Peter Onuf's interview at The Junto blog struck a chord with me, and I want to use it to address some things that are implied in his remarks. (Just to be clear, none of what follows is meant to disparage Onuf in any way. Although I don't know him personally, I respect his scholarship and his position … Continue reading Peter Onuf on MOOCs
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Was Calvin Coolidge a Klansman?
I recently came across the photo to the left, which purports to show Calvin Coolidge marching with several Klansmen in Washington. A look at several Klan websites revealed that the picture, Coolidge's membership, or both were included on many. (See examples here and here.) One website that appears to be a major source for the Coolidge-Klan … Continue reading Was Calvin Coolidge a Klansman?
Confronting Classism and Racism in Contemporary America: Two Recent Examples
Two conversations have taken place in the past 24 hours that reveal two different approaches to class and race in the United States. The first was Bethanie H. Tucker's talk at the Wisconsin Technical College System Conference. Granted, I am relying on Sara Goldrick-Rab's Storified timeline, which captures her tweets about the talk, but the sentiment of Tucker's … Continue reading Confronting Classism and Racism in Contemporary America: Two Recent Examples
Where in the World Was Andrew Jackson?
The Hermitage has the answer, thanks to a new mapping project. I'm still tinkering with it, but I'm impressed that there are short descriptions and sources for each of the map locations. (I wish the sources were to primary documents, but maybe that's coming.) H/t to Young Jacksonians for the title and link.
Andrew Jackson, Southerner Named Winner of Tennessee History Book Award
On Thursday, Andrew Jackson, Southerner was named the winner of the 2013 Tennessee History Book Award, given jointly by the Tennessee Library Association and the Tennessee Historical Commission. While every author secretly hopes to win some sort of award, I never thought that I would actually win one. What I write about isn't fashionable, and … Continue reading Andrew Jackson, Southerner Named Winner of Tennessee History Book Award
What Killed William Henry Harrison?
According to a recent New York Times article, it was probably not pneumonia. In those days the nation’s capital had no sewer system. Until 1850, some sewage simply flowed onto public grounds a short distance from the White House, where it stagnated and formed a marsh; the White House water supply was just seven blocks … Continue reading What Killed William Henry Harrison?
Knowledge vs. Box-Checking
Chronicle poster polly_mer recently posted this assessment of the importance of a college education: This is why our responsibility in Gen Ed and even majors classes is to sell the benefits of knowing things instead of checking the boxes.For example, I tell my students that being able to fake interest in deathly dull material is … Continue reading Knowledge vs. Box-Checking
Jim DeMint: Historian Extraordinaire
Former South Carolina senator Jim DeMint doesn't let history get in the way of his argument that the U.S. government didn't end slavery: DeMint: This progressive, the whole idea of being progressive is to progress away from those ideas that made this country great. What we're trying to conserve as conservative are those things that work. … Continue reading Jim DeMint: Historian Extraordinaire
Books for Fall 2014 Courses
I was going to write a blog post about a dream I had last night (in which Jonathan Rees revealed that he was part of a superhero tandem intent on fighting corruption within the history profession), but instead I decided to write about my fall semester book choices. Early U.S. I've abandoned my idea of … Continue reading Books for Fall 2014 Courses
South Carolinians Don’t Hate Andrew Jackson
At least not the ones I met over spring break. I had the pleasure of speaking at several events last week in South and North Carolina. My first stop was in Charleston, at the South Carolina Historical Society (SCHS). Prior to my address, Harold Closter of the Smithsonian announced a new partnership with the SCHS. No one … Continue reading South Carolinians Don’t Hate Andrew Jackson
Jacksonian America: Society, Personality, and Politics 