Women's History Commons^™

The Afro-American Insurance Company Tag

Glover Family Papers, 1871-1937

Document: Afro-American Insurance company tag issued to Fannie Glover at 123 Palmo St. [St. Augustine, Florida]. Circa 1920-1929

Property Tax Invoice

Glover Family Papers, 1871-1937

No abstract provided.

Living In A Barbie World: Barbie's Origins And Her Impact On The American Mother, 1959-1965, Colleen Caldwell

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis examines the impact of the 1959 release of Barbie on white middle class American mothers. It works to show how the doll represented an idealized image of American womanhood and beauty standards, while also showing different careers women could potentially hold. This thesis analyzes popular culture from the time such as, magazines, television commercials, and newspaper editorials along with studying the actual dolls and outfits. Through studying these sources, it becomes clear that Mattel recognized that mothers were the people buying the dolls for their daughters and the company sought ways to appeal to them as buyers. The …

Aguaaaa!!!, Cory Villegas

Theses and Dissertations

“AGUA” is a call for new models of learning and sharing, celebrating the diasporic as a place of global revolution. Salsa, rooted in Latin American and Afro-Caribbean histories, is choreographer Cory Villegas’s expression of cultural legacy. As an Afro-diasporic dance, Salsa carries the wealth and variety of African and Indigenous roots. Villegas contextualizes her thesis event “Las Leyendas: An Afro Cuban Suite,” presenting herself and her troupe Soul Dance Co. as evidence that contradicts the erasure of Latin & Caribbean Culture in US dance history. The paper uses English and Spanish, written, visual, and oral materials with an accompanying webpage.

The Grand Forks Business And Professional Women’S Club: A History Of Women’S Empowerment, Emily Bruer

Arts & Sciences Undergraduate Showcase

Members of the Grand Forks Business and Professional Women’s Club (GFBPWC) personified the intersection of consumer culture, Progressive reform, and the professionalization of women’s labor that occurred between 1890 and 1930. Their membership in the GFBPWC implied economic, political, and social empowerment and granted them an opportunity to actively participate in and transform their community. Not only were these professional women recognized as reputable, upstanding, and passionate members of their community, but they also saw themselves as agents of positive change and improvement within their own lives and for future generations. This study of the concurrent rise of consumer culture, …

The Grand Forks Business And Professional Women’S Club: A History Of Women’S Empowerment, Emily Bruer

History Student Publications

Members of the Grand Forks Business and Professional Women’s Club (GFBPWC) personified the intersection of consumer culture, Progressive reform, and the professionalization of women’s labor that occurred between 1890 and 1930. Their membership in the GFBPWC implied economic, political, and social empowerment and granted them an opportunity to actively participate in and transform their community. Not only were these professional women recognized as reputable, upstanding, and passionate members of their community, but they also saw themselves as agents of positive change and improvement within their own lives and for future generations. This study of the concurrent rise of consumer culture, …

Little Cricket On The Hearth: The Quiet Feminism Of _Little Women_, Caroline Anderson Klein

Honors Theses

Since the advent of the cult of domesticity, the stakes for female characters in domestic literature have been notoriously high. There was no room for flaws, rebellious decisions, and certainly no room for mistakes—whether of the woman’s own accord, or simply as collateral damage of a male character’s immorality. In this shallowly Calvinist domain, women were never more than one broken guardrail away from social ruin or death. In writing Little Women, Louisa May Alcott breaks these molds through unflinching kindness to her female characters from childhood to adulthood, even unto death. Alcott achieves this quietly feminist feat by …

Mattie Castlebury: East Texas Oil Boom Legend, Olivia L. Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The discovery of the East Texas Oil Field in 1930 was a pivotal moment, reshaping the region’s economic and social dynamics. Mattie Castlebury emerged as a standout figure among the fervor of the oil boom, leaving an indelible mark on East Texas’ cultural identity. Castlebury’s story showcases resilience and resourcefulness as she navigated the challenges of the oil boom era. She established Mattie’s Ballroom, creating a bustling leisure and entertainment hub.Through her entrepreneurial strategies, Castlebury’s impact on the community is evident, shaping East Texas’ cultural fabric.

The “Women of the Boom” exhibition at the Kilgore College East Texas Oil Museum …

The Controlled Narrative Of “Jane Roe:” Norma Mccorvey’S Life Beyond The 1973 Trial, Eleanor G. Strickland

Honors College Theses

Norma McCorvey, Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade, 1973, wrote two memoirs twenty years after the Supreme Court trial that surrounded her third pregnancy. These memoirs (I Am Roe, 1994, and Won by Love, 1997), along with the recent documentary AKA Jane Roe (2020), provide an insight into McCorvey’s life and how she was used by politicians and civilians during and after the influential trial. McCorvey lived a complicated life and was constantly being pulled in different directions spiritually, politically, and personally. This thesis shows how McCorvey attempted to re-write the narrative of her life using …

Bedeviled Beauty: My Journey Through White American Theater Institutions, J'Aila C. Price

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Game console: Oculus Quest

World: American Theater Institutions

Player: Minority

Place: United States

Level: “Ain’t no way.”

This thesis explores the contrast between the Westernized philosophies ingrained in my education and my identity as a Black female artist. It sheds light on the difficulties of pursuing higher education in the arts and the gaps that arise from limited exposure to culturally diverse Black resources, revealing the systemic issues in Western performance education. The paper also discusses the insights gained from my journey as a Black female artist, focusing on my thesis performance of Blood at the Root, which is …

The Azalea Trail Maids: White Women’S Contributions To The Lost Cause In Mobile, Alabama, Emma Rawls

Honors Theses

This paper analyzes the origins of the Azalea Trail in Mobile, Alabama, and the history of its corresponding Azalea Trail Maid program. The Trail is a walking and driving trail through the historic areas of Mobile, in which hundreds of azalea bushes have been planted along the roads. Beginning in 1929, the Azalea Trail takes tourists through the heart of downtown Mobile, the city’s antebellum homes, and other local attractions. In 1949, the program expanded to include a “Trail Court,” and in 1951, it created a festival to crown an Azalea Trail Queen and select the members of her court, …

“Bad Taste, Bad Hygiene, And Bad Morals:” Dress Reform Movements And Women’S Fight For Greater Independence During The Late 1800s., Emily Cahill

Honors Theses

The Victorian Age is debated as a time of brilliant growth, beauty, and prosperity for people living in England. While this era is described as a glory age for England, it was also an age of great inequality. There were significant advancements in learning and new societal freedom, like the widespread availability of education and abundance of jobs. However, freedom was not experienced equally by everyone in the public. One of the main things women sought to change was freedom in their wardrobe. It was nearly impossible to progress in society under the rigid restrictions women’s clothes put on them. …

Decolonizing The Western Perception Of Afghan Women: A Feminist Critique, Parwana Azimi

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Abstract: Feminist theory and activism have often been reduced to singular movements from Western literature and history. Thus, the exploration of Feminist theory is often limited to Western ideology and values. In doing so, Western Feminism has primarily promoted the rights of Women living in developed countries while leaving women in developing countries or otherwise out of the discussion of women’s rights and status. Most often, women's rights struggles outside of the West are seen as colonial projects which portray Muslim women as helpless and requiring liberation from their cultures. A prominent example of this is the case of Afghan …

Ladies Art Club - Bowling Green, Kentucky (Mss 762), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scans (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Collection 762. Minute books of the Ladies Art Club, an African-American women’s club in Bowling Green, Kentucky, whose objectives included social and charitable activities and annual exhibits of sewing work.

Writing, Performance, Resistance: Examining Feminist Ideology And Theory In Theatre Since The Second Wave, Olivia Cross

Theater Honors Papers

This project seeks to identify and analyze how feminist theatre is informed by theory and activism in its resistance against white, heteronormative, and patriarchal hegemony offstage through onstage representation. By identifying three consistent themes of gender & sexuality, race, and trauma and the methods used to effectively convey them to an audience, feminist theatre displays how advocacy takes unique forms to uproot the status quo. Furthermore, this research highlights how theatre is a viable and rich outlet for feminist intellectual history, displaying its versatility as a frame of analysis.

"An American Versailles”: Cold War Diplomacy And The Branding Of The American National Image Through The Fashion Of First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, Holly Carew '24

History & Classics Student Scholarship

Holly Carew ’24, History major, Marketing and French minors
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Margaret Manchester, History and Classics

A Most Despicable Hoax: Women, Crime, And Newspapers In Depression-Era St. Louis, Nancy Stiles

Theses

This paper delves into the captivating saga of Nellie Muench, a St. Louis housewife whose life intersected with the burgeoning celebrity culture, evolving media landscape, and shifting gender dynamics of the early 20th century. Muench's involvement as a co-conspirator in the 1931 kidnapping for ransom of a wealthy doctor propelled her into the spotlight, where she navigated media manipulation to attempt to craft her own narrative. Secretly obtaining a baby and passing it off as her own child to gain jury sympathy and blackmail a rich paramour took interest in her case to sensational tabloid (and legal) heights. Drawing from …

Women And Food In World War I Era Arkansas, Emily A. Stolp

ATU Scholars Symposium

On July 1st, 1917, in the midst of The Great War, Arkansas’s Governor Charles Brough appointed Ida Frauenthal as chairwoman to the state’s new Woman’s Committee of the Council of Defense for Arkansas. The report created by the Woman's Committee allowed the committee to first: organize the results of the efforts of many civil groups and second: immortalize the women’s wartime efforts. Women’s war efforts in this era naturally focused on the home front. The need to conserve food, a national and local concern, occupied much of women’s wartime efforts. Fear mongering and propaganda used to push the food conservation …

Silent Cycles: Unveiling 19th-Century Perspectives On Menstruation, Women's Agency, And Societal Transformations, Anna Bennethum

Campus Research Month

In the 19th century, menstruation was a topic often vieled in silence and misinformation. Nonetheless, it is pivotal in discussions on women's agency and societal shifts. This paper explores 19th-century medical perceptions, the dissemination of reproductive knowledge through women's publications, and a case study of Adventist health publications. Through primary source analysis, this paper reveals how access to medical knowledge empowered women, especially in pursuing higher education. Additionally, examination of Adventist health publications showcases alternative remedies to menstrual disorders, granting women control over their reproductive health. This study illuminates the intersection of menstruation, women's agency, and societal change, emphasizing the …

Genderless And Sexualized: Caribbean Enslaved Women In The 18th Century, Amy Van Arsdell

Campus Research Month

This study focuses on the uniquely-gendered experiences of enslaved women in the Caribbean in the 18^th century. First, I examine the racialized views of femininity and how enslaved women were denied the privileges of white femininity and forced to do the same work as men, yet were still valued less than their male counterparts because of their gender. The study goes on to highlight the sexual oppression enslaved women experienced, and its adverse effects on their health. The study concludes that despite the intersectional racism and sexism they faced, enslaved women were able to use their gender to resist …

The Contributions Of Nuevomexicanas To New Mexico Lowrider Culture, Traditions, And Rituals: The Significance Of Young Chicana Cultural Pachuca And Chola Aesthetics And Identity Expression In The Albuquerque Lowrider Community, Valerie J. Chavez

Chicana and Chicano Studies ETDs

The lowrider community in Albuquerque creates a space for families and individuals to gather and express themselves within Chicana/o/x culture. Nuevomexicanas have played a significant role in the teaching and preservation of the New Mexican traditions and rituals of lowriding. This research project is a visual and plática-based study. It explores how young Nuevomexicanas express their Chicana identity through la pachuca and chola cultural aesthetics and identity while actively participating in lowrider culture. This project utilizes the research methods of la resolana, querencia, and plática to understand, discover, and document the roles of young Nuevomexicanas in the Albuquerque …

Bureaus Of Ungentlemanly Warfare: Comparing The Roles Of Women In The Special Operations Executive And The Office Of Strategic Services During World War Ii, Adaline Nolley

Senior Honors Theses

In 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill created the Special Operations Executive. The SOE was one of the first government agencies to recruit female spies. In 1941, United States President Franklin Roosevelt commissioned the Office of Strategic Services, which also employed women. The organizations approached the concept of female agents differently. The OSS maintained female staff in domestic offices, but employed foreign women as agents. The SOE recruited women to go abroad, as they were less suspicious than men in occupied territories. The study of female staff in the OSS and the SOE allow historians to understand roles of women …

Radically Feminist Or Monstrously Feminine?: Witches And Goddesses In Guadagnino's Suspiria (2018), Lindsay Macumber

Journal of Religion & Film

Guadagnino’s 2018 remake of Suspiria explicitly and implicitly incorporates two connected myths, witchcraft and goddess centered matriarchal prehistory. The fact that each of these myths have been claimed by feminists in myriad ways may explain Guadagnino’s claim that Suspiria is a great feminist film that escapes the male gaze. In this article, I argue that Guadagnino’s representation of these myths lays bare their misogynistic origins and perpetuates, rather than subverts, patriarchal power structures.

Bicycling During The 1890s: The Unlikely Means Of Women’S Social Reform, Rachel Lewchanin

History Student Projects

The paper focuses on the women’s bicycling movement in the US during the 1890s. More specifically, it argues that bicycling and the movement that developed behind it was used by upper and upper-middle class white women to create social changes that furthered their independence from certain societal expectations.

Sorority Life At Lindenwood College: 1905-1921, Sarah Marian

Student Scholarship

A paper describing the early years of sororities at Lindenwood College

Writ To Work: Habeas Corpus Challenges By Laborers And Socialists In Washington State, 1915-1919, Luke Mcdermott

Digital Legal Research Lab

No abstract provided.

Unveiling Colonial Legacies: Women’S Marginalization Through The Lens Of Coffee Cultivation In Northern Angola, Posi Oluwakuyide

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigates the historical dynamics of gender and labor by investigating the colonial production coffee production in northern Angola, the history examined spanning from the pre- colonial era of the Kongo and Ndongo kingdoms to the colonial period in the Uíge, Zaire, Bengo, and Cuanza Norte provinces. It aims to shed light on the marginalization of women within both colonial and post-independence contexts. Utilizing the Harvard analytical framework as a guide, this research explores the enduring effects of Portuguese colonialism on women's agency and economic participation. Through an examination of primarily scholarly works, this study reveals how Portuguese colonial …

Res Historica, Volume 3, Lynneth Miller Renberg Phd, Alpha Rho Epsilon Phi Alpha Theta

Res Historica

The 2024 journal of historical research by Anderson University students, Res Historica.

The editorial team for this edition of Res Historica was Dr. Lynneth Miller Renberg, Johnathan Sorce, and Samuel Sanders.

From Moral Panic To Legal Injustice: Due Process Failures In Prostitution Cases (1889-1924), Ethan Dunn

Digital Legal Research Lab

No abstract provided.

Hollywoodlandia: Celebrity Women, Movie Culture, And American Public Womanhood, 1916-1950, Skye Cranney

History Theses and Dissertations

This project proposes to study the ways in which celebrity women’s behavior may have encouraged American women to challenge, but not necessarily subvert, traditional gender roles even as Hollywood publicity continued to emphasize the importance of those same roles in women’s lives. It does that by examining three sites where celebrity women prominently lived, worked, played, and volunteered between 1920 and 1950: the Hollywood Studio Club, a boarding house only for women in the entertainment industry, in Los Angeles; the Sun Valley Ski Resort, the first modern ski resort in the American West, in central Idaho; and the Hollywood Canteen, …