History Commons^™

Regional Labour Market Integration In England And Wales, 1850-1913, George R. Boyer, Timothy J. Hatton

George R. Boyer

[Excerpt] This chapter examines the integration of labour markets within the rural and urban sectors of England and Wales during the second half of the nineteenth century. Although there is a large literature on internal migration and emigration in Victorian Britain, historians typically have focused on the direction and causes of migration rather than on its consequences for the labour market. Broadly speaking, the literature has found that workers did indeed migrate towards better wage-earning opportunities, that most moves were short-distance moves, and that once certain patterns of migration were established they often persisted. The studies leave the strong impression, …

The Politics Of Numbers: Zemstvo Land Assessment And The Conceptualization Of Russia's Rural Economy, David W. Darrow

David Darrow

Historians of statistics are only beginning to understand the politics of numbers that accompanied the rise of statistical thinking in the nineteenth century. In the Russian empire, this statistical awakening opened numerous possibilities for state servitors and the intelligentsia. To officials in St. Petersburg, especially the enlightened bureaucrats who shaped the Great Reforms, statistics held out the promise of providing hard data for the development of informed policies. For educated society, numbers had a profound impact on debates over the nature of Russia’s rural (particularly peasant) economy. Numbers provided a cloak of objectivity for polemics motivated by different visions of …

Census As A Techology Of Empire, David W. Darrow

David Darrow

A census is an example of the social construction of knowledge and the politics of measurement. Measuring people assumes a political significance because it entails converting heterogeneous populations into numbers—stable pieces of knowledge that can be easily combined and manipulated. In constructing such numerical representations, census officials claim to be creating an objective portrait of the population. Censuses, however, also contribute to something less tangible by playing a key role in the creation of what Benedict Anderson has termed an “imagined community.” General censuses provide states with a unique opportunity to unify space and populations with a single instrument. Furthermore, …

From Commune To Household: Statistics And The Social Construction Of Chaianov's Theory Of Peasant Economy, David W. Darrow

David Darrow

Categorization plays an integral part in how we see and interpret the world. This is especially true when we attempt to comprehend the complexities of human society, where the heterogeneity of human activity across time and space demands that some criterion (class, gender, age, profession, etc.) be used to reduce the number of variables examined. From the mid-nineteenth century—as statistics evolved from the simple “political arithmetic” of tax collectors and army recruiters into a potential science of human behavior—categorizing the population became a contentious issue that reflected the social and political agendas of data collectors. At the same time, when …

Statistics And Sufficiency: Toward An Intellectual History Of Russia's Rural Crisis, David W. Darrow

David Darrow

The article examines the impact of the ‘rise of statistical thinking’ and statistical measurement on elite perceptions of the condition of the Russian Empire's post-emancipation peasant economy. Using archival and published sources, it argues that the increased use of statistical measurement did much to concretize in numerical (‘objective’) terms the idea of rural crisis. In particular, the combination of traditional paternalistic concerns about the sufficiency of peasant resources and the use of cadastre measurement yielded an image of the peasant household economy in which the value (the income-producing capabilities) of post-emancipation peasant allotments nearly always fell short of subsistence requirements …

Review Of The Duke’S Assassin: Exile And Death Of Lorenzino De’ Medici, By Stefano Dall'aglio, Trans. By Donald Weinstein., Brian J. Maxson

Brian J. Maxson

The Middle Landscape Of The Private College: A Bicentennial Perspective, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

America's Private Colleges and Universities have entered the bicentennial year expressing deep concern for their individual and collective futures. They seem constantly engaged in a search for new students and additional financial contributors; they darkly aver that they may be forced to close forever if their search fails; and they point to the dozens of others campuses that passed from the scene in the last decade as proof of the urgency of their case. To some observers these forebodings of doom may appear, like the associated press reports about Mark Twain's demise, greatly exaggerated. But the immediacy and intensity with …

"Indiana Territory And Early Statehood, 1800-1825", George W. Geib

George W. Geib

This handbook was developed to encourage more effective state citizenship through the teaching of state history. Attention is given to geographical factors, politics, government, social and economic changes, and cultural development.

The Power Of The Purse, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

The Army finance office was born two centuries ago in the midst of the American Revolution. From the golden orle insignia that legend reports was first authorized by George Washington, to the outline of its modern functions and limitations that emerged during the war, the service took form in the critical years of the struggle for independence.

Development And Preservation, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

Details the history of two Marion County Courthouses.

Orwell's 1984 And The Lonely World Of Campaign Management, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

George Geib's essay discussing the relevance and humanistic appeal of George Orwell's 1984 in the advent of the 1984 political election.

Reviewed Work: Mr. Polk's Army: The American Military Experience In The Mexican War, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

Book review of Mr. Polk's Army: The American Military Experience in the Mexican War. By Richard Bruce Winders. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 1997. Pp. xvi, 284. Illustrations. Paper, $17.95.)

The Essex Bridge: Transportation And Politics In The Early Republic, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

THE years that followed the War for Independence are commonly viewed as a period of rapid economic expansion. Deriving from such elements as a growing population, new foreign markets, increased capital resources, and a confident public spirit, this expansion is known to include a variety of new business ventures, notably in manufacturing and in transportation. Such new ventures are normally pictured in their business context, showing few political overtones apart from sporadic opposition by rural legislators.1 This latter emphasis may be mistaken, however, because many of these early innovative business ventures faced challenges in the form of local political controversies …

"The Old Northwest Under British Control, 1763-1783" And "Indiana A Part Of The Old Northwest, 1783-1800", George W. Geib

George W. Geib

This handbook was developed to encourage more effective state citizenship through the teaching of state history. Attention is given to geographical factors, politics, government, social and economic changes, and cultural development.

Federal Justice And Moral Reform In The United States District Court In Indiana, 1816-1869, George W. Geib, Donald B. Kite

George W. Geib

In November 1840, William Martin, an Indiana mail stage driver found himself standing in United States District Court, convicted of stealing a letter containing bank notes from the mail.^1 District Judge Jesse Lynch Holman reviewed the evidence that convinced the jury, and then lectured the defendant upon his future prospects: The prospect before you is truly dark and dreary; yet there is a distant ray of hope that may enlighten your path You may do much by a patient submission to the law—by a reformation of life and an upright line of conduct ... to some extent, to regain a …

The Diary Of Calvin Fletcher And The Historians, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

While we all make New Year's resolutions, few of us ever keep them with the tenacity that Calvin Fletcher kept the one he apparently made on this day. The diary that he had begun in fragmentary fashion in 1817 and continued intermittently to 1829, he maintained religiously thereafter. In so doing, he provided us with an extraordinary record of his life and times. Published in nine volumes by the Indiana Historical Society from 1972 to 1983, The Diary of Calvin Fletcher represents perhaps the single most important printed source for understanding Indiana's history. In commemoration of Fletcher's two-hundredth birthday on …

The William F. Charters Collection: An Introduction, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

No abstract provided.

The Use Of Miniatures In Gaming, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

The world of the miniature lies somewhere between the collector's and the historian's and owes its current popularity to the world of wargaming. But the origins of the miniature lie far from the simulation in the field of artisan crafts.

Benjamin Harrison, George W. Geib

George W. Geib

An account of Benjamin Harrison's rise to the presidency beginning with his successful career during the Civil War.

Magna Carta Then And Now: A Symbol Of Freedom And Equal Rights For All, Eugene K B Tan, Jack Tsen-Ta Lee

Jack Tsen-Ta LEE

Magna Carta became applicable to Singapore in 1826 when a court system administering English law was established in the Straits Settlements. This remained the case through Singapore’s evolution from Crown colony to independent republic. The Great Charter only ceased to apply in 1993, when Parliament enacted the Application of English Law Act to clarify which colonial laws were still part of Singapore law. Nonetheless, Magna Carta’s legacy in Singapore continues in a number of ways. Principles such as due process of law and the supremacy of law are cornerstones of the rule of law, vital to the success, stability and …

Climb To The Ice, Richard Vaughan

Richard Vaughan

The article, originally presented as a lecture, discusses George Bird Grinnell's 1887 climb of the Montana glacier that eventually become known as Grinnell Glacier. Grinnell’s efforts to establish Glacier National Park are detailed. Grinnell's previously unpublished descriptions of the glacier and its surrounding area are analyzed by the author. Originally delivered as a lecture at the Montana History Conference, October 2, 2010. Full issue available at: http://issuu.com/um_crown_gye/docs/crownofthecontinent-autumn2012

To The Ice: George Bird Grinnell's 1887 Ascent Of Grinnell Glacier, Richard Vaughan

Richard Vaughan

This article discusses a climbing expedition undertaken by U.S. conservationist George Bird Grinnell to ascend what would come to be known as Grinnell Glacier in Montana. Grinnell’s efforts to establish Glacier National Park are detailed. Grinnell’s previously unpublished descriptions of the glacier and its surrounding area are analyzed by the author.

Broad Are Nebraska's Rolling Plains: The Early Writings Of George Bird Grinnell, Richard Vaughan

Richard Vaughan

Profiles the life of writer George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) and the influence his first trip to Nebraska had in shaping his early writings about the American West. Among the works he published were several groundbreaking books about the Plains Indians of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Not only did this 1870 trip to Nebraska, as a member of O. C. Marsh’s first Yale Paleontological Expedition, influence Grinnell's scholarly endeavors, but his deep interest in the state also influenced his lifelong devotion to environmental preservation and established him as an important advocate for the protection and welfare of Native …

Contesting The Dinosaur Image: The Labor Movement's Search For A Future, Richard W. Hurd

Richard W Hurd

[Excerpt] As labor contests the dinosaur image it will find no easy answers. Hard work, careful assessment of options, and a willingness to take risks are all required. Without widespread experimentation and a significant reallocation of resources to organizing, extinction awaits.

Review: 'Religion In America Since 1945: A History', William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

Anyone who has taught a course in U.S. religious history knows the daunting challenge of adequately dealing with the riotous diversity of religion in America. This challenge moves from daunting to nearly overwhelming when one gets to the years after World War II. But now comes along Patrick Allitt, professor of history at Emory University, who, in Religion in America Since 1945, has managed to create out of this apparent chaos a lucid, compelling narrative of recent U.S. religious history.

Of course, and as Allitt observes in his introduction, in order to “prevent the book from taking the form of …

Biology Textbooks And The Decentering Of The Scopes Trial, William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

I was reminded of this while reading Adam Shapiro’s fine book, Trying Biology: The Scopes Trial, Textbooks, and the Antievolution Movement in American Schools. Central to Trying Biology is the argument that the Scopes Trial was not the inevitable result of an eternal conflict between science and religion, but instead grew out of "debates over American education that had little to do with either science or religion" (12). As Shapiro nicely articulates, the school antievolution movement that emerged in the early 1920s was a backlash against schools teaching evolution "in a politically charged way" and "to a new population of …

Review: 'The Rise Of Liberal Religion: Book Culture And American Spirituality In The Twentieth Century', William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

Laubach’s story—in its emphasis on the spiritual benefits of reading, mysticism, and interfaith encounters— serves as the perfect coda to Hedstrom’s terrific study of religious liberalism in twentieth-century America. The Rise of Liberal Religion joins an expanding corpus of work—most notably Gary Dorrien’s three-volume The Making of American Liberal Theology (2001, 2003, 2006) and Leigh Eric Schmidt’s Restless Souls: The Making of American Spirituality from Emerson to Oprah (2005)—that provides balance to the substantive scholarly attention recently given to conservative Protestantism. This scholarship suggests—and The Rise of Liberal Religion is explicit in this regard—that there is much more to the …

Review: 'Harold Frederic’S Social Drama And The Crisis Of 1890s Evangelical Protestant Culture', William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

Harold Frederic’s The Damnation of Theron Ware (1896) is a terrific novel. The title character is a young, naïve, poorly educated Methodist minister who — when the narrative begins — has been appointed to take the pastorate of a small-town church in upstate New York. It is within only a matter of weeks after moving to Octavius with his wife, Alice, that Theron makes the acquaintance of exotic and compelling individuals who challenge his heretofore unexamined evangelical faith. Abandoning his Methodism with impunity, Ware is soon hurtling toward his “damnation.”

Damned but not dead: At the end of the novel, …

Review: 'Evangelizing The Chosen People: Missions To The Jews In America, 1880–2000', William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

As bizarre as all this may seem to the uninitiated, Yaakov Ariel makes clear in Evangelizing the Chosen People that the aforementioned event is simply part of the latest chapter in an ongoing story within American religious history. Going where no scholar has gone before, Ariel recounts the history of Protestant missions to the Jews in the United States. Making good use of missions’ organization records and the writings of Jewish converts to Christianity, Ariel divides his narrative into three parts: evangelizing Jewish immigrants (1880–1920); evangelizing the children of Jewish immigrants (1920–1965); and evangelizing Jewish Baby Boomers (1965–2000). The last …

Review: 'One Hundred Percent American: The Rebirth And Decline Of The Ku Klux Klan In The 1920s', William Vance Trollinger

William Vance Trollinger Jr.

It is remarkable that, given the significance of the Klan, a good general history of it has not been written—until now. In One Hundred Percent American, the Loyola University Maryland professor Thomas R. Pegram draws upon his primary research as well as the plethora of books, articles, and dissertations that have been written on local and state organizations in the past few decades to provide a nicely readable account of the Klan’s rise and fall in the 1920s.

(Given the author’s assiduous research, it is unfortunate this book lacks a bibliography.)

In the process of telling the Klan’s story, Pegram …