Hist 301: Historian's Craft (Petty, Fall 2025)

• Has public perception of antiwar protests of the Vietnam War overshadowed tributes for returning veterans at the time?
  • Historic newspaper coverage
  • personal narratives and reflections of vets (ex The other side of grief : the home front and the aftermath in American narratives of the Vietnam War)
  • oral histories and interviews
  • commemorative publications (use publication limiter to narrow)
  • specialized databases
• The perception of southern slaveowning women of the nineteenth century versus the reality
  • diaries In firstsearch worldcat
    • in the keyword box, copy and paste
    • su= "Women" AND (su= "Southern States") and su= "Diaries" and la= "eng"
  • Depictions of plantation women
    • in the firstsearch keyword box, try 
      • su: plantation AND su: women and dt= "bks" and yr: 1801-1866
    • see slavery and Plantation databases; search for women, mistress, lady.
  • ​​​​​​​Historic newspaper coverage
    • example
• The depiction of history at Disney amusement parks
  • ​​​​​​​guidebooks in worldcat (limit by publication date in firstsearch worldcat
    • ex 1970-80
      • In worldcat keyword box:
        • su: disney and (su: Guidebooks OR su: scrapbooks) and yr: 1970-1980
  • newspaper coverage of specific attractions (Ex pirates; hall of presidents; jungle cruise)
  • Critiques by historians of the park (use AHL for Primary sources; limit publication date. ex, what historians are saying 1980-1999)
• how media (advertisements, movies, games, books, etc.) shaped modern public opinion surrounding the American West.
  • ​​​​​​​really depends on time period and focus. 
  • search "wild west "or "american west" in our advertising history database
  • see how the west is depicted in magazines (see magazine tab)
  • see our american west database
  • use the fiction feature and publciation limiter in firstsearch worldcat to find novels and films about the west.
  • use the indexes in the catalog to identify examples of media; will need to narrow.
  • You get extra points from me if you somehow work Firefly into your project
• the history of summer camps in the American South, through a lens of how they have appropriated Native American culture which can reinforce stereotypes and affect the minds of the children who go there
  • ​​​​​​​newspaper coverage 
    • ex and ex (will need to narrow)
    • added authentic to searc. narrow to south
  • see Indigenous databases 
  • if you can identify specific camps we can find much more; look at secondary sources for guidance. 

• history of how and why southerners collect Depression Glass
  • once you narrow on specific period, narrow results in worldcat
    • ex limited 1929-1940
      • includes catalogs from period
  • Look for "depression glass" in newspapers and magazines, limited to publications in the south.
    • limit time period ex 1929-1940
• the various motivations of guerilla fighters based in Kansas and Missouri during the American Civil War. Specifically, I would like to examine their motivations through the lens of films depicting these guerillas in order to see how the guerillas have been characterized in popular culture and how accurate those depictions are to my findings.
  • in newspapers search for guerillas AND kansas OR missouri, limied 1850-1866
    • examples
  • do not use "civil war" as term.
  • look at newspaper and civil war databases. try term guerillas in each.
    • look at civil war letters and diaries. search guerillas
  • In worldcat, find personal papers of guerillas
  • use secondary sources to identify leaders-- we can find their papers, newspaper coverage ,etc
• the Lavender Scare of the 1950s, but specifically focusing on how the pathologization of homosexuality affected it
  • ​​​​​​​terminology is extremely hard for this period. start with curated collections
    • queer and LGBT and sexuality databases
  • when you have a sense of keywords or individuals to look for, use our  newspapers ​​​​​​​history databases
• the West Virginia Mine Wars, focusing on the legal aspects of the unionization, conflicts and politics.
  • ​​​​​​​look for coverage in  newspapers ​​​​​​​
    • search terms like "mine wars" or "coal wars" or "cabin creek" limited to publications 1912-1921
  • Legal materials in NexisUni and Heinonline. search the terms above, again limited to 1912-1922
    • Search  "mine wars" or "coal wars" or "cabin creek" or "United Mine Workers" in ProQuest Congressional for congressional debates and testimony.
  • Personal writings of people invovled in the union, wars, etc. see Worldcat examples 
    • first hand account of 1913-14 strike
    • skimm full list of publications related to UMWA pre 1925
• history of food options at William & Mary dining halls
  • ​​​​​​​how far back do you want to go? The Virginia Historical Index goes back to 1607, and students complained about the food back in 1700. I have a PDF of the index, remind me after class to email it to you. My email is rick@wm.edu
  • see Univ Archives collection, goes back to 1932
  • see criticism of dining halls in digital flathat, colonial echo, and other student magazines. 
    • NOTE the yearbook has pages about the various snack shops and eating options on campus
  • skim digital collection; narrow on the side by year and type
  • see knowledge base for possible finding aids
• history of depictions of Pocahantas in film versus reality
  • ​​​​​​​actual primary source documents are limited but what does exists is republished and easy to find.
  • Use secondary sources to identify films to look at (ex) (ex)
  • you can ILL nearly any film from worldcat see ILL tab.
  • you may want to narrow to specific decades or especially popular films
  • look up reviews of the films in America: history and life to see what historians say about the films
• history of 1970s and 1980s tenants' rights organization in Louisville, KY
  • ​​​​​​​See if we have coverage in our online   newspapers ​​​​​​​
    • we can order local newspapers if we need to via worldcat
    • check out our radical newspapers database too
  • using secondary sources, identify key leaders and look them up in newspapers and, if applicable, Legal materials like NexisUni and Heinonline

How Kappa Alpha fraternity remembers and deals with its Lost Cause history

• local chapter records, ex wm chapter
• Their publications in worldcat (either online or ILLable)
• articles and magazines you may want to narrow to specific time period
• all publications by and about the kao (again may need to narrow by date)

How heirloom firearms have been used as a medium for storytelling

• will need to narrow to specific examples I think. example, the use at Colonal Williamsburg and how firearms are used in their programming and depicted in their promotional materials
• you might skim the secondary lit for ways to narrow to specific examples so we can find materials
• If you can narrow to a century or period, we can also look at historic catalogs and magazines specifically about firearms

W&M alum and Georgia O'keefe-; William and Mary alumnus (Class of 1912) and Georgia O'Keeffe.

• local newspapers that may mention O'Keeffe and others.
• campus yearbooks
• campus newspaper
• other student publications
  • all online here
• campus handbooks and catalogs 
• digital collection overall
  • see 1912 flathat:
    • "Miss O'Keeffe with Mr Willams" attended the "opening German" of the season (a dance in the gym)
      • i say, Miss O'Keeffe attended with Mr Campbell at the previous German. I guess Campbell didn't get a second date.

In my medieval Europe class, I found and noted many instances and sources that pointed the beginning, end, and subsequent labeling of this period was defined by a fall in individualism and a rise in methods of forming collectives or other ties, feudal relationships, Papacy and Kings. and the end of the era and numerous changes throughout the period occurs when these shackles lessen over time, knight's vs guilds and churches with their holy relics.

• It will Really depend on your ability to read the languages. It also depends on which group you want to focus on. 
• Databases of interest:
  • medieval family life and travel writing
• Sourcebooks -- reprinted primary sources, translated to english 
  • youll narrow down backed on the group/groups you focus upon.
• It's not a lot, I know; let me know if you look at a more specific topic (Ex guilds)

To what extent did the Civilian Conservation Corps contribute to the creation and maintenance of the Appalachian Trail?

• materials published by the ccc during this time period
• The ccc newspaper
•  coverage in  newspapers of the Appalachian trail being constructed (ex)
• CCC interviews, oral histories, etc
  • LIMIT to appalachia 

role of white plantation class children in upholding slavery

• depictions of white children in plantation records
  • see slavery and civil war databases
• in worldcat first search to find books for chilren about slavery.
  • neary everything is anti slavery and would not have been read in the south
  • see Slavery in American Children’s Literature, 1790–2010 for pro-slavery childrens lit
• depictions of race in children's education in the south
  • would need to use secondary lit to track it down.

Thankfully there is a good bit of secondary like that will help us narrow the search a bit later.