History Commons^™

"Our Captain Is A Gentleman”: Officer Elections Among Virginia Confederates, 1861-1862, Ryan C. O'Hallahan

Theses and Dissertations

Enlisted soldiers preferred to elect company- and regimental-level officers during the first year of the American Civil War. This thesis explores how early Confederate mobilization, class conflict between elites and non-elites, and Confederate military policies affected officer elections from spring 1861 to spring 1862 among Virginia Confederates. Chapter 1 explores how the chaotic nature of mobilization and common soldiers' initial expectations regarding their military service influenced elections from April 1861 until late July 1861. Chapter 2 details the changing nature of elections as elite officers faced challenges from non-elites and Confederate policies regarding furloughs and conscription forced officers to reconcile …

"An Amazing Aptness For Learning Trades:" The Role Of Enslaved Craftsmen In Charleston Cabinetmaking Shops, William A. Strollo

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines the role of enslaved craftsmen in Charleston cabinetmaking shops during the late-eighteenth century and how wealthy Charlestonians’ desire fashionable goods fueled the demand for this labor force. The first chapter examines the rise of the wealthy Charlestonians and the origins of their taste for fashionable goods. The second chapter explores the increased use of enslaved craftsmen in Charleston cabinetmaking shops during the last half of the eighteenth century and how they affected the production of fashionable cabinet goods.

Rationality, Parapsychology, And Artificial Intelligence In Military And Intelligence Research By The United States Government In The Cold War, Guy M. Lomeo

Theses and Dissertations

A study analyzing the roles of rationality, parapsychology, and artificial intelligence in military and intelligence research by the United States Government in the Cold War. An examination of the methodology behind the decisions to pursue research in two fields that were initially considered irrational.

Documenting Internationalism: The Instituto Cubano Del Arte E Industria Cinematográficos As A Cultural Extension Of Cuban Foreign Policy, Vella V. Voynova

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the connection between the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos and the Cuban Revolution's internationalism and argues that it made ICAIC documentarians, their methods of production, and their documentary films a valuable asset to Cuban foreign policy in the 1960s and 1970s.

The Poet And The Polemist: Demystifying The Natural Law Theory Of John Milton, John J. Mazola

Theses and Dissertations

A summation of the influences behind Milton's Natural Law theory as found in the works of Aristotle, Grotius, Hobbes, and Thomas Aquinas. The essay's intent is to uncover this important thread that runs through both Milton's Poetic Verse as well as his Polemic tracts.

Black Power In A "Lily-White" School: The Black Campus Movement At Concordia College In Moorhead, Minnesota, Daniel D. Cooley

Theses and Dissertations

Between the mid-1950s and through the 1970s, higher educational institutions throughout the United States underwent reforms in the name of what they termed “integration.” For the colleges and universities in the upper Midwest, these reforms included minority student recruitment and the creation of programs oriented towards diversity. Over time, a number of minority students began to act and react to the actions and attitudes of the various administrations, the campuses, and the community, resulting in a demonstration directly connected to the national phenomenon of “The Black Campus Movement,” (BCM) itself a submovement of the larger United States’ Black Power Movement …

The Subjugation Of The Texas Indians From The 17th–19th Centuries, Erhard M. Vandeventer

Theses and Dissertations

The Americas have long been a center of conflict as European powers competed for control of the resources of these untapped lands. Spain, France, and England contributed to the turbulent era of colonization. Each left their mark on the Western Hemisphere. Spain couldn’t know that an Independent Mexico would emerge from the actions of the first Spanish conquistadors. The Republic of Texas was actually a stepchild of Spain created through its Mexican land grants and missions. The lands they colonized were not empty. Spain, Mexico and the Texas Republic, found their new holdings populated by Native Americans who were not …

Discriminacion A Un Martir: The Ballad Of Felix Longoria, Cristobal A. Carrizales

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis looks at how the Felix Longoria Affair propelled Hector P. Garcia, Lyndon B. Johnson and the American G.I. Forum into the national limelight, while also leaving the Longorias, Three Rivers and Texas in a state of disrepair. The affair in general helped expose injustices that were occurring to Mexicans American in Texas at the time, but left the family, Three Rivers and Texas in a battle over the legacy of how each would be seen in the annals of history.

Union County's Historic El Dorado: More Than Black Gold, Bridget Caroline Wood

Theses and Dissertations

This process paper explores the planning and preparation of a non-traditional photo book thesis project on the history of Union County, Arkansas. Beginning with its establishment on November 2, 1829, this project, entitled "Union County’s Historic El Dorado: More Than Black Gold," presents a chronological narrative using primary source photos, postcards, documents, and memorabilia. Textual descriptions relate how the images fit into the history of the region, state, and nation.

The Heart Of The Home: Developing The Modern Kitchen In Little Rock's Boyle House, Danielle T. Butler

Theses and Dissertations

In 1922, kitchens in Arkansas looked quite a bit different than they do today. In this same vein, Arkansas kitchens were very different from other contemporary examples on the East coast that have been studied as an archetype for kitchen development nationwide. This project was designed to serve as a primary example of the changes in kitchens in Arkansas. Entitled The Heart of the Home, the project consisted of a tour that featured the kitchen of the Boyle House at 2020 Arch Street. The tour focused on the changes in the Boyle House kitchen from the construction of the home …

A Path Less Traveled: The Life And Times Of Louis Porter Featherston, Bradley Stephen Jordan

Theses and Dissertations

This master’s thesis traces the life and work of L. P. Featherston. He came of age in a time of great consternation for the common agrarian. Featherston forged a political path for himself, wrought with political violence and intimidation. He carried the message of the common man to the Arkansas General Assembly, and fought a fierce political machine on his way to the United States Congress. Fearing for his family’s safety from political foes, Featherston sought great riches in the south Texas railroad industry. Always facing his professional and personal battles with great integrity and grace, L. P. Featherston walked …

It's Growing On 'Em: Black Hair's Fight For Social Acceptance, Stephanie Rena Sims

Theses and Dissertations

This study attempted to disentangle the various depictions of Black hair and its fight for social acceptance. The research covered various stigmas associated with natural hair in the African American culture. Several books pertaining to the topic agreed that African Americans suffered from terrible depictions of themselves through various media sources of its era. Advertisements made their mark by preying on those with beauty insecurities. Black-owned businesses also capitalized on African American’s beauty insecurities. The study was accompanied by a pictorial exhibit and displayed at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Research suggested that in order for mainstream to …

“Sparks Fly ”: Connecting Midwestern Historic Forts Through A Comparative Study Of Gunflints, Jeffrey A. Spanbauer

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will outline the temporal changes and choices of colonial powers and individuals as expressed at historic frontier posts in the Midwest between 1683 and 1779 as expressed through their supply and usage of gunflints. Gunflints exist as persistent artifacts at historic sites, and especially so at fortifications like Fort de Chartres, Fort St. Joseph, Fort Michilimackinac and Fort Ouiatenon. These sites exist within the same chronological timeframe, from 1690-1780, and saw occupation by both the French and British, with nearby indigenous groups, and should serve as instructive means to investigate the factors involved in the supply, selection, and …

Finding Chinese Jesus: Chinese Christians And American Missionaries In The Republic Of China (1912-1949), Matthew Joseph Douthitt

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the beliefs and practices of Chinese Christians and their American missionary counterparts in the Republic of China (1912-1949). Between the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the rise of the People's Republic, the Chinese people seriously reexamined politics, religion, and their relationship with the West. Many scholars claim that Chinese people could not completely understand and accept Christianity due to insurmountable cultural differences. I would argue religious misunderstanding did not befall our historical subjects the Chinese Christians; rather misunderstanding has plagued the modern scholar. Misunderstanding did not arise from a centuries old cultural mindset. Instead, Sino-Christianity conformed …

José Efraín Ríos Montt: A Guatemalan Nightmare, Ryan Melson

Theses and Dissertations

In Guatemala, dictator Efrain Rios Montt's seventeen month regime, from 1982 to 1983, had countless human rights violations. After being deposed from leadership in 1983, Rios Montt's supporters have displayed enduring loyalty to him. As a result of this, Rios Montt's beliefs and desires have held considerable political and social wealth in Guatemala's political and social spheres. Rios Montt's political and social power in Guatemala has given him impunity within the justice system. The Guatemalan justice system has created a fractured state, and paved the way for more violence.

Frontier Capitalism: Early Arkansas Banking And Indian Removal, 1819-1860, Cody Lynn Berry

Theses and Dissertations

After the passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 by Congress, thousands of Native Americans were moved from their homelands in the Southeast to lands west of the Mississippi River. Along their long and difficult journey across the country, many white Americans profited from the process. After Arkansas was granted statehood on June 15, 1836, the General Assembly passed legislation that established the Arkansas State Bank and the Real Estate Bank of Arkansas. Between 1836 and 1843, these banks were run by men who utilized their positions at the bank and as agents for the Office of Indian Affairs, …

William Jefferson Clinton Presidential Campaign Buttons 1992 To 1996, Joshua Paul Fischer

Theses and Dissertations

This process thesis paper examines the method used to developing a project thesis and display exhibit for the Present William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home Historic Site located in Hope, Arkansas. The research and creation of the exhibit is based on developing a display piece to be feature at the National Park site during the August 26th, 2015 event An Evening of Celebration which celebrates both the William Jefferson Clinton's 69th and National Park Service 99th birthdays. The paper presents the development of three presidential campaign button display featuring buttons used by President Clinton during his 1992 and 1996 Presidential Campaigns. …

G.I. Joe V. Jim Crow: Legal Battles Over Off-Base School Segregation Of Military Children In The American South, 1962-1964, Randall George Owens

Theses and Dissertations

Between 1962 and 1964, the U.S. Justice Department, African American military members stationed on southern military bases, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) filed six federal civil suits to end off-base segregation of military children in public schools. These cases took place in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia. Plaintiffs sought to bring civilian cities near federal military bases into compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown decision. The presence of federal military bases, which had been integrated since a 1948 Executive Order issued by President Harry S. Truman, provided leverage against ongoing …

Changing The Conversation: Diversity At Living History Museums, Sarah M. Lerch

Theses and Dissertations

"Changing the Conversation: Diversity at Living History Museums" explores the lack of diversity among costumed historians at living history sites. Using Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts as a case study, this paper traces the history of diversity among costumed staff and the interpretation at the site. I suggest solutions and ideas for interpretative planning to increase the representation of minority perspectives into the historical narrative of the site and include more ethnic and racial diversity among the employed costumed staff.

A Matter Of "Vicious Habits": Civil War Families Under The Strain Of War, R. Kyle Bjornson

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the long term consequences of spatial and temporal distance on marriages during the Civil War. The absence of male labor created by enlistment in the Union Army stretched women to their economic limits while physical and emotional separation created opportunities for infidelity for both husbands and wives. Central to this narrative is mid-nineteenth-century ideas about manhood. The war offered a confirmation of male adulthood, but also required men to abandon the duties to home that were no less fundamental to the ideal of male maturity. Recent scholarship on veterans’ disabilities, including mental illness and substance abuse, show …

Restoring The Dock Street Theatre: Cultural Production In New-Deal Era Charleston, South Carolina, Stephanie E. Gray

Theses and Dissertations

The Dock Street Theatre project, completed between the years 1935 and 1937 in Charleston, South Carolina, was a New Deal experiment in “historical restoration” funded by President Franklin Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA). Opening night of the restored theatre signified the transformation of the Old Planters’ Hotel, a dilapidated nineteenth-century resort built on the site of the original 1736 playhouse, into an architectural gem that resurrected the eighteenth-century theatre that was considered the cultural heart of colonial Charleston. The orchestrated recreation of the Dock Street Theatre resulted from the imperative of Charleston’s white elite to foment through architecture a tangible …

A Vision Of Peace Through U.S. Leadership: President Jimmy Carter's Moral Foreign Policy Vision And The Panama Canal Treaties, Holly L. Welsh De Paula

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines President Jimmy Carter’s foreign policy and his administration’s campaign to promote the ratification of the Panama Canal treaties from 1977 to 1978. I argue that President Carter’s administration developed a coherent foreign policy vision that was inspired by moral convictions and aimed to promote international peace. The fundamental aspects of this vision are reflected in the Panama Canal treaties. During the turbulent Senate debate over the treaties, opposition arguments attacking President Carter’s moral policy encouraged the Carter administration to favor more pragmatic arguments in support of the treaties, which ultimately obscured President Carter’s overarching foreign policy vision. …

Toilet Talk, Michael Blake

Theses and Dissertations

Toilet Talk explores both formal and autobiographical themes related to desire, sexuality, and the relationship between public and private space. My work and research aims to reposition and queer the industrial object and its promotion of hyper masculine ideals.

The Irish Republican Army Through Film, (1935-2014), Colleen B. Gottfried

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will explore the evolving relationship between terrorism and its visual representations and what these representations say about the reception of terrorism by audiences all over the world. This study examines thirty movies produced in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Ireland between 1935 and 2014. These films portray different versions of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), an association founded in 1917 with the intent to end British control in Ireland and establish the Republic of Ireland. This thesis examines how concurrent events may have shaped the way filmmakers chose to portray the organization. For instance, if earlier …

Archaeological Potential Of The Rio Grande Valley: A Look At Brazos Island With A Historical Focus On The Civil War, Robin L. Galloso

Theses and Dissertations

The history of the Rio Grande Valley and the role it played in the Civil War is a developing field for both history and archaeology. This work helps to fill the existing gap that is present in academia and shows the archaeological and historical potential of this unique coastal area. The Brazos Island was heavily used during the Civil War by both the Confederacy and the Union. This thesis shows the rich history of Brazos Island and its archaeological potential through a multi-interdisciplinary lens, although rooted in the field of history. It covers a brief overview of the road to …

New Influences On Naming Patterns In Victorian Britain, Amy M. Hasfjord

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines a major shift in naming patterns that occurred in Victorian Britain, roughly between 1840 and 1900, though with roots dating back to the mid-18th century. Until approximately 1840, most new names in England that achieved wide popularity had their origins in royal and/or religious influence. The upper middle classes changed this pattern during the Victorian era by introducing a number of new names that came from popular print culture. These names are determined based on a study collecting 10,000 men's and 10,000 women's names from marriage announcements in the London Times. Many of these new names were …

A Law For Rulers And People: David Davis, Ex Parte Milligan, And Constitutional Liberalism During The Civil War Era, John Lewis Moreland

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the political life of Judge David Davis, his drafting of Ex parte Milligan, and the opinion’s impact on the partisanship and political instability of Reconstruction.

The 1622 Powhatan Uprising And Its Impact On Anglo-Indian Relations, Michael Jude Kramer

Theses and Dissertations

On March 22, 1622, Native Americans under the Powhatan war-leader Opechancanough launched surprise attacks on English settlements in Virginia. The attacks wiped out between one-quarter and one-third of the colony's European population and hastened the collapse of the Virginia Company of London, a joint stock company to which England's King James I had granted the right to establish settlements in the New World. Most significantly, the 1622 Powhatan attacks in Virginia marked a critical turning point in Anglo-Indian relations.

Following the famous 1614 marriage of the Native American Pocahontas to Virginia colonist John Rolfe and her conversion to Christianity, English …

Arkansas, Civil Rights, And A Mobile App: The Making Of A Historical Audio Tour, Donna Latrice Shelton

Theses and Dissertations

Public knowledge of civil rights history in Arkansas oftentimes, is limited to the desegregation of Little Rock’s Central High School in 1957. Historical scholarship in this area has largely underscored this theme leaving the fuller picture of the experiences of Native Americans, Japanese Americans, African Americans and other ethnicities obscured. Little Rock’s role in the history of segregation in America is as broad as it is complex, however, many are unaware of the wide-ranging experiences of marginalized groups. This paper explores the process of partnering with the city, historians, and community organizations to address the misconception that civil rights in …

Christ Church Parochial School, Christ Church Parish, And The Mission To African Americans In The Arkansas Diocese Of The Episcopal Church, Mary Janet Murray

Theses and Dissertations

From 1924 until 1968, the Arkansas Diocese of the Episcopal Church sponsored a private primary and secondary school in Forrest City for African American students. The school was the brainchild of the first African American ordained as a bishop in the American Episcopal Church, the Rt. Rev. Edward T. Demby. It was the consuming passion of the school’s first headmaster, the Rev. James Henry King, who served it from its founding in 1924 until his death in 1955. This thesis considers how Christ Church School and its related parish reflect the various incarnations of African American race relations lived out …