Arts and Humanities Commons^™

"A Consummation Devoutly To Be Wished": Finding A Place For Jefferson Davis In Kentucky's Historical Memory, Lori Latham

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Situated near the original location of the birthplace and childhood home of Jefferson Davis, the Jefferson Davis State Historic Site in Fairview, Kentucky, houses a 351-foot tall obelisk, completed in 1924, along with a modest museum, gift shop, playground, and picnic area. At the site’s museum, visitors receive an innocuous and seemingly uncontroversial lesson about Davis, the statesman, since most of the interpretive panels focus on Davis’s role as a public servant before becoming the only president of the Confederate States of America. Thus, the museum misses a critical opportunity to engage visitors in a dialogue about the monument’s meaning …

Poverty, Flooding & Grassroots Organizing: An Analysis Of The War On Poverty & The 1977 Flood In Central Appalachia, Brooklyn Lile

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

There is a long history of environmental exploitation and disastrous flooding in Central Appalachia. The region has long been plagued by exploitative practices such as strip mining and mountaintop removal which have stripped vegetation from land, leading to more disastrous floods and more frequent floods. With repeated floods comes a vicious cycle of substantial damage and destruction, as well as inadequate time and resources for full recovery before the next flood strikes. Consequently, floods and poverty have been cyclical, interlinked, and inseparable. Thus, this paper explores the relationship between poverty, flooding, and relief by analyzing the connections between the War …

When Russia Gets Tired Of Them, They Sell Them To Us: The Russian Five, Us Russophobia, & Cold War Rhetoric After 1991, John Elam

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Through a case study of the Russian Five, the five Soviet-born hockey players who joined the Detroit Red Wings in the 1990s, this thesis offers insights into Russophobic beliefs and sentiment based upon historical memory of the Cold War. Through a loose chronological framework, this thesis considers the background of the Soviet hockey system for contextualization, and looks at the experiences of former Soviet hockey players from their arrival in north America in 1989 through the end of the twentieth century. An analysis of television broadcasts, newspapers, magazines, documentaries, and interviews, demonstrates that American citizens continued to promote Russophobic sentiment …

Autherine Lucy & The University Of Alabama Integration At U Of A 1952-1956, Tamera Lott

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the University of Alabama was chartered in 1820 and is Alabama’s oldest public university. Prior to 1956, the University was segregated; admission was limited to white men and women. On February 3, 1965, Miss Autherine Lucy stepped foot on campus for the first time to attend classes at the University; history was made as she was the first African American present. Lucy’s attendance stirred conflict throughout campus and the state of Alabama. Unbeknownst to many, Lucy’s attendance garnered both national and international attention. The central argument here is that Lucy’s experiences at the University of Alabama …

Reconstruction Embattled: The Memphis Race Massacre Of 1866 In The Press And Tennessee's First Year Of Interracial Democracy.", Morgan Nicole Baxter

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The racial violence that occurred in Memphis, Tennessee on the first three days of May 1866 was no sudden accident. Following the abolition of slavery and the fall of the Confederacy, race riots and racial violence in general intensified as a result of fluctuating race relations in southern states whose social hierarchies were built upon the degradation and supposed inferiority of blacks. The Memphis Massacre of 1866 was one such expression of white anger and bitterness over the disenfranchisement of former Confederates, the increasing numbers of educated, wealthy blacks coming into Memphis, and the disturbance of the old status quo …

The Common Man And The Rise Of The Anabaptist Kingdom Of Munster, 1534-1535, Andrew Roebuck

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This essay studies the causes of the rise of the Anabaptist Kingdom of Munster, with special emphasis on the actions and agency of the common people. The analysis begins with the two main primary sources, Hermann von Kerssenbrock and Henry Gresbeck, whose accounts provide firsthand knowledge of how events in Munster led to the Anabaptist takeover. Care is taken to read beyond some of the biases and assumptions made by those authors to gain the clearest insight for what really happened.

The essay looks at Anabaptism itself, including what it meant to be Anabaptist from the perspectives of participants and …

Dark Days In The Ohio Valley: Three Western Kentucky Lynchings, 1884-1911, Woodrow Wilson Maglinger, Iii

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This thesis investigates three lynchings of African Americans in Progressive-Era western Kentucky. The first occurred in Owensboro. In July 1884, a masked mob at-tacked the Daviess County jail. Richard May, an African-American field hand, had been incarcerated for the alleged sexual assault of a local farmer’s daughter. During the lynch mob’s actions that claimed May’s life, the white county jailer was killed protecting his prisoner. Ironically, just two decades earlier Jailer William Lucas had fought for the Confederate States of America during the Civil War.

In nearby Hawesville in September 1897, Raymond Bushrod was also arrested on suspicion of raping …

The Greens Of Falls Of Rough: A Kentucky Family Biography 1795-1965, Hugh Ridenour

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of writing about the Greens of Falls of Rough is to record the extraordinary lives of three generations of a prominent, but somewhat neglected, Kentucky family that contributed greatly to the history of the Commonwealth. This family’s activities parallel that history in social, economic and political aspects from the state’s inception to the 1960s.

In addition, this thesis should alleviate a pervasive misunderstanding regarding the identity of Willis Green, founder of the Greens of Falls of Rough. Mr. Green, a prominent Kentuckian in his own right, has been confused with another Kentuckian, a Willis Green of Danville. The …

The Athens Of The West: Education In Nashville, 1780-1860, Timothy Augustus Sweatman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Nashville, Tennessee, is known as the Athens of the South because of its reputation as a center of learning. The city’s commitment to education goes back to the days of its founding as a village on the extreme Western frontier of the United States. In 1785, five years after Nashville was first settled, Davidson Academy, an advanced classical school, was established. At the same time, numerous private schools operated in the Nashville area, providing many of the region’s children with a basic education.

During the first quarter of the nineteenth century Nashville moved closer to becoming a major educational center. …

The Termination Of The Quickening Doctrine: American Law, Society, And The Advent Of Professional Medicine In The Nineteenth Century, Beth Gibson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The moment life began was defined at the beginning of the nineteenth century by the mother's awareness of fetal movement. That moment was called quickening. The common law of England and of the early United States embraced quickening. Prior to quickening abortion was legally and socially benign. Abortion was a non-issue, for life was not considered to exist before the fetus was quick — which usually occurs in the fourth or fifth month of gestation. At the early stages of fetal development there was no difference between terminating pregnancy and simply restoring menses. By the end of the nineteenth century, …

Effectively Radiated Powers: The Cultural Impact Of Media On A Kentucky Community, William Drury

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This thesis chronicles the development of Henderson and its media. Unlike most pioneering towns that sprung up west of the Allegheny and Appalachian Mountains during the 18th century, Henderson assumed a unique position in the development of the Midwest as an important and major tobacco port, as an agricultural conduit to the North and industrial path to the South. and as an outpost of trade to the West. A clearer picture of its aggressive nature becomes evident by tracing the hard-fought beginnings of the region. As Henderson grew in importance, so did its lust grow for excitement and entertainment. Compared …

Folk Custom As A Barometer Of Social Change In A Tennessee Community, Chad Berry

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Using the techniques of oral history, residents of the Cypress Creeks area of southwestern middle Tennessee were questioned about their perceptions of the social change since 1940. In that year, the National Park Service hired men in the area to help snake out logs for the Natchez Trace Parkway's right-of-way. For most men in the area, the temporary positions on the Trace were the first "public" jobs they ever had. After these positions were no longer needed, outmigration brought residents north to factory-cities; thus, the building of the parkway remains a watershed in residents' memories as the benchmark when change …

The Works Progress Administration In Daviess County, Kentucky, 1935-1943, Shelia Heflin

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) aided 8.5 million people across the United States during its existence WPA projects in Daviess County, Kentucky, admirably served as an example of the way national laws and regulations filtered down and worked in a single county. The federal program touched the lives of a variety of Daviess Countians in a positive manner. Blue collar workers, white collar workers, women, slacks, and even people involved with the arts received jobs through this program. Local WPA projects illustrate the various jobs obtained by needy men and women from the relief rolls. The WPA aided these local …

Expressions Of Grief In South Central Kentucky, 1870-1910, Sue Lynn Arnold

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Through the ages, survivors have experienced loss due to the deaths of their contemporaries. Between 1870 and 1910, the people of south central Kentucky (Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Logan, Monroe, Simpson and Warren counties) used significant expressions of grief. Combining oral history with primary correspondence, journals, scrapbooks and mementos, this study determines the importance that area residents placed on deathbed accounts, the care given the deceased's body, the funeral service, obituaries, resolutions of respect, memorial poetry, condolence letters, photography, memorial cards and pictures, hair wreaths, mourning attire and jewelry, the gravesite, and the tombstone. In almost every instance, south central …

Caroline Gordon: A Sense Of Place, Frances Perdue

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Place, as it transcends the immediate setting of a work, is an essential element of Caroline Gordon’s early novels. She looks to the past and to the region of her birth to focus on the traditional South. She shows her characters’ changing attitudes toward the Cavalier Myth, a view that promotes the value of the land, the patriarchal family, and an anachronistic code of honor. To them, the South is unique, and they resist all efforts to change this “given social order.” However, Gordon begins to recognize that change is inevitable. Thus, she reveals her characters’ succumbing to the rising …

A History Of The Bowling Green Fire Department: A Look At Two Traditional Methodologies, Edward Mccurley

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The history of the Bowling Green, Kentucky, Fire Department is presented through the use of two methodologies. Traditional historical methodology has been applied to compile the first ninety years of history while traditional folklore fieldwork--the collection of personal narratives through interviews--has been applied to compile the last fifty-six years, concluding with 1970. Six years, from 1914 to 1920, reflect the blending of the two methodologies.

The personal narratives used in this study are those of Assistant Chief Harold Hazelip, who joined the fire department in 1952. Recognized informally as the department's historian, Hazelip's recollections include his own personal experiences as …

A Sourcebook For The Interpretation Of Traditional Dance By Outdoor Museums & Historic Sites, Jan Alm

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Folklife scholars often produce work which is valuable to outdoor museums and historic sites. Folklife scholars deal with functional, contextual, emic, and interdisciplinary studies--all approaches which produce valuable interpretive data for museums and sites. This thesis is an example of folklife work designed for use in the museum field.

Outdoor museums and historic sites are increasingly involved with the interpretation of social and emotional life. Because it is a social and emotional event, dance can be a valuable part of this interpretation.

Sites and museums developing programs of traditional dance interpretation may find it helpful to follow several steps: 1.) …

The American Liberalism Of Eleanor Roosevelt, Janet Wolfe

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A biographical study of the life of Eleanor Roosevelt was undertaken to explore the various obstacles she was required to overcome as she grew to become an influential figure in the world of liberal politics. During the New Deal years her influence was most visible as she traveled across the country and relayed to her husband the concerns of the average man. As a delegate to the United Nations, after the death of her husband, Eleanor's devotion toward attaining a United Nations which would keep peace among all nations and her ability to carry out tasks in a patient and …

The 1938 Kentucky Senate Election: Alben Barkley, The New Deal & The Defeat Of Governor A.B. "Happy" Chandler, Walter Hixson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Analysis showed that the 1938 Kentucky State primary became the focal point of a national political struggle over the New Deal. The Kentucky campaign was the most significant of the mid-term elections which represented a major test of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's political strength. Senate Majority Leader Alben W. Barkley gave unwavering support to Roosevelt and the New Deal while his opponent, Kentucky Governor Albert B. Chandler, represented conservative Democrats who sought to wrest control of the party from Roosevelt. The clash of two powerful Kentucky politicians and the widespread use of federal and state patronage distinguished the campaign. Barkley's …

Cincinnati Theater 1918-1919: A Season Of Burlesque, Vaudeville & Legitimate Entertainment, Paul Thomas

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The legitimate theater, vaudeville, and burlesque presentations that composed the 1918-1919 theatrical season in Cincinnati, Ohio, were investigated. In order to understand the business practices that brought performers and productions to the Queen City, a study of the various entertainment circuits and the power brokers who controlled them was included. Cincinnati and its climate for professional entertainment in 1918-1919 also warranted attention. Such items as the theaters that housed the entertainment, the transportation systems that brought patrons to the entertainment, and the competition that rivaled the entertainment were probed so hat the foundations of the 1918-1919 season might he understood. …

Mordecai F. Ham: Southern Fundamentalist, Kenneth Russell Ii

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Mordecai Fowler Ham, Jr. (1877-1961), a Kentucky bred, Southern Baptist evangelist, was an active participant in both the prohibition and fundamentalist movements. His career was characterized by disagreement and conflict due to Ham's defiance toward anyone who did not profess his style of Christianity.

A true product of the period in which he lived, Ham fought modernism and evolution zealously. He also preached against the use and sale of alcohol and dared liquor supporters to challenge his position. He was convinced as well that Jews, blacks, and Haman Catholics posed a potential threat to Christian America, and he monitored their …

Tinsley Bottom Tennessee: An Historical Reconstruction Utilizing Oral Narrative Traditions, Rebecca Morse

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Tinsley Bottom lies adjacent to the Cumberland River in Jackson and Clay Counties in north central Tennessee. The rich rolling bottomland totaling approximately two thousand acres on the south bank of the Cumberland River lured several families to purchase land and take residence there in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

The history of Tinsley Bottom is not found in written records or annals of Tennessee history. No person of reknown sprang from the cultural context of this community. Yet tales are told of how Daniel Boone hunted in the Bottom and slept in a cave overlooking the River, and …

The Pragmatic Evolution Of America & The Role Of The Intellectual, Michael Draper

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The intent of this thesis is to examine a portion of the thought and historical events which contributed to the development of the United States as a pragmatic nation, and the resulting influence upon its intellectual attitudes. The pragmatic evolution of America is a logical consequence, given the backgrounds and circumstances of those people who first settled this land. The founders of this country were, for the most part, members of the poor, working class who had grown up under governments adhering to strict caste societies and religious domination by their rulers. They held a common belief in a work …

A Kentucky Dressmaker, Mrs. A.H. (Carrie) Taylor: An Examination Of Her Role In Fashion At The Turn Of The Century, Janice Centers

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

One dressmaker, Mrs. A. H. Taylor of Bowling Green, Kentucky, was studied in order to draw attention to the role of the dressmaker in American fashion. A biography of Mrs. A. H. Taylor and the business history were compiled; available designs were analyzed in relation to current fashion; and an investigation of the business organization was made. It was found that the dressmaking establishment played an important role in the lives of women of that time period. Fashionable custom fit clothing was made available to local residents and to mail-order customers. The establishment was one of the few businesses which …

“They Made Us Dance In The Pig Trough!” Mrs. Blanche Story’S Oral Accounts Of Dating, Courtship, Marriage And Sexual Attitudes In Northcentral Nebraska, 1885-1910, Gayle Waggoner

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Oral recollections concerning dating, courtship, marriage and related attitudes were collected from a single informant, Mrs. Blanche Story of Butte, Nebraska. Through in-depth questioning during twelve tape-recorded interview sessions, value- and attitude-oriented accounts were secured for the years 1885 to 1910, the late frontier period in northcentral Nebraska. These detailed reminiscences focus on common life experiences related to interpersonal relationships and the institutions related to them, resulting in a personal or folk history. The single greatest problem in research was the lack of documentation for the attitudinal content of the texts. Corroboration of both specific information and broad patterns of …

The Married Women's Property Act, 1882: A Study Of Victorian Reform, Charles Norbert

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The major purpose of this thesis was to analyze and evaluate the development of the Married Women's Property Act of 1882. This Act exemplified the effort to improve the rights of women in nineteenth century Britain. Similar to the series of Reform Acts, the series of Married Women's Property Acts (1870, 1874, 1882 and 1893) represented the gradual extension of the tenets of Victorian liberalism to a broader portion of the English population. The unique feature of these Acts was that they marked the transcendence of liberalism over sexual barriers.

In order to understand the significance of these Acts it …

The Paper Repertoire Of The Students In One Elementary School, Ruby Rufty

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This collection project is concerned with traditional paper objects made by students in fifteen classes in one elementary school in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Chapter I describes the school and classroom environments and the procedures followed during the collection project. Chapter II differentiates between the play and ornamental items collected, describes the different items and their variants made by the students, and attempts to show what persons (relatives, teachers, other children) or other factors (mass media, the students' environment) affected the paper items made by students. Chapter III statistically evaluates the collected paper items according to the sex, race, and grade …

The Oral Folk History Surrounding The Life Of William Bernard "Big Six" Henderson, Peggy Boaz

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The oral folk history of William Bernard "Big Six" Henderson is unique in that Henderson himself has been a contributing factor in keeping the tales of his moonshining experiences in the oral traditions of distinct areas of Kentucky, especially Cumberland County. Interviewing Henderson and apprehended and non-apprehended moonshiners allowed speculation into the concept that Henderson was indeed a folk hero. Using Dixon Wector's requirements for heroes, the hero performing unselfish service, acquiring a nickname, obtaining sympathy for handicaps, struggles, and failures, and reaching hero status after death, and providing examples of Henderson's encounters with moonshiners, verifies Henderson's hero status, except …

A Study Of The Political Activity Of Mexican University Students, Angela Rodriguez Fernandez

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

An overview of the political activity of Mexican university

students during the 1968 disturbances in Mexico was compared with data

taken from a 1964 attitudinal survey conducted by the International

Research Associates, Incorporated of university students from nine

Mexican universities in an attempt to find possible trends and attitudes

that could have predicted the 1968 and subsequent riots. The population

for the analysis came from three of the nine universities based on the

levels of activity shown during the 1968 riots ranging from most active

to least active. Three main variables; activism as of 1968, ideological

self-designation as of 1964 …

An Interpretation Of The Florida Ex-Slaves' Memories Of Slavery & The Civil War, Dianna Zacharias

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study is an analysis and interpretation of oral folk history preserved in the Florida Narratives, one state collection of ex-slave narratives from the larger Federal Writers' Project collection compiled in the 1930s. Fifty-four tales were extracted from this state collection and used as a basis for this study. These personal reminiscences, called memorates by folklorists, fell into two categories: slavery and the Civil war. The tales about slavery were compared to the theses and conclusions regarding slavery held by sociologists and The tales about the Civil War and emancipation were gathered by historians.

The comparison revealed that there …