in order to tell the story of “America then, as told by America now.” While many critics and scholars alike have praised the musical for putting an exciting and accessible twist to American history, others have argued that the musical is not nearly as “revolutionary” as it claims to be. This essay is designed to …

Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story? A Marxist Analysis Of "Hamilton" And Its Relationship To The Broadway Economic System, Alana Ritt

Honors Projects

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mega-hit Hamilton: An American Musical has been both a critical and academic darling since its premiere in 2015. A historical retelling of America’s inception through the eyes of an oft-ignored founding father, the musical weaves together a diverse cast and hip-hop musical stylings in order to tell the story of “America then, as told by America now.” While many critics and scholars alike have praised the musical for putting an exciting and accessible twist to American history, others have argued that the musical is not nearly as “revolutionary” as it claims to be. This essay is designed to …

Teaching The Lessons Of The Vietnam War And Applying Them To The War In Afghanistan: Lesson Plans For A Sophomore Us History Class, Zoe Bond

Honors Projects

This project is a series of lesson plans for a 10^th grade US History class detailing the lessons of the Vietnam War and how they have and haven’t been used by President Obama in his decisions during the War in Afghanistan. The lesson plan uses Differentiation and Universal Design for Learning to accommodate every student in the class. The goal of this project was to teach original research in a way that promotes inquiry even if there is no correct answer at that time.

Actions Above Words: A Biography Of Vice Admiral Clifton “Ziggy” Sprague, John Kirwan

Undergraduate Theses

Among the many larger than life and fascinating figures of the Second World War, one who is seldom spoken of is the late Vice Admiral Clifton A.F. "Ziggy" Sprague. A quiet man from New England, Admiral Sprague was an accomplished pilot, administrator, and commander. From service during the First World War to assisting in the testing of nuclear devices following the end of the Second World War, Sprague was a force behind the scenes. He was devoted to his profession and refused to play the political game those above him did, preferring that his actions speak greater volumes than any …

Military Operations On The St. Johns, September-October, 1862 (Part Ii) The Federals Capture St. Johns Bluff, Edwin C. Bearss

Florida Historical Quarterly

All of Brigadier General John M. Brannan’s Union soldiers and their arms, horses, and rations had reached shore by 9 p.m., October 1, 1862. Among the first units to land were sixty troopers of the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry. The horsemen spent the afternoon and early evening reconnoitering.

Book Reviews, Florida Historical Society

Florida Historical Quarterly

Reviews of Evolution of a Federalist, William Loughton Smith of Charleston (1758-1812). By George C. Rogers, Jr. (Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1962. xiv, 439 pp. Preface, charts, bibliography, index. $8.00.); Jefferson and the Ordeal of Liberty. By Dumas Malone. (Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1962. xxx, 545 pp. $7.50.); Ante-Bellum Southern Literary Critics. By Edd Winfield Parks. (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1962. 259 pp. $7.50.); The African Colonization Movement, 1816-1865. By P. J. Staudenraus. (New York: Columbia University Press, 1961. ix, 323 pp. Appendix, bibliography, index. $6.00.); McClellan, Sherman and Grant. By T. Harry Williams. (New Brunswick: …

Book Reviews, Florida Historical Society

Florida Historical Quarterly

Reviews of Travels with Charley, In Search of America. By John Steinbeck. (New York: The Viking Press, 1962. 246 pp. $4.95.); Cycles of Conquest. By Edward H. Spicer. (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1962. xii, 609 pp. Illustrations, maps, bibliography, index. $ 12.50.); The Colonial Records of South Carolina, Series I: Journal of the Commons House of Assembly, March 28, 1749-March 19 1750. Edited by J. Harold Easterby and Ruth S. Green. (Columbia: South Carolina Archives Department, 1962. 490 pp. Preface and index. $12.50.); The Department of War, 1781 - 1795. By Harry M. Ward. (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, …

Memoir Of A West Pointer In Florida: 1825, Cecil D. Eby, Jr.

Florida Historical Quarterly

In the early summer of 1825 the group of Seminoles relegated to the Big Swamp area of central Florida by the treaty of Moultrie Creek, signed two years before, were subjected to a drought so severe that nearly their whole crop was destroyed. Forced to subsist upon game, the Indians obtained permission from Major Gad Humphreys, their agent at the post that later became known as Fort King, to send hunting parties beyond the boundaries of their reservation to the north. While the incursion of Indian hunters into territories belonging legally to white settlers was absolutely necessary for the survival …

Lincoln's Courier: John L. Worden's Mission To Fort Pickens, James P. Jones

Florida Historical Quarterly

The spring of 1861 was a time of decision-making for the newly installed Lincoln administration. First on the agenda was the reinforcement and supply of Ft. Sumter, but an equally grave problem involved Ft. Pickens in Pensacola harbor. For several months a truce arranged between two members of President Buchanan’s cabinet and Confederate military authorities had been in force. This truce was an agreement not to reinforce Pickens if the Confederates promised not to attack. By March, 1861, Lincoln, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles, and General Winfield Scott were growing concerned over the Pensacola situation. The Pickens garrison remained …

The English Invasion Of Spanish Florida, 1700-1706, Charles W. Arnade

Florida Historical Quarterly

Though Florida had been discovered by Ponce de Leon in 1513, not until 1565 did it become a Spanish province in fact. In that year Pedro Menendez de Aviles was able to establish a permanent capital which he called St. Augustine. Menendez and successive executives had plans to make St. Augustine a thriving metropolis ruling over a vast Spanish colony that might possibly be elevated to a viceroyalty. Nothing of this sort happened. By 1599 Florida was in desperate straits: Indians had rebelled and butchered the Franciscan missionaries, fire and flood had made life in St. Augustine miserable, English pirates …

The Editor's Corner, Florida Historical Society

Florida Historical Quarterly

Father Jerome of St. Leo’s Abbey, St. Leo, Florida, sends us an interesting note relating the pro’s and con’s of the dispute centering about the identity of the first Catholic Bishop of Florida, and a document which he assures us provides “a definite silencing of the dispute.” The search for this documentary proof led Father Jerome to the Library of Congress, the Hispanic Society of America, and to the Franciscan archives in Washington - all without success.

Lawlessness In Florida, 1848-1871, Ralph L. Peek

Florida Historical Quarterly

The clash of ideologies, conflicts over rights and status, and a struggle for power, all of which have marked man’s efforts to achieve a society satisfactory to himself, created an intense conflict in Florida during the years of Reconstruction, particularly in the period 1868-1871, In this bloody struggle the issue at stake was the possession of local, state, and national political and economic power, and this issue was colored and made more complex by social and racial elements, including the most virulent race hatred. The incipient conflict, created by the aftermath of war and the Reconstruction Acts of 1867, flared …

The Spanish Conquest Of British West Florida, 1779-1781, Albert W. Haarmann

Florida Historical Quarterly

Florida passed to British control in 1763 with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. A Royal Proclamation on October 7 of that year established West Florida as a colony and Pensacola was designated as its capital.