Often I feel like I do not belong. Growing up in rural southeastern North Carolina, I admit that I have a peculiar accent, I had an abnormal upbringing and I have an odd perspective. I did not have an abundance of close friends. Isolated, I resided in a town that was half an hour from the nearest grocery store. I am not here to complain about what I did not achieve or did not have the opportunity to pursue, rather expound upon the unique opportunities that were available to me and how my ambition has driven me to apply to this prestigious graduate program. It is my hope that my fondness of public history and aspirations in the involvement in this domain will ultimately leave a lasting impact on myself and most importantly, in this field. As …show more content…
An already thriving interest in Southern History was strengthened when I studied North Carolina History from 1524 to 1835 with the preeminent North Carolina Historian, Alan Watson which was an unforgettable experience for someone who aspires to pursue Southern History. The course increased my understanding of the area’s past as well as the present. Furthermore, I took a US Regional History seminar that focused on the Reconstruction Era to the Reagan Revolution. Dr. Monica GIsolfi chose invigorating topics that incited fresh perspectives. Conscious efforts to connect the past to events that are actively occurring added an innovative dimension to this learning experience. Extensive historiography allowed us to evaluate issues of race, from slavery to the Jim Crow South, and how it connects to current issues like police brutality and mass …show more content…
Exploration of the original Charlestowne settlement along the Cape Fear, A Tour of Fort Fisher, Moore’s Creek National Battleground and Orton Plantation all enhanced my education of the region and provided visual context for Southern History. Courses that focused on areas of applied history that included guest lecturers, hands on exercises, field trips and particular exercises helped broaden my understanding for Public History. Thusly my eyes were opened to an area of history that I had not previously considered. Public History is an avenue that I can pursue that combines all of the aspects of the field that I appreciate. The key to understanding how to conduct historical research and methodology introductory research methods course, I enrolled in a course which focused on the history of tourism in the United States. This course was the key to understanding how to conduct historical research and methodology, and even though there was a specific focus, it has helped me from then on and even today. In the autumn of 2013 I registered for an Introduction to Public History course. Exploration of the individual aspects of Public History such as Archives, Museum Education, Oral Histories and Library Studies were extremely enlightening in
Prior to the 1950s, very little research had been done on the history and nature of the United States’ policies toward and relationships with African Americans, particularly in the South. To most historians, white domination and unequal treatment of Negroes were assumed to be constants of the political and social landscapes since the nation’s conception. Prominent Southern historian C. Vann Woodward, however, permanently changed history’s naïve understanding of race in America through his book entitled The Strange Career of Jim Crow. His provocative thesis explored evidence that had previously been overlooked by historians and gave a fresh foundation for more research on the topic of racial policies of the United States.
Eric Foner is able to dissect racial issues from an historical perspective, and show how these issues remained at the heart of the controversy surrounding the period of Reconstruction. By blending historical fact with such emotionally charged issues as race and polit...
People attending schools before 1960’s were learning about certain “unscrupulous carpetbaggers”, “traitorous scalawags”, and the “Radical Republicans”(223). According to the historians before the event of 1960’s revision, these people are the reason that the “white community of South banded together to overthrow these “black” governments and restore home rule”(223). While this might have been true if it was not for the fact that the “carpetbaggers were former Union soldiers”, “Scalawags… emerged as “Old Line” Whig Unionists”(227). Eric Foner wrote the lines in his thesis “The New View of Reconstruction” to show us how completely of target the historians before the 1960’s revision were in their beliefs.
The study of past events have been a common practice of mankind since the verbal telling of stories by our ancestors. William Cronon, in his article “Why the Past Matters,” asserts that the remembrance of the past “keeps us in place.” Our individual memories and experiences shape how we act in our daily lives. In addition to influencing us at an individual level, our collective history binds us together as a society. Without knowing where we have been or what we have experienced, it is nearly impossible to judge progress or know which courses of action to pursue. The goal of the historian is to analyze and explain past events, of which they rarely have firsthand memory of, and apply the gained knowledge to make connections with current and future events.
A beginning group of historians to take a closer look at is the empiricists. The empiricists have a very strictly factual and logical view on history and how to examine it. They believe that past is both “observable and verifiable” and that through adherence to three strict principles, the past can be represented objectively and accurately. (Green, Troup 3) The three aforementioned principles can be summed up as: meticulously examining historical evidence and verifying the evidence with references, making sure the research is completely impartial and free of biases and prejudices, and using an inductive, or observational, method of reasoning. (Green, Troup 3) The empiricists seek to find universal historical truths through objective research and sticking to the facts.
The author of this website, which would be the National Council on Public History, is specifically looking at what exactly is public history and what exactly is meant by public history. Public History can be defined as history in the field. It is the use of history in real life situations. It is history applied and goes outside the realm of academic history. The author does mention that while there used to be clear definitions between public and academic history with public history being more multi-disciplinary, history as an academic subject has also increasingly become multi-disciplinary. Public historians have many different names such as archivists, museum professionals, and local historians. The author’s main argument surrounding these definitions of public history is that there are different forms of history with public history being the kind that the average person sees. Public historians can deeply impact their local communities and many collaborate with local community members on projects to ensure that the history they’re detailing is that of the community who is affected by it. The author does note that while many public history projects can be educational, the purpose might be more for an intellectual history like for a business’s archives. Public history projects could also be used to promote the local town or for the town’s own economic development.
I enjoyed your post. As a child my father was my biggest influence and he enjoyed reading about military history. He told me reading about the past about our heritage was very important to my education. Subsequently, started reading about Thomas Jefferson and about slavery, eventually that led me to Egyptian history I read everything I could about the pyramids and pharaohs which led me here today about to receive my degree in history.
I have always been fascinated by the American Revolution and originally I wanted to do the American Revolution as my topic. However while I was doing the research I learned many things about the French and Indian war and how it led to the American revolution which then grasped my attention. And I decide to choose a small topic which had a great impact in American history.
The initial component of Module QF5000 involved collaborative work with our peers culminating in an exhibition demonstrating our understanding of historical perspectives in the early years. The following essay will discuss my individual reflection upon this process both personally and professionally.
We began with the typical touristy attractions; the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Soho, Central Park, and shopping. We had been planning this trip for months and had poured over every detail. From the time the plane landed, we were living by a minute-to-minute schedule. This was a well organized trip and The Great White Way was not on the agenda. Or so we thought.
After the track meet, I was treated to a meal at Hackett Hot Wings in Joplin, Missouri. Sporting newtworks on flat screens lined the walls. As I set there waiting on my food, silence engulfed the roof around me. As flashes of baseball, football, and basketball ran across the screen, I noticed all the black excellence. I recalled my brief lesson about slavery in middle school. I set my attention to this lesson more than any other. This lesson was about my family, my friends, and me. Older now, I realize I am not happy with the textbooks. Somehow, they fit my history into two chapters. In the two chapters, it spoke of slavery and Jim Crow. I don’t remember them recalling the rapes, whippings, hanging, malnutrition. Hell, I remember we were banned
Like our course had major themes about American Indians, the museum offers four themes that American Indian history is centered around: living earth, community, encounter, and expressions. I looked at the area about living earth, and it talked about the American Indians’ interpretation of the relationship between land and humans. I connected this to what we learned in class, such as how the Indians viewed their land as sacred in their religions, whereas European Americans have religions focused around sacred material goods. Also, the first floor had a sign that gave facts on American Indians in America, and it said that there were 560 nations. This conveys the plurality of the groups that are usually classified together and the complexity of nations in America back then, as the United States of America is now one huge nation. Although some nations were small, a nation is still a distinct group of people. Therefore, America was made of hundreds of nations that are neglected how due to European
Becoming a historian requires a lot of different skills and first starts with becoming familiar with the work place. Such as one, must receive the proper funds to keep a historical building alive by grant writing and educating the community by using good public speaking skills. Also, I must sharpen your researching skills to set up displays, and proper training before starting the archive process.
Eyewitness To History is a great example of a well-organized and comprehensive historical reference website. With information categorized not only by time periods, but also relating accounts and events, Eyewitness makes it easy to learn about events from a broadened perspective as well as enabling convenient access to where the provided information came from. The resources for each article, video, sound clip, account, photograph, referential artwork, and images of old letters are effectively referenced and catalogued to link together for a simple and comprehensive learning experience. Eyewitness To History provides expansive user-friendly options for utilizing the website for both school-related and leisure studies.
what the past was like in order to fully understand the present and knowing more about what the