From watching the Kevin Bacon/Kyra Sedgwick episode of Who Do You Think You Are?
if from nothing else, we all are pretty well familiar with the concept
of "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon." Yesterday afternoon and last night I
got two good doses of evidence of "Six Degrees of Karen Rhodes."
In
the hallway in the arena at the University of North Florida, where a
bunch of us soon-to-be graduates were waiting for time to line up and
filter in to the arena floor where our chairs were, I made the
acquaintance of two young men, Ray and Luis. It started out with joking
around about the tassels on our mortarboards, and led further to our
accomplishments and future plans. The conversation got around to the
imminent departure of Dr. J. Michael Francis from UNF. As some of you
may have already read in my blog Clio's Daughter, he's going to the University of
South Florida St. Petersburg. Ray said he felt like he'd been blindsided,
because as an archaeology major, he wanted to work up a program in
historical archaeology under Dr. Francis's guidance. When I mentioned
that I plan on following Dr. Francis down to USFSP, Ray and Luis both said, "You're the one he
was talking about!" Seems that Dr. Francis had said quite a bit about
me. So sitting next to these two young men during the commencement, I
was subjected to a stream of patter from Ray. It was hilarious. Even
better, Ray had picked up his young son (5 years old) from his
grandparents, seated in the audience, and had the lad on his lap -- and
took him up on the stage with him. That was just wonderful. But there I was, with a connection with these young men and with Dr. Francis giving me an earful!
The
second dose of "Six Degrees of Karen Rhodes" came that evening, at the
party my husband and I hosted at Athens Café in the San Jose area of
Jacksonville. We had 22 people there (including us), and our assortment
of friends is such that one commented that if all of us were stranded
on a desert island, we would find food to cook and enjoy, materials with
which to make shelter and clothing if needed, and materials to make a
boat so we could return to civilization! One friend came by himself as
his wife had to work (we missed her). Another friend came late, because
her husband has been hospitalized for the past month or so, and is now
at a rehabilitation center. Turns out these two (and their spouses)
have known each other for years! They had lost touch, but now, because
of their friendship with me and my husband, they have now been put in
contact again.
It's a small world indeed.
.
Showing posts with label University of North Florida. Show all posts
Showing posts with label University of North Florida. Show all posts
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
What political animals lurk in your genealogy?
I am sitting at an outside table at the food court at the student union at the University of North Florida. There is chaos on campus today because CNN, the Secret Service, local and campus police, and all sorts of subordinate supporting personnel are swarming all over the campus. Tonight, CNN's latest in their series of Republican presidential debates (a term that is used loosely these days) will be here. So it seems appropriate to discuss the search for the political animals lurking in our family trees.
None of my family, that I know of, has held political office of any sort since my eighth great-grandfather Samuel Packard was Surveyor of Highways and Collector of Minister's Rates (i.e., the tax man) in colonial Massachusetts in the mid-1600s. I guess we're not much in the way of political activism.
Knowing how one's ancestors swung politically can help to flesh out the full picture of their lives, especially if they did hold local, state, or national office. Politics informs our social views, and certainly today there are many ways in which peoples' political and religious views intersect. Economic status may not be a good indicator at times of one's political views. Sometimes, people's political views do not seem in concert with their real economic situation, but as the "John Dickinson" character in the Broadway play and movie 1776 said, "Most men would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor."
Do you have among your family's effects any political memorabilia? Campaign buttons, literature, an autograph of a famous person or any of the Presidents? My aunt graduated from Columbia University during the time Dwight D. Eisenhower was the university's president, before he became President of the United States. I have her diploma, and thus I have Eisenhower's signature. I have signatures of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, too, but they may have been machine signatures. I have more optimism that the Reagan signature is the real deal, as it was in a personal note.
Obituaries are good places to look for political affiliation. I have several ancestral obits which say what their political affiliation was. There also may be meeting notices mentioning your ancestor, or feature articles in the newspapers, which might indicate political affiliation.
'Tis the season for politics. If you, like me, are up to the gills with the nasty advertisements and the sniping, turn off the television, get down to the library or online, and take this opportunity to research your ancestors' political affiliations.
.
None of my family, that I know of, has held political office of any sort since my eighth great-grandfather Samuel Packard was Surveyor of Highways and Collector of Minister's Rates (i.e., the tax man) in colonial Massachusetts in the mid-1600s. I guess we're not much in the way of political activism.
Knowing how one's ancestors swung politically can help to flesh out the full picture of their lives, especially if they did hold local, state, or national office. Politics informs our social views, and certainly today there are many ways in which peoples' political and religious views intersect. Economic status may not be a good indicator at times of one's political views. Sometimes, people's political views do not seem in concert with their real economic situation, but as the "John Dickinson" character in the Broadway play and movie 1776 said, "Most men would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor."
Do you have among your family's effects any political memorabilia? Campaign buttons, literature, an autograph of a famous person or any of the Presidents? My aunt graduated from Columbia University during the time Dwight D. Eisenhower was the university's president, before he became President of the United States. I have her diploma, and thus I have Eisenhower's signature. I have signatures of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, too, but they may have been machine signatures. I have more optimism that the Reagan signature is the real deal, as it was in a personal note.
Obituaries are good places to look for political affiliation. I have several ancestral obits which say what their political affiliation was. There also may be meeting notices mentioning your ancestor, or feature articles in the newspapers, which might indicate political affiliation.
'Tis the season for politics. If you, like me, are up to the gills with the nasty advertisements and the sniping, turn off the television, get down to the library or online, and take this opportunity to research your ancestors' political affiliations.
.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
In for a penny, in for $14,000?
Next spring, in April, I will graduate, with my second bachelor's degree, from the University of North Florida with a double major in history and Spanish. I am contemplating, with the enthusiastic support of my family, friends, and professors, applying to the graduate school at the University of North Florida, for a Master of Arts in history. I am just about decided I am going to do it, but I am also wanting to make very sure that I am doing it for reasons that are mine, and not to live up to the expectations of others.
With that in mind, I will soon be taking a little bit of a "retreat" at the home of friends who have eminent good sense, and cats to pet. The cats will offer their own wisdom, which I shall take into consideration as well.
Reasons to do it:
Another reason to do it is that my research into the family structure of St. Augustine is based not in history, strictly speaking, but in genealogy. Genealogy is slowly making its way into the academy. Of course, Brigham Young University has had a degree-granting program in the field -- the only one in the country -- for a long time. Now Boston University and other institutions are offering courses in genealogy. I hope that my project, and the future work I do with that master's degree in history, will make a contribution, however small, to genealogy's acceptance as an academic discipline.
That alone would be worth it to me to do the work and take the time that getting the master's degree will involve.
With that in mind, I will soon be taking a little bit of a "retreat" at the home of friends who have eminent good sense, and cats to pet. The cats will offer their own wisdom, which I shall take into consideration as well.
Reasons to do it:
- I am already doing original research into the family structure of St. Augustine, having begun that under a grant from the university for independent undergraduate research. Why not get another degree out of it, one which can open more doors?
- As my major professor pointed out, the structure of a master's program can only help strengthen my work on that research.
- The master's program may also open doors to sources I would otherwise not have access to, and provide contact with historians I might not otherwise have an opportunity to meet.
- The credential of a master's degree may help me in getting published.
- Money. But my husband has said we will find it.
- My health. That is a bit of a sticking point, and I intend to talk to my doctor.
- Three dreaded letters: GRE (the Graduate Record Examination). However, according to an e-mail from the Graduate School at UNF, since I already have a master's degree (Library science, Florida State University, 1970) and took the GRE for that, I do not have to take it again.
Another reason to do it is that my research into the family structure of St. Augustine is based not in history, strictly speaking, but in genealogy. Genealogy is slowly making its way into the academy. Of course, Brigham Young University has had a degree-granting program in the field -- the only one in the country -- for a long time. Now Boston University and other institutions are offering courses in genealogy. I hope that my project, and the future work I do with that master's degree in history, will make a contribution, however small, to genealogy's acceptance as an academic discipline.
That alone would be worth it to me to do the work and take the time that getting the master's degree will involve.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
What a kick!
In science-fiction fandom, there is a word: "egoboo." It comes from the phrase "ego boost," and I just got one.
As I've mentioned, my book, Non-Federal Censuses of Florida, 1784-1945: A Guide to Sources, has just been published. Now, it certainly is a kick to hold in your hand a book that has your name on it as the author.
What really gets you jazzed is looking it up in a library catalog and seeing the entry. I must confess that it is possible that not everyone would get excited about that, but I am an ex-librarian, and I guess that makes a book catalog entry special to me. I just looked my book up in the catalogs of the Clay County Public Library and the library of the University of North Florida. Nice! Apparently, the Jacksonville Public Library hasn't cataloged their copy yet. I donated copies to each of these libraries.
I have to admit to feeling self-conscious about tooting my own horn, but in this business, you have to do some shameless self-promotion from time to time.
I just hope the great feeling I got from seeing my book in the catalogs of libraries won't be deflated in the next few months as reviews come out.
I'll let you know.
.
As I've mentioned, my book, Non-Federal Censuses of Florida, 1784-1945: A Guide to Sources, has just been published. Now, it certainly is a kick to hold in your hand a book that has your name on it as the author.
What really gets you jazzed is looking it up in a library catalog and seeing the entry. I must confess that it is possible that not everyone would get excited about that, but I am an ex-librarian, and I guess that makes a book catalog entry special to me. I just looked my book up in the catalogs of the Clay County Public Library and the library of the University of North Florida. Nice! Apparently, the Jacksonville Public Library hasn't cataloged their copy yet. I donated copies to each of these libraries.
I have to admit to feeling self-conscious about tooting my own horn, but in this business, you have to do some shameless self-promotion from time to time.
I just hope the great feeling I got from seeing my book in the catalogs of libraries won't be deflated in the next few months as reviews come out.
I'll let you know.
.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Getting Ready for the New Year and the New Term
This week, this hiatus between Christmas and New Year's, I'm doing a little preparation for the new term at the University of North Florida, mainly for my grant project on the family structure of St. Augustine, Florida, from 1783 through 1820, the "Second Spanish Period." I have collected a bunch of journal articles and am beginning to read them (and weed them) for relevance to the project. Some involve background information on family life of the period, particularly in Spain, where many of the St. Augustine colonists originally came from, and continued to be from, throughout all the time of Spanish colonization of the town beginning with its founding in 1565. I had not suspected how many of the townspeople had migrated in from Mexico or the Spanish South American colonies as well, including Indians and African slaves.
This week, probably tomorrow, I am going to the Jacksonville Public Library main branch to look at microfilms of the East Florida Papers, my major source for information about the people of St. Augustine at the time, and to test the idea which we have been discussing on the Transitional Genealogists Forum, that of taking photographs of a frame of microfilm as displayed on the microfilm reader screen. Digitizing can sometimes enhance the readability of a document in one way: I have found that even scanning a paper copy of a document can bring out even a tiny bit more of the writing on the document which does not show up well on the copy itself. That is how I discovered the birthplace of my 4x-great-grandfather. If this method of photographing the microfilm frames on the screen works, it will make the project even easier, as I will be able to do a lot of the transcription work on these St. Augustine documents at home.
I have a dandy little piece of freeware that I found on the web, called Transcript. It presents the user with a divided screen, at the top of which is displayed the document you want to transcribe, and in the bottom half is a work area where you do your transcription. I have used it on some of the older Spanish documents I transcribed for my paleography classes, and which I have been using also to keep up my skills. It is a terrific software for the task. I love practical things, and this software is practical! Genealogists and family historians will also find it useful for transcribing wills, inventories, letters, and other original documents.
It is also time for me to plan my schedule of research trips to St. Augustine and Gainesville (day trips) to the archives there, and a three- or four-day trip to Tallahassee to research at the State Archive, probably over spring break. And, if I can swing it, perhaps a research trip to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., which houses the originals of the East Florida Papers.
It is going to be a busy year.
.
This week, probably tomorrow, I am going to the Jacksonville Public Library main branch to look at microfilms of the East Florida Papers, my major source for information about the people of St. Augustine at the time, and to test the idea which we have been discussing on the Transitional Genealogists Forum, that of taking photographs of a frame of microfilm as displayed on the microfilm reader screen. Digitizing can sometimes enhance the readability of a document in one way: I have found that even scanning a paper copy of a document can bring out even a tiny bit more of the writing on the document which does not show up well on the copy itself. That is how I discovered the birthplace of my 4x-great-grandfather. If this method of photographing the microfilm frames on the screen works, it will make the project even easier, as I will be able to do a lot of the transcription work on these St. Augustine documents at home.
I have a dandy little piece of freeware that I found on the web, called Transcript. It presents the user with a divided screen, at the top of which is displayed the document you want to transcribe, and in the bottom half is a work area where you do your transcription. I have used it on some of the older Spanish documents I transcribed for my paleography classes, and which I have been using also to keep up my skills. It is a terrific software for the task. I love practical things, and this software is practical! Genealogists and family historians will also find it useful for transcribing wills, inventories, letters, and other original documents.
It is also time for me to plan my schedule of research trips to St. Augustine and Gainesville (day trips) to the archives there, and a three- or four-day trip to Tallahassee to research at the State Archive, probably over spring break. And, if I can swing it, perhaps a research trip to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., which houses the originals of the East Florida Papers.
It is going to be a busy year.
.
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