United States History Commons^™

Arnett, Terry (Sc 2454), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2454.  Letter, 23 February 1991, from Terry Arnett, serving in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield, to Allison Grimes, Bowling Green, Kentucky.  He sends greetings and writes briefly of the desert conditions.  Stationery includes Operation Desert Shielf crest and images of military activities.

Empathizing With The Slave; Empathizing With The Slave-Owner, John M. Rudy

Interpreting the Civil War: Connecting the Civil War to the American Public

Living inside of the world of the past is often the most difficult thing an interpreter can help her audience to do. But, in spite of its difficulty, it is the most necessary. The adage that before you insult a man, you must walk a mile in his shoes is correct. [excerpt]

Ferguson, Nora (Young), 1882-1969 - Collector (Sc 2453), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2453. Miscellaneous marriage bonds (9) and minister's return (1) collected by Nora (Young) Ferguson. The bonds were given in Barren Butler, and Breckinridge counties in Kentucky. Some may have been given in Warren County, Kentucky.

Muhlenberg County, Kentucky Union Of The American Society Of Equity (Mss 370), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 270.  Minute books, account books and organizational papers of the Muhlenberg Union of the American Society of Equity, a farmers collective bargaining organization.  Also includes constitution and by-laws, stationery, and other printed ephemera associated with the organization.  The Muhlenberg Union was organized on 28 July 1905.

Guthrie Family Papers (Sc 2452), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scans (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2452. Civil War pension documents, chiefly affidavits describing his service, of William Guthrie, who served with the 13th Kentucky Cavalry; letter written to A. C. Guthrie in Farmington, Texas; and letter written to William Guthrie in Burkesville, Kentucky upon the death of A. C. Guthrie.

Electoral College (Sc 2451), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2451.  Certification of George B. Hodge, James McKenzie, James M. Bigger, S. P. Love, R. S. Bevier, J. M. Atherton, Richard A. Jones, H. Cox, W. C. P. Breckinridge, Robert E. Little, A. L. Martin, and H. L. Stone, electors for Kentucky, as to the outcome of their votes for president and vice president of the United States, 1872.  Includes notice of certification for 1880 bearing the signatures of the electors only.

Guthrie, James, 1792-1869 (Sc 279), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 279. Letters written by James Guthrie, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and president of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, mainly concerning political and legislative matters. Includes partial letter relating to General Leonidas Polk and troops in Kentucky during the Civil War.

John Ficca, John Ficca, Meg Miner

All oral histories

Emeritus Professor, School of Theater Arts John Ficca taught full time in the School of Theater Arts from 1956-2002 and was also Director of the School of Theater Arts.

Ficca comments on entering the Army during the Korean War and his decisions about his education afterwards. He also speaks about the Theatre and Speech programs being part of the English Department at the start of his tenure and how the programs evolved afterwards.

Other memories include performances at different theaters on campus and invited guests; curricular requirements, including a Summer Theater; and changes in campus leadership, governance and institutional benefits.

Crabb, Alfred Leland, 1884-1979 (Mss 367), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and bibliography (click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Collection 367. Correspondence, book and article manuscripts, and research material of Alfred Leland Crabb, a native of Warren County, Kentucky and later professor at George Peabody College for Teachers in Nashville, Tennessee. The topics of the manuscripts include historical fiction related to Nashville and Bowling Green, biographies of prominent Nashvillians, and articles on all levels of education. Much of the unpublished material is fiction but draws from Crabb's Plum Springs school days and his student experiences at Western Kentucky University.

Civil War Conclusions: What Pbs' Freedom Riders Can Teach Us, John M. Rudy

Interpreting the Civil War: Connecting the Civil War to the American Public

We often have a deep problem in the Historical community. We that have gone through training and courses in "real" history, who have been trained in the academy don't know how to react when we get into the "public" history world. We step out on battlefields (or killingfields) and decide we can't trust our audiences to understand our evidence. So, we hit them over the head with a two-by-four of rhetoric. We have this deep impulse to tell people what to think about what they see on our landscapes.

Spiller, Mary Jane (Singletary), 1841-1939 (Sc 2448), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan for Manuscripts Small Collection 2448. Typescripted memoir by Mary Jane Singletary of her Civil War experiences in Louisiana. She provides data about her family's military service, their efforts to evade Union blockades of Baton Rouge, and of protecting their possessions from Union troops. Also includes a reminiscence of Elise Talmage Lieb which mentions Spiller and a photograph of Spiller.

Authors Correspondence (Mss 358), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 358.  Correspondence between authors or poets and staff of the Kentucky Library & Museum, primarily regarding donations of their works and available library holdings.  Correspondents also write about their activities and work in progress.

Dickey, Robert W., B. 1933 (Sc 2449), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2449.  Letter, dated 30 January 1963, from attorney Marshall Funk to Robert W. Dickey related to an school integration lawsuit in Bowling Green, Kentucky.  Also includes the political platform and biographical information for Raymond McClard's 1973 state Senate race.

Shakers - South Union, Kentucky - Hymns (Sc 177), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "additional files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 177. Manuscript hymn book and instructional manual used by the Shakers at South Union, Kentucky. Includes copied portions of Isaac N. Youngs' "Rules of Music."

Brown, William, Jr. (Sc 179), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "additional files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 179. Letters (3) written by William Brown, Jr. to his mother in Ohio, describing stagecoach travel from Louisville to Bowling Green, Kentucky, the local people and conditions, and his surveying of the Barren and Green Rivers for possible steamboat navigation.

How To Sap The Romance: America's National Killingfield Parks, John M. Rudy

Interpreting the Civil War: Connecting the Civil War to the American Public

"Maybe they should call them Killingfields instead of Battlefields..." [excerpt]

The Spring Floods Of 1936: Picher And The Red Cross Unite, Allison Williford

Theory and Practice: HIST430

In the early 1900s, the Great Depression, great droughts, a huge tornado, and great floods roared through the United States, hitting the East Coast, the West Coast, and the Midwest. These troubling periods and incidents left many families without homes or incomes. Therefore, these families had no choice but to reach out to others for help, the main source being toward the Red Cross and places in America where trouble was much less than the disaster's home front. Without the help of the Red Cross, the disaster stricken flood areas would not have survived.

Mercer, Fannie (Guy), 1855-1940 - Collector (Sc 176), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "additional files" below) Manuscripts Small Collection 176. Printed invitation, 15 June 1932, to Miss Sarah Leat for a July 4th ball at B. Vance's Hotel, Bowling Green, Kentucky, and newspaper clipping, 1929, concerning the invitation. Also holographic copy of lyrics of "Old Folks at Home."

Depression And Decline In The Tri-States, Joey Zdeb

Theory and Practice: HIST430

There were once unsettled and wild lands in the Indian territory of northwest Oklahoma, in the lowland valleys of southeastern Kansas, and even the vast hills of the southwestern Ozrks of Missouri. But this once clean and tranquil land is no more due to the mining and encampment of the Tri-State area of Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. In the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, there was a large movement of people into the Tri-State area. This was a result of new found minerals able to be mined, and with that came jobs, land, and new opportunity for the …

Workmen's Compensation: Mining Injuries In The Tri-State Mining District, 1930-1946, Ariel Yager

Theory and Practice: HIST430

Workmen's compensation is an evolved form of disability. It started in the 1920s and is still changing today. J.E. Halterman found this out when he went to work one day for the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company in 1930 in Coffeyville, Kansas. He left work missing the first three fingers on his right hand from working with a buzz saw. He sued the company for compensation of the loss of his fingers. During the trial it came out that the shield on the buzz saw was so defective and worn that it could not perform its job to protect the worker. …

World War Ii From The Mining Shaft, Lucian Myers

Theory and Practice: HIST430

One of America's most powerful weapons in World War II was its labor force. It was one of the contributing factors to the Allied victory in the war. Not only could the U.S. field better armies than its opponent, but it could supply them for a longer period of time over a longer distance. The labor force and communities of those laborers in America were transformed during the war. People who had not previously worked outside of their homes now worked in the labor force. Also there were people in the labor force who left it to go enlist in …

Government Involvement In The Mining Industry, Jake Storey

Theory and Practice: HIST430

Mining was one of the most prominent industries in the Tri-State District from the 1880s through the 1950s. This time period was very instrumental to the development of the Tri-State region of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Mining offered employment to many in the area, and mining camps would seemingly spring up overnight in some case. There is a very good case made that work in the mines was extremely hazardous to one's health. Falling rocks, working with explosives, and working in a dusty, damp area were all a part of a miner's day. Prior to government legislation, men could have …

Davis, William P., B. 1840? (Sc 175), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scans (Click on "additional files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 175. Confederate Civil War diary kept by William P. Davis, of the Enterprise Guards, Company B, 14th Mississippi Infantry, from April-December 1861. The diary covers his company’s tour of duty from Corinth, Mississippi through Tennessee to Kentucky. A major portion concerns Bowling Green, Kentucky and vicinity. Includes a muster roll and guard lists for Company B. Also includes a typescript of the narrative portions of the diary.

Shirley, Mrs. W. E. - Collector (Sc 174), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid for Manuscripts Small Collection 174. Research materials collected by Mrs. W. E. Shirley for her master’s thesis (Western Kentucky State Teachers College, 1934) on Isaac Shelby (1750-1826). Includes typescripts of Shelby’s gubernatorial correspondence (1793-1794); his 1826 will (Click on "Additional Files" below for scan); his autobiography; a pamphlet (1828) by Shelby’s son relating to the Chickasaw Treaty of 1818; and a letter to Mrs. Shirley from the Filson Club, Louisville, Kentucky, regarding the source of the typescripted autobiography.

Shaker Death Records (Sc 173), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "additional files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 173. Record of deaths in the Shaker society at Hancock, Massachusetts. Also inlcudes some records of deaths in the society at New Lebanon, New York.

Barry, William Taylor, 1785-1835 (Sc 229), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 229.  Photocopies of two letters by Barry while serving as Postmaster General under President Andrew Jackson.  Letter 27 November 1832 to James K. Polk relates to mail service in Tennessee.  Letter 7 February 1833 to Martin Van Buren concerns national politics. The bulk of the collection is research material, including other correspondence, that was typed or hand copied by J.F. Kany for the master’s thesis he wrote on Barry in 1934.

Rotary Club - Bowling Green, Kentucky (Mss 350), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 350. Items related to the Rotary Club of Bowling Green, Kentucky, as well as Rotary International. The minutes, correspondence, newsletters, resolutions, reports, clippings, and photographs highlight the organization's many years of service projects and civic involvement.

Phelps, Frank M. (Sc 2447), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text letter (click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2447. Letter of Frank M. Phelps, serving with a Wisconsin regiment at Camp Abercrombie, Shepherdsville, Kentucky, to his aunt Lydia C. Tibbits in Appleton, Wisconsin. He describes the Shepherdsville area and its connection to Daniel Boone, and discusses investing his soldier's pay.

‘Unkle Sommerset's’ Freedom: Liberty In England For Black Sailors, Charles R. Foy

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

With his 1772 decree in Somerset v. Steuart that slavery was ‘so odious that nothing can be suffered to support it [in England] but positive law’, Lord Mansfield altered the legal landscape regarding black rights in England. While earlier judicial decisions had implied that slaves who came to England were free, prior to the Somerset decision there was no judicial consensus on the issue. The Somerset decision did not decree that slavery was illegal in England. Yet many blacks believed it ‘emancipated’ any slave who reached the shores of England. This understanding, combined with the British military welcoming runaways into …

Gossom, Cora Eliza, 1866-1926 (Sc 2446), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2447.  Pages from scrapbook kept by Cora Eliza Gossom, Bowling Green, Kentucky, containing clippings and programs relating primarily to local parties, dances, and weddings.