History Commons^™

Celebration - Remarks By Loren Blackford, National Sierra Club President, Loren Blackford

Muir Symposium

No abstract provided.

Full Program, University Of The Pacific

Muir Symposium

No abstract provided.

A Tale Of Two Bonnies: Comparing “Lost Cause” Narratives And Post-War Memory From The American Civil War And The 1745 Jacobite Rebellion Through Art, William Robert Tharp

Student Scholar Showcase

In the cultures of Scotland after the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion and the American South after the Civil War, defeatist memories and art featured prominently in mythmaking and served as a focal point for many who wished to make political statements or critiques of current realities. In Scotland, romanticism revolving around “Bonnie Prince Charlie” and the Jacobites in 1745 lessened the burden of defeat for many. Contextualizing their loss within a broader historical framework, which stressed different features depending on the group’s purpose, some Scots utilized Jacobite memory as a potent political critique of Scotland’s place within Great Britain. Others, like …

The Secret Police: The Heavy Hand Of Apartheid Government, Christine L. Moore

Student Scholar Showcase

The secret police during the apartheid in South Africa’s had a heavy hand that causes fear and also death. They used many tactics such as violence, intel, media, and various forms censorship to help get the job done. In the late 70s to the early 90s there was a massive surge of anti-apartheid movements throughout the country as well as internationally, which led to an increase in trying to put down these various movements. With so much more work to do and with only a handful of of members, these squads became to get overwhelmed, which ultimately led to their …

Revolution And Visual Culture In South Africa During Apartheid, Teresa Gunter

Student Scholar Showcase

In a nation firmly entrenched in the principles of white supremacy and complete separation of the races, self-determination eluded South Africans of color whose visual culture had a positive impact on important political changes during apartheid. This paper examines the works of South African artists like John Mohl, Helen Sibidi, Gavin Jantjes, Ernest Cole, and Thami Mnyele who drew inspiration from their forebears and each other and enlist the strife of individuals, as well as their own struggles, to engage the viewer in intellectual and emotive narratives.

Embedded art was a fundamental element of South African communities before colonization by …

The Effect Of The American Presidency On The Behavior Of American Citizens: A Glimpse Into How Donald Trump Has Affected The Behavior Of The American Population, Carter Elliott

Student Scholar Showcase

Using data from a Gallup Poll conducted in 2018, and data from recent major events within the United States, I argue that the President of the United States has a significant impact on the overall behavior of American Citizens. In the two years since Donald Trump has taken office many things have taken place in America that have not been previously seen in the last several decades, or ever. I examine case studies such as The Unite the Right Rally, The 2017 Women’s March on Washington, media viewership and approval, voter turn-out rates, and hate crimes, which support the hypothesis …

The Battle Of Trenton, Jacob Mikuls

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

The paper considers the elements that were necessary for the Battle of Trenton to be successful and also the impact that the battle had on the remainder of the war. There is little doubt in my mind that without the Battle of Trenton the British would have won the Revolutionary War. It is George Washington’s skill as a leader and elaborate use of strategy and even spying that helped the Continental Army to secure victory at Trenton. The paper discloses the way that Colonials perceived Washington and also delves into the aspect of Nathanael Greene’s impact at the battle and …

American Bolsheviki: The Beginnings Of The First Red Scare, 1917 To 1918, Jonathan Dunning

Scholars Week

A consensus has developed among historians that in the early months of 1919, widespread panic consumed the American public and government as many came to fear a Bolshevik coup of the United States government and the undermining of the American way of life, and this fear persisted until 1920. Known as the First Red Scare, this period became one of the most well-known episodes of American fear of Communism in US history. With this focus on the events of 1919 to 1920, however, historians of the First Red Scare have often ignored the initial American reaction to the October Revolution …

Exalted And Debased: Psychological/Sexual Conflict As Bildungsroman In Half Of A Yellow Sun, Anne Lance

Scholars Week

While many still view the Bildungsroman, novels of formation or coming of age stories, as the purview of stuffy formation novels like Dickens’ Great Expectations or Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, there is significant scholarship that suggests a recent revolution in the genre that centers women, people of color, and males in post-colonial or war-torn spaces.

My paper examines Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s 2006 novel Half of a Yellow Sun as an example of a Bildungsroman through the focalization of one of the main characters, Ugwu, as he endures two psychologically conflicting sexual experiences, one …

Greek Music Theory Vs. The Bible, Kearsten M. Kostelnik

The Research and Scholarship Symposium (2013-2019)

The great philosophers of Ancient Greece have been studied in depth and are known throughout society. Famous Greek philosophers and writers, such as Plato and Pythagoras, formulated theories on musical philosophy — it’s purpose, use, dangers, power, and importance in society. Greek philosophy of music heavily influenced early European society’s view and development of music, it only partially supports Biblical views and principles of music and worship. Pythagoras introduces the theory that music is more than just entertainment with his notion of Music of the Spheres but fails to align with the biblical view of stars and planets as mere …

Engaging Visitors With Conservation: The Key To Museum Sustainability, Megan Crutcher

Graduate Student Research Symposium

What is museum conservation and why does it matter? Increasingly, museum professionals are having to answer this question not only for themselves, but for the public as well. I argue that conservation’s definition is twofold, encompassing the actual work, as well as public engagement and presentation. First, conservation is the act of preserving and protecting cultural heritage to improve its structural integrity and historical significance. Second, conservation’s ultimate effectiveness lies in its ability to leave the public informed and passionate. Two of the best examples of these programs are the conservation of the Star Spangled Banner at the Smithsonian in …

Decolonizing National Parks: A Conversation About Repatriation And Shared Authority, Stephanie Walrath

Graduate Student Research Symposium

This project explores how shared authority in national parks can be reassessed through the lens of administrative repatriation. The majority of NPS interpretations focus on conservation and naturalist education, perpetuate a mythology of “gifted land,” and have neglected cultural imprints as an integral element of the land’s history. The rich histories of the peoples that have occupied these lands over time provide an opportunity for the NPS that few museums possess: to present an American history that is deeply interwoven with the natural landscape and recall events back farther than any constructed museums can possibly venture. National parks have an …

Are We Diluting History?, Nicole Slaven

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Historical markers are everywhere and therefore have the potential to transmit history to a wide range of audiences. But is the history they are promoting always “valid” history? Through this research project, I hope to show trends in the validity of historical markers, how time has had an effect on the historical significance of markers, and how they correlate to the median income of the areas where they are erected.

This research project will use the Ohio Historical Marker program for its case study. I will use a random sampling of 20-25% of the markers (approximately 300) and test them …

Clyde Cessna's 40, Ethan Levin

Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference

Just outside of the rural town of Rago, Kansas is a 40-acre farm that belonged to Clyde Cessna: aviator, inventor, and founder of Cessna Aircraft Co. Cessna had an impressive aviation career that placed him as the Henry Ford of aviation, spanning decades into the early 20th century. He was an innovator in the new field of aeronautics. Today his legacy is seen in the air with the name Cessna printed on the sides of countless airplanes. The untold part of the story is that without his 40-acre farm for support, Cessna would have been grounded. Clyde Cessna put his …

Dare To Know By Thyself (Sapere Aude): The Legacy Of The Enlightenment And Post Enlightenment In Working-Class Adult Education, Maria A. Vetter

Adult Education Research Conference

The Enlightenment and Post Enlightenment relationship to working-class adult education is examined in the case of the working class in Chile at the turn of the 20^th century.