History Commons^™

The Military Career Of James Gettys, Melissa M. Gettys, Amanda A. Howlett

Adams County History

James Gettys was a Federalist, tried and true. From his role in the American Revolution to his final position as Vice Brigadier General during the War of 1812, James understood the necessity for “we the people” to remain united as one, power in numbers. He lived that way, worked that way, and built his town on that premise. Like most of the frontiersmen of his time, his life was difficult, and his rise to the top was not always met with valor. Much like his father, Samuel, James Gettys fought for everything he had, and his attainments were well earned. …

Lingering Colonialities As Blockades To Peace Education: School Violence In Trinidad, Hakim Mohandas Amani Williams

Africana Studies Faculty Publications

Book Summary: Bringing together the voices of scholars and practitioners on challenges and possibilities of implementing peace education in diverse global sites, this book addresses key questions for students seeking to deepen their understanding of the field. The book not only highlights ground-breaking and rich qualitative studies from around the globe, but also analyses the limits and possibilities of peace education in diverse contexts of conflict and post-conflict societies. Contributing authors address how educators and learners can make meaning of international peace education efforts, how various forms of peace and violence interact in and around schools, and how the field …

Fighting Civil Rights And The Cold War: Confederate Monuments At Gettysburg, Jill Ogline Titus

Civil War Institute Faculty Publications

It's been interesting and instructive to see the ongoing debate over Confederate iconography unfold from the vantage point of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, one of the nation's premier centers of Civil War memory. Many of the conversations taking place in town are similar to ones happening around the country, but a few elements have been noteworthy. In Gettysburg, flag debates have by and large revolved around First Amendment rights, honoring ancestors and their cause, and the demands of heritage tourism, and not around civic identity or the appropriateness of the flag's use as a symbol of the state. [excerpt]

Letter From The Editors, Melanie L. Fernandes, Ryan M. Nadeau, Sophia D. Vayansky

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

The Gettysburg Historical Journal embodies the History Department's dedication to diverse learning and excellence in academics. Each year, the Journal publishes the top student work in a range of topics across the spectrum of academic disciplines with different methodological approaches to the study of history. In the words of Marc Bloch, author of The Historian's Craft, "history is neither watchmaking nor cabinet construction. It is an endeavor toward better understanding." In the spirit of this maxim, our authors strive to elucidate the many facets of human societies and cultures. Whether these young scholars' research is focused on politics, religion, …

Creating A Statesman: The Early Life Of Prince Clemens Von Metternich And Its Effect On His Political Philosophy, Ryan M. Nadeau

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

As one of the most prolific and influential statesmen of the nineteenth century, Prince Clemens von Metternich is a man whose politics, policies, and political philosophy has received a good amount of attention from historians. Owing to the focus on his career rather than his personal story, the details of his early life have often gone unanalyzed in the context of his later views, despite the formative influence of these years on his political philosophy. An upbringing culturally influenced by France, an education focused on natural sciences and history, and a first-hand experience with the worst side of the French …

Gettysburg Historical Journal 2016

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

No abstract provided.

The Desperate Rebels Of Shimabara: The Economic And Political Persecutions And The Tradition Of Peasant Revolt, Jake A. Farias

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

The Shimabara Rebellion has been studied throughout history by historians of East Asia. Originally conceived by both Japanese and Western scholars as a religious revolt against the anti-Christian Tokugawa government, later scholars contended that the Rebellion was a demonstration by the mistreated and impoverished and only tacitly related to Christian influences. This paper sets out to build on that narrative and to show the connection between the Christian resistance to the Tokugawa government and the movement of impoverished and desperate peasants, pushed to the brink of existence. Furthermore, this paper hopes to explore the goals of the Rebellion and establish …

"For Safety And For Liberty," The Devan Family Of Gettysburg, Andrew I. Dalton

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

This article explores Gettysburg’s 19^th century black history through the exciting experiences of the Devan family. Originally from Frederick County, Maryland, they came to Gettysburg as free people of color. In town, one member of the family was suspected of assisting slave catchers by handing over escaped slaves for a profit. Four members of the family served during the Civil War in the United States Colored Troops, three of whom died in the service. This complex story proves the fact that black history is extremely complex and should not be painted by historians with a single brush stroke.

Gettysburg College Journal Of The Civil War Era 2016

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editors, Kevin P. Lavery, Anika N. Jensen, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

No abstract provided.

"The Honor Of Manhood:" Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain And Notions Of Martial Masculinity, Bryan G. Caswell

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain is perhaps best known as the commander of the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry during the Battle of Gettysburg. While depictions of Chamberlain's martial glory abound, little attention has been paid to the complicated motives of the man himself. This paper seeks to examine the unique ways in which Chamberlain interacted with Victorian conceptions of martial masculinity: his understanding and expression of it, his efforts to channel it, and his use of it as a guiding principle throughout the trials of both the American Civil War and his post-war life.

Cotton, Clemency, And Control: United States V. Klein And The Juridical Legacy Of Executive Pardon, Heather L. Clancy

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

When the guns of war fell silent in 1865, Americans throughout the reunited states grappled with the logistics of peace. At virtually every turn lay nebulous but critical questions of race, class, allegiance, and identity. More pragmatic legal stumbling blocks could also be found strewn across the path to Reconstruction; some of them would ensnare the healing nation for decades to come. Among their number was notorious Supreme Court decision United States v. Klein (1872). Born on July 22, 1865 out of a small debate over the wartime seizure of Vicksburg cotton stores, Klein quickly evolved into a legal …

"Spare Your Country's Flag": Unionist Sentiment In Frederick, Maryland 1860-1865, Megan E. Mcnish

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

The historiography of Frederick, Maryland has maintained in the years since the Civil War that the area was firmly pro-Union. However, through the 1860 presidential election, as well as the reactions of residents of Frederick to the Confederate Army through 1862, it becomes apparent that there was a significant, although perhaps not sizeable, group with Confederate sympathies. In 1863, Frederick County began to shift its sympathies. Through the narrative written by one diarist about the Confederate Army’s march through Maryland prior to the Gettysburg Campaign, the army’s residence in Frederick during the Battle of Monocacy, as well as the 1864 …

"Where We May Oftener Converse Together": Translation Of Written And Spoken Communication In Colonial Pennsylvania, Jenna E. Fleming

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

In this paper I examine the differences between colonists’ and Indians’ perceptions and use of language in early Pennsylvania. Through consideration of translation challenges in both spoken and written contexts, I conclude that while residents of the region created systems for coping with linguistic issues, basic disparities between native and colonial forms of communication persisted in complicating diplomatic relations. The title of the paper is taken from the August 26, 1758 entry in The Journal of Christian Frederick Post and is part of the Pennsylvanian government’s proposal for closer relations with Indians.

Crack Open A Bottle Of General Lee – A Second Course, Ryan M. Nadeau

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Welcome back, fellow historical diners. Last time, you joined me in comparing a fine selection of Union generals to food. Today, we’ll be examining some of their southern counterparts. Let’s dig in!

Robert E. Lee – Aged, Fine Red Wine with a Side of Steak

Consider the following: red wines are often consumed with red meats such as steak. Steak can be enjoyed in any number of ways, from a backyard barbecue to the finest of dining establishments. In this sense, steak is the former Confederacy, ranging as it did from the most rural farmers to the opulent planters. [ …

This Month In Civil War History: December 2015, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Transcript:

Welcome to the Civil War Institute’s “This Month in Civil War History” for December.

In December of 1860 delegates met in Columbus, South Carolina and voted in favor of seceding from the Union. In their justification for leaving the Union, the delegates emphasized their fear that the newly elected President Abraham Lincoln would outlaw slavery. [excerpt]

Dead Broets Society: Masculinity In Walt Whitman’S War Verse, Anika N. Jensen

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

There are two images of masculinity in Walt Whitman’s Drum-Taps, his collection of wartime poetry: one, the strong, hardened soldier, the image of manliness, and the other the boyish, rosy-cheeked recruit. Whitman’s sexuality, while not the Victorian social norm, was no secret, and he wrote openly of the hospitalized soldiers during his time as a Union nurse with admiration, affection, and love. Some critics, such as Thomas Wentworth Higginson, castigated Whitman’s queer themes to be overwhelming, distractingly sensual, and "unmanly," while others, like William Sloane Kennedy, dissented, arguing instead that the overt sexuality present in Whitman’s work was precisely …

The Oatmeal Brigade: Quaker Life During The Civil War, Anika N. Jensen

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Quakers in the Civil War seems like an inherently contradictory idea; the Society of Friends practices pacifism and nonviolence, and, for many, putting money or resources toward war efforts goes against the faith. But tensions were high in 1861, and deviations from Quakerism were made when Friends, both Northern and Southern, had to choose whether to prioritize the sanctity of union, support abolition, or remain neutral. Each of these decisions had its share of repercussions within the religious community, and the Quakers themselves found their mindsets changing as the tide of the war rolled on, whether they chose to fight, …

The Saint Patrick’S Battalion: Loyalty, Nativism, And Identity In The Nineteenth Century And Today, Kevin P. Lavery

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

Two decades before the Irish Brigade covered itself with glory, an earlier unit of Irish immigrants had won renown for its service during the Mexican American War. Calling themselves the Saint Patrick’s Battalion, these men marched under a flag of brilliant emerald decorated with Irish motifs: a harp, a shamrock, and the image of Saint Patrick [excerpt].

Joshua Chamberlain On Mars: Chambermania And Beyond!, Ryan M. Nadeau

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to observe one fact about Mars: it has a lot of rocks. While each is typically given a name based on protocols of scientific classification, many are known by informal, often humorous names like "Grandma" and "Space Ghost." And now on Mars, there’s a rock for fans of Civil War history—"Chamberlain," named of course for Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the hero of Little Round Top [excerpt].

Lost Cause In The Oval Office: Woodrow Wilson’S Racist Policies And White-Washed Memory Of The Civil War, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

For the past several weeks, students all across the nation have opened up discussions on race relations on university campuses and in American culture at large. The latest battlefield in the fight for greater inclusion is Princeton University, where protestors from the Black Justice League staged a 32 hour sit-in at the president’s office. Princeton University, traditionally viewed as a bastion of progressivism and liberal ideology, is coming under fire for its reverence for perhaps their most famous graduate, President Woodrow Wilson. Wilson graduated from Princeton University Class of 1879 and served as president of the school from 1902 until …

General Mcclellan Is A Fruitcake And Other Tasteful Metaphors, Ryan M. Nadeau

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

The idea for this post was born from a comment I made while bored and generally sleep deprived on a road trip to the James Buchanan symposium earlier this fall. After some serious historical discussion with my traveling companions, including two other CWI fellows, I made a very non-serious observation. It went something like this:

"You know, I think Buchanan looks a lot like a soft-serve vanilla ice cream cone" [excerpt].

The Grand Parade: Remembering The American Civil War, Elizabeth A. Smith

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

On November 21, a small contingent from the 26th PEMR or PCG—Gettysburg College’s reenacting group—gathered early in the morning in Union uniform and civilian dress outside of the Appleford Inn. With a flowered wreath in hand, the small group made their way down Chambersburg Street. There, in sight of the Dollar General and the Segway Tour office, they laid the wreath at the base of the monument, which features a young college boy, musket in hand, as he marches off to battle. The group of students read the history of the unit and had their pictures taken, an annual …

Some Small Tribute: How Modern Americans Find Meaning In The National Cemetery, Matthew D. Laroche

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

metery By Matt LaRoche ’17 In anticipation of Remembrance Day and Dedication Day this week, we have asked our Fellows why and how they commemorate the Civil War. Read Megan’s post below, then check back later in the week for more posts on commemoration and remembrance. In my last post, I appealed to the public to make good on the tragedies of Gettysburg in the same broad vein as President Clinton’s appeal at the 20th anniversary of the genocide at Srebrenica—to make the tragedy a “sacred trust” towards a better future. Needless to say, the material of the last piece …

Cwi Radio Report: Dedication Day And Remembrance Day 2015, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

These were the words delivered by President Abraham Lincoln at the dedication ceremony of the Soldiers National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on November 19th, 1863. The National Cemetery was made possible by the efforts of local attorneys David Wills and David McConaughy. President Lincoln was invited to give "a few appropriate remarks" at the dedication of the new national cemetery by Wills, and stayed at Wills’ house, located in Union Square at the center of town. At the dedication ceremony, Edward Everett, an acclaimed orator at the time, delivered the main speech of the afternoon. Everett’s account of the battle …

The Good, The Great, And The Ugly Of Public History, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

My last post recounted some of my favorite takeaways from my Civil War road trip this summer. But this trip was about more than just mosquito bites and cheap donuts; it was the first time I ever visited a historical site as a student of public history. My first tour was with Elizabeth Smith ’17 at the Sunken Road at Fredericksburg. Elizabeth’s tour was unique in that she was able to connect the events that transpired along Marye’s Heights, a moderately nuanced subject, to President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, a very well-known subject. I was delighted to see this connection that …

On The Road: A Summer Odyssey In Dixie, Jeffrey L. Lauck

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

All summer long, readers of The Gettysburg Compiler were treated to posts from Pohanka interns documenting their research and experiences at historical sites across the country. While I did not participate in the Pohanka internship program this summer, I did take a few of my friends on a week-long camping trip to visit a couple of the interns and see them in action. Our plan was to drive from Connecticut to Harrisburg, PA, where we would stay with friends for the night, then drive to Fredericksburg, VA to tour the Civil War battlefields there and around Richmond [excerpt].

Ready, Aim, Feminism: When Women Went Off To War, Anika N. Jensen

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

I like to imagine that if Sarah Emma Edmonds were my contemporary she would often sport a t-shirt saying, "This is what a feminist looks like."

Edmonds was a patriot, a feminist, and, along with an estimated 400 other women, a soldier in the American Civil War. Fed up with her father’s abuse and appalled at the prospect of an arranged marriage Edmonds left her New Brunswick home at the age of fifteen and soon adopted a male identity to become a successful worker. When the war erupted, she was compelled by a sense of patriotism and adventure to join …

A Woman In Soldier’S Dress: Then And Now, Elizabeth A. Smith

The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History

This post is the second in a three-part series on women soldiers in the Civil War and during modern reenactments. Also check out the introduction of this series.

I was thirteen years old when I joined the 5^th Kentucky Orphan Brigade, a Confederate reenactment group based out of south-central Kentucky. At fourteen, I “saw the elephant”—a Civil War term for seeing battle—for the first time as a soldier. It was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever done, but seven years later I credit that decision to go through with it as bringing me to where I am now, …