Today started off rocky. I was supposed to be at a focus group for Bedford/St. Martin's at 8:00 . . . or so I thought. It was actually 9:00, so that extra hour of sleep I would have liked because of the time change didn't happen. After the focus group, Joyce Harrison, Brian McKnight, John … Continue reading SHA 2011: Gender and Sectional Reconciliation in Late Nineteenth Century America
Gearing Up for SHA 2011
By the time you read this post, I should be making my way to Baltimore for this year's Southern. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXTqr2ZkGn8 As time permits, I'll be tweeting (using #sha2011) and blogging from the conference. If you are so inclined, you might even read the paper I'll be presenting.
Review of Finkelman, Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore is one of the United States' forgotten presidents. That is unfortunate, since he was so instrumental in ensuring the passage of the so-called Compromise of 1850. For that reason alone, I was looking forward to Paul Finkelman's new biography of 13th president, part of the Times Books' American Presidents Series. Fillmore's relationship with Andrew … Continue reading Review of Finkelman, Millard Fillmore
Slavery, Kinship, and the 1828 Presidential Campaign
As I did for this past summer's SHEAR conference, I am posting for advance reading a .pdf of my paper, entitled "Slavery, Kinship, and Andrew Jackson's Presidential Campaign of 1828," for the upcoming Southern Historical Association meeting. It is part of the session, "New Perspectives on the Jacksonian South," scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 29, from … Continue reading Slavery, Kinship, and the 1828 Presidential Campaign
Recommendations for Books to Use in Public History Course
In a recent post, I asked for recommendations for advice on books to use in a public history course. I suggested four that I used in an historical interpretation course: Jennifer L. Eichstedt and Stephen Small, Representations of Slavery: Race and Ideology in Southern Plantation Museums (Smithsonian Books, 2002) Michael Kammen, Mystic Chords of Memory: … Continue reading Recommendations for Books to Use in Public History Course
The Antichrist in U.S. Politics
In a recent New York Times op-ed piece, Matthew A. Sutton observed that the Antichrist is relevant to evangelical voters, who tend to vote Republican. Specifically, he wrote: The global economic meltdown, numerous natural disasters and the threat of radical Islam have fueled a conviction among some evangelicals that these are the last days. While … Continue reading The Antichrist in U.S. Politics
Books for Spring 2012 Courses
I think I've identified most of the books I'll be assigning for my Spring 2012 courses. I may amend this list a bit, but here's what I have so far. History of the U.S. II Robert H. Abzug, America Views the Holocaust, 1933-1945 (Bedford/St. Martin's Press, 1999) ISBN 978-0-312-13393-1 I've had success with Abzug's book in … Continue reading Books for Spring 2012 Courses
Should I Assign My Own Book in Class?
I'm already thinking about the books I want to use in next semester's Jacksonian course, and I have a dilemma. I want to assign the Jacksonian and Antebellum Age essay collection that I edited a few years ago, but I'm reluctant for two reasons. The first is that I'm afraid it smacks of arrogance to … Continue reading Should I Assign My Own Book in Class?
The Hermitage’s Podcast Series: James Fenimore Cooper and Andrew Jackson
September's Hermitage podcast is about James Fenimore Cooper, author of The Leatherstocking Tales, a series of novels of which the most famous is The Last of the Mohicans. The University of Connecticut's Dr. Wayne Franklin discusses "how the literature of James Fenimore Cooper affected the public's perception of Native Americans, and wonder[s] if the famed … Continue reading The Hermitage’s Podcast Series: James Fenimore Cooper and Andrew Jackson
Interested in a Rare Civil War Primary Source?
One of my non-history colleagues here at Cumberland loaned me a book filled with family letters from the Civil War. The writer of the letters was Justus Daniel Strait of Pennsylvania. Strait wrote the letters to his parents while he served in the Union Army's Company I, 45th Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, 9th Division. Strait … Continue reading Interested in a Rare Civil War Primary Source?
Jacksonian America: Society, Personality, and Politics 