Recent access to new scholarly databases has enabled me to pursue an unfinished story I had encountered during my research about the Colfax Massacre of 1873, a racial conflict arising from the Reconstruction-era politics of Louisiana. In particular, I hoped to learn more about a curious document I had turned...
A biannual publication offering insights into the use of digital historical collections
From Student Researcher to Careful Scholar: Tips from a Lexicographer
As a lexicographer, dictionary web site editor and co-host of the KBPS radio show "A Way With Words," I receive a large number of questions from the public about word histories. Many of these queries come from students who want help with their studies. As long as I'm not asked...
Dance in Colonial America: A Research Challenge
In 1976 the American Bicentennial created an audience for information about early American dance, but no scholarly resources were available. I took on the challenge and since that time have collected and indexed the raw materials with the help of two grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities (EASMES...
Thanks for the Memories, ... and the Documentary Records: Thanksgiving and the History of American Holidays
"Twas founded be th' Puritans to give thanks f'r bein presarved fr'm th' Indyans, an' . . . we keep it to give thanks we are presarved fr'm th' Puritans." —Finley Peter Dunne, "'Thanksgiving,' Mr. Dooley's Opinions" (1901) Holidays are like peaks in a nation's topography. Without them, the landscape...
Finding Book Reviews of Classic American Literature: Search Tips for Students Using the Archive of Americana
Finding recent scholarship on 18th- and 19th-century literature poses no great challenge to the skilled researcher, who may use a variety of available tools to support such an inquiry. It can be more difficult, however, to discover contemporaneous responses to significant 18th- and 19th-century authors. One useful tool for that...
