More Research

I'm headed to Salt Lake City for a few more hours of research before I start my paper. Time is running out and I feel more lost now then I did before I started. This Friday I will head out, without my family, and spend three to four hours in the LDS History Library. I will then get up and spend another five hours there the next day. All this work for a few items that will lead me in a direction to build a thesis. My professors tell me that the artifacts, the primary sources, need to speak to me. I am hoping that during this trip the primary sources will scream at me. The interpretation of these sources is the hard part of research and I am finding it a tough task. What does one source say about another and how does it fit in the broader historical context? How does one historian interpret a source one way but another is able to get something completely different? I am about to spend eight to nine hours trying to figure that out. It is perplexing and yet I am having the time of my life digging through old letters, photos, and notes. Let's hope that this weekend produces the results that I am looking for.

Happy Valentines Day

I am so lucky to have a wife that is:

Such a wonderful mother

Great wife

Beautiful

Loving

Willing to put up with me

Caring

Gorgeous

Spiritual

Strong

Courageous

Motivated

Happy

Able to push me to be better

HOT!

Happy Valentines Day! 

(It will only get better from here.)

Phi Alpha Theta

Earlier this week I decided to join Phi Alpha Theta which is the National History Honor Society. I was asked to join others but thought that this was the right fit for me. When I joined the advisor asked if I wanted to present my paper on Slavery in Utah at the Pacific Northwest Regional Conference in April. I told her that I thought it would be exciting but that I wasn't ready but maybe next year. Today I had a fellow student ask me if I was going to present my research at the conference and I told her that I didn't think that it was refined enough to do so. I then ran into the advisor again and she said that she had talked to a professor who had seen my paper and that he suggested that she invite me again. I was still unsure about my progress and research and told her that I would have to think about it. Then this afternoon I met with one of my professors about my paper and the first thing he asked me was if I was going to present my research at the Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference. I told him that multiple people have been asking but that I was nervous. He assured me that the topic was excellent and that my research had already yielded unusual results. After talking it over with him I decided to go ahead with presenting at the conference. I had to have an abstract in by tomorrow (which I have posted on my other blog) and I am leaving tomorrow to do more research in Salt Lake. I am really busy with school, the apartments, the museum and the my family but I feel so productive. Lets hope I can get this paper finished by March!

UPDATE
My abstract was accepted, I am headed to the Pacific Nortwest Regional Conference to present my research on slavery in Utah. If you want a more focused idea of what I am doing click on the link above and read my abstract and, below that, proposal.

Break Through!

Last night I got caught up in doing research for my thesis and before I knew it I stayed up until 12:30am. This past weekend we had made a trip to Salt Lake to do research in the LDS Library. We went down on Friday and got a room at the Hilton so I would be close enough to Temple Square to walk so that Becky had a car. Friday afternoon I walked over to the library to start my research. One of the patrons informed me that one of the pieces I had picked out was not available to me because it had not been processed so I was not allowed to look through it. I was bummed about it because it was a box full of Brigham Young Memorial Association material that could yield reasons for adding colored servants on the plaque. This patron informed me that I could submit a request to go through that box, so I did while I was waiting for the other materials to come down.

I was able to look through microfilm for a couple hours but the first two films did not yield any evidence that would be helpful. Finally at 4:45pm I came across a newspaper clipping that talked about the Pioneer Jubilee in 1897 and the Brigham Young Memorial Association. Unfortunately I had to return my materials because the library closes at 5pm and they ask that you return everything by 4:45pm. I thought that it would be fine because I could return to the library on Saturday and continue my research.

Saturday morning came and the library didn't open until 10am and then the missionaries had a meeting so I was not able to get into the library that morning. However I was able to check out some other historical monuments that are relevant to my thesis.

We met Lyric and Scott for lunch and Scott suggested that we go to a new book store that is located near their house at Trolley Square. We headed over there and found that they had a rare book collection. As we were going through it I found a book that was published in 1891 that talked about the migration of the saints to the Great Basin. I was so excited to see that in its pages the three African Americans were listed as pioneers and not colored servants.

As I was doing my research last night I came across a book that was listed as "others have also bought" at the bottom of the page. I started checking out other books and found one that was published in 1909. This book referenced the Pioneer Jubilee and talked about a book that contained all the pioneer signatures of those that were still alive in 1897. This book was titled The Book of the Pioneers. I did a search for the book and found it in the Law Library at the University of Utah. The University of Utah had it available online so I was able to flip through pages of signatures and stories of the pioneers.

Book of the Pioneers

I flipped through over 400 pages looking at signatures trying to find Green Flake because he was the only African American, out of the three, that was still alive at the time. I was so excited to come across page 242 and see his name scribbled on the page. At the bottom of the page is a story that he relates about crossing the plains with Brigham Young as well as seeing buffalo for the first time.

A portion of page 242 of The Book of the Pioneers

This book was to honor the pioneers and their achievement of reaching Zion. It amazes me that in this book is a page devoted to Green Flake and his accomplishment. To me this would mean that rather than looking at the plaque on the Brigham Young Monument as continued racism, this should be looked at as a progressive way to honor the three African American pioneers that traveled with Brigham Young to the west.

What, Honor Society?

Today I received this letter from Kappa Delta Pi, International Honor Society in Education. This is the third honor society that I have been asked to join. I realize that you have been asked to join honor societies, but I have not. This is a first for me and I am really excited. I have always been a goof off and have never been recognized for my academic achievements. It feels really good to be in this position and that is why I feel the need to brag.

Senior Thesis

This semester I am working on my senior thesis. I have mentioned it in a couple of blog posts and thought that I would let me loyal readers know exactly what I have decided to research.

In a U.S. History class last semester we were discussing slavery being predominately in the South. A color coded map was shown that revealed slavery in Salt Lake City. I was shocked to see that slavery had made its way to Utah when the Territories were suppose to be "free" territories. I asked the professor after class what he thought about the map showing slavery in the Utah and said that he thought the map was incorrect in that aspect. I went along my way satisfied with thought that it was in error but something kept grating on me. I decided to look into the issue and found that Brigham Young had brought three slaves with him from Winter Quarters, Nebraska. I couldn't believe what I was reading and as I read further I found that the names of the three slaves (Green Flake, Hark Lay, and Oscar Crosby) were actually on the Brigham Young Monument.

On a trip to see Lyric in Salt Lake City I decided to go and see for myself. In the photo below, on the bottom right hand corner you can see that it says "Colored Servants" and below that are the names of the three slaves. After doing some research I am not shocked that LDS church members had slaves but rather that someone decided to make a divide among the white pioneers and "colored Servants". Therein lies the basis for my thesis. I want to find out the reason that there is a disparity between the races when this monument was erected in 1897 which is well after the Civil War. I have done some research and found that there are many primary sources in the LDS Church library and I am excited to get started. I think that this semester will be a tough one but this experience should be fun and rewarding.

In case you would like to read my senior thesis proposal I have included it here. I did receive an A on the paper even though there are some corrections that need to be made.

photo from www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=35317

A Little Embarrassed/Christmas Break Reading

I have looked at my blog for over a month now trying to figure out how to post my grades without being embarrassed. At the end of the summer semester I posted my grades with pride and admiration. I took six credits and received a 4.0 GPA for my hard work which even made it to Becky's blog. The fall semester came and I worked equally as hard to gain the necessary grades I would need to continue on with a graduate program. The embarrassing part is that I fell short this semester. Becky tells me that It will be fine and that I can still be proud of my accomplishments however my grades have kept me from posting on my blog. In order to get over the hump I am going to post them and move on to something else so that I do not have to dwell on them any longer.

U. S. History and Culture - A

Historian's Craft - A

Modern U.S. History 1929-Present - B+

Comparative Politics - B+

The Presidency - A

Voting and Public Opinion - A

Semester GPA - 3.77

Cume GPA - 3.83

Christmas Break Reading

Over the Christmas break I was able to read a couple of books. The first book was one that I own but was having trouble finding time to read it. The other was a Christmas gift from Becky and she knows me too well.

Yes...this is another Kurt Vonnegut book. I bought this book from a little shop in Hyde Park before we left Boise. It has been the one book that I have held in my hand the longest for fear that once I read it my last tie to the city that I love would be gone forever. It has sat on my night stand since we moved to Pocatello reminding me of the quaint book shop in Hyde Park, Java (a coffee shop where we bought hot chocolate every chance we got), the bustle of the city, the warmth of a small town, the feel of home. Once "Cat's Cradle" was over everything regarding Boise would come to end and Pocatello would be at the forefront. It hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be, however there has been some pain and a urning for the city that gave me so much.

"Cat's Cradle" is not a book for everyone. Like all of Vonnegut's books there are recurring anti-war themes and liberal undertones. I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read the next Kurt Vonnegut selection that Becky gave me for Christmas entitled "Armageddon in Retrospect".

The second book I read over the break was the new book by Chris Matthews entitled "Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero". A few years ago I read my first biography and really enjoyed it. Since that time I have read a couple of others and have found that I love biographies of political figures. This book took me back to that first biography in more ways then one because it was the biography of Bobby Kennedy titled "RFK". These books span almost the same time period with a lot of overlap since Bobby worked with Jack on his campaign. This is a great book that discusses John Kennedy's experience in World War II, his campaign tactics, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the legacy that "JFK" left on the executive office. A great read for anyone looking for a biography to start 2012.

I was so excited Christmas morning when I received this book. I had been talking about this one and the new Bill Clinton book. This selection proves that my wife knows me too well. She knows that I am fascinated by the Kennedys and that I love political history almost more then any other genre. Thank you Becky for this book and the many others that I was given Christmas morning.