tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53800832708337472172024-03-13T20:49:52.299-04:00Nik's MusingsThis blog will contain my thoughts on history, current events, rants, and just about anything else I feel like discussing in the public domain.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-45641450990947306742011-08-05T21:28:00.001-04:002011-08-05T21:28:47.286-04:00I am a survivor of sexual abuse and rape. What happened to me is not my shame anymore. What happened to me is the shame of my abusers. I am dealing with the aftermath of what they left me with, which is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I have lived with nightmares, flashbacks, and the lovely triggers which bring back horrible memories, but I have risen above all of this, to survive. I have built a life that I am proud of and I want others that have survived the same horrors that I have survived to see that it is possible to survive, to no longer feel ashamed and to feel empowered that they can be happy, confident and secure in their lives. Jaycee Dugard says it best that "survival is your strength, not your shame."Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-29668100684169350412010-10-27T13:46:00.002-04:002010-10-27T13:53:09.546-04:00Update on lifeIts been over eight months since I last updated this blog. A lot has happened during the past eight months. On the personal front, I am now almost nine months pregnant with your second child, a little girl named Cat. Our daughter Grace is two and a half and although she can be a challenge at times, she is a very happy and bright little girl who wants to go to school really bad and can't wait for her baby sister to be born. My husband is almost done with his certificate in computers and will soon start work on his bachelor's degree. <br /><br />On the school front, I am finally ABD and only have to finish my dissertation, which is currently on hold till after the birth of the baby and the death my doctoral adviser. I will definitely finish but I will need to reconfigure my committee and request an extension for more time to finish. I am confident that I will finish and eventually land a job in my field.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-79079906749109766432010-01-04T23:43:00.003-05:002010-01-04T23:45:29.909-05:00Getting healthy..physically speakingThe first area of my life that I am working on in the getting healthy department is physically. My goal is to do 30 minutes of exercise a day, even if its just walking for 30 minutes. Since New Years Day, I have done 30 minutes everyday. The real test will be tomorrow when I start back to work after having 4 days off. I will keep you posted on the progress.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-32211141475923761852010-01-01T12:03:00.002-05:002010-01-01T12:09:10.827-05:00New YearInstead of making New Year's resolutions that I never keep, I have decided to do something a little bit different. While talking to a customer at work yesterday, the customer told me about how her friend picks a word or phrase to live by for that entire year such as peace, friendship, excitement, etc.. So I have decided to use "healthy" as my word to live by for 2010. I will update everyone on my progress as I go throughout this year. Happy New Year.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-10622938908913280372009-03-21T00:44:00.000-04:002009-03-21T00:45:30.789-04:00Simon Bolivar: El Libertador O El Dictador?Introduction<br /><br />The Spanish Conquest of the New World officially began in 1492 when Christopher Columbus reached Hispaniola on his first voyage across the Atlantic when looking for a shorter route in order to tap into the Indian spice trade. The conquest of Latin America by Spain began in 1502 on Christopher Columbus’s last voyage to the Caribbean where he explored the Chibcha empire, located on the northern coast of modern Colombia. The first permanent settlement of Spaniards was established at Darien in 1510, Santa Marta in 1525 and Santa Fe de Bogota in 1538. Eventually, the Spanish created audiencias where their royal rule was established throughout Central and Southern America by the seventeenth century. The lack of economic progress in combination with both social and political discrimination against the indigenous populations led to out right hostility to Spanish rule. <br /> Three hundred years of this hostility came to a boiling point in 1810 when the independence movement began in Latin America. Influenced by both the American fight for independence against the British (1776-1783) the French Revolution (1789-1799), and the revolution in Haiti, the fight for independence in Latin America would be an arduous struggle where different cultures clashed and attempted to unite against their common enemy of Spain. The leaders of the revolution “utilized the concepts of the eighteenth-century Enlightenment as well as the American and French revolutions, they made frequent references to terms such as natural rights, popular sovereignty, separation of powers, and liberty” according to Blanchard. <br />The Creole leaders such as Simon Bolivar were successful initially in their fight for independence; however, this struggle was doomed to failure in the long term due to political, social, and economic divisions in Creole society. In this paper, I will argue that Simon Bolivar demonstrated consistency in his efforts to promote centralized, quasi-dictatorial regimes and his in his reluctance to end slavery, and the legendary man known as El Libertador should be contrasted with the revolutionary who exhibited authoritarian, aristocratic, and anti-democratic tendencies. This argument, along with the initial success and ultimate failure of Bolivar’s political experiment will be explored in chronological format beginning with the first phase of independence from 1810 to 1816 in present day Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay and concluding with the second phase from 1816 to 1830, which ends with the death of Bolivar.<br />Background<br /> The revolution began on May 25, 1810 when the Creoles of Buenos Aires overthrew the Spanish viceroy and established a provisional government for region of La Plata in the name of the Spanish monarch, Ferdinand, although direct Spanish rule was not reinstated. The Paraguayans followed the Argentines on August 14, 1811 and set up their own provisional government in 1813. In 1814, Jose de San Martin organized an army in western Argentina with the goal of freeing Chile followed by taking on the Spanish stronghold of Peru. San Martin’s campaign proved to be successful in Chile between 1817 and 1818 where he was aided by another revolutionary leader Bernardo O’Higgins. San Martin defeated the Spanish army at the battle of Chacabuco on February 12, 1817. Exactly a year later, O’Higgins announced the independence of Chile and offered the leadership role for the country to San Martin who refused it in favor of his compatriot, O’Higgins. Once the Spanish army had been defeated at Maipu on April 5, 1818, Chile’s independence was guaranteed and San Martin was able to turn his attention towards the Spanish stronghold of Peru. <br /><br />Bolivar and government<br /> The next wave of independence took place in Colombia under the leadership of Simon Bolivar. Before delving into the complexities of the Colombian fight for independence, it is necessary to briefly examine the background of Bolivar and how he came to play such an important role in the fight for independence in Latin America. Bolivar was born in Caracas, Venezuela on July 24, 1783. He lost both of his parents as a child, and so was brought up by various members of his extended family. He was educated by private tutors in both Caracas and Spain and as a result was influenced by the French philosopher, Jean Jacques Rousseau. Historian David Bushnell describes how Bolivar, as a teenager became acquainted with his fellow Venezuelans:<br /><br /> [he] wandered off through the streets of Caracas, mingling freely with his<br /> social inferiors-much to the displeasure of his older sister Maria Antonia-<br /> suggests the possible early appearance of the ease in relationships with all<br /> sorts and conditions of people that he would display in later life and that<br /> would, among other things, make him a commander genuinely popular <br /> with his raging armies. <br /><br />In 1799, Bolivar traveled to Spain in order to complete his private education. He traveled extensively throughout Spain and France, becoming acquainted with the Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804. Before meeting Bonaparte, Bolivar met and married Maria Teresa Rodriguez del Toro y Alaiza in Madrid. They were married on May 26, 1802 and were married for less than a year when his young wife died of yellow fever upon their return to Venezuela, Bolivar’s homeland. <br /> Bolivar returned to Venezuela upon learning that Napoleon Bonaparte had made his older brother Joseph, the king of Spain. Bolivar took part in the juntas that had declared independence from Spain in Caracas. Since he had experience traveling in Europe, Bolivar was sent on a diplomatic mission to Great Britain in 1810, and upon his return to Venezuela, he joined the rebel military. Before leading the fight for independence himself, Bolivar served under the command of Francisco de Miranda, who led the initial revolt against the Spanish in Venezuela in 1810. Miranda’s forces were defeated by the Spaniards and as a result, Bolivar was forced to flee the country. It was not until 1812 when Bolivar returned to Venezuela leading an expedition to free his homeland from Spanish rule. He was one of the few Latin American leaders “…who remained fully engaged in the struggle from beginning to end” according to Bushnell. Bolivar was given command of the forces in New Granada in 1813 and led the invasion of Venezuela on May 14 of that same year. <br />Bushnell further argues that “regardless of the exact source of Bolivar’s ideas, and despite all changes in emphasis or detail there is a remarkable consistency in his views of how Spanish America should be governed –or perhaps above all, how it should not be governed.” <br />Bolivar had no desire for Latin America to become the next United States. Bolivar stated, according to Bushnell, that:<br /> he would rather see “America” (by which he meant Spanish America) adopt<br /> the Koran than adopt the system of government of the Untied States, even <br /> though he did not hesitate to add that it was “the best on earth,” It just was <br /> not “best” for his part of the hemisphere. <br /><br />Bolivar believed that federalism of the United States was not the ideal method of governance. He felt that Colombia and Latin America in general needed a strong central government because without it, “our own disunity led us back into slavery.” He compared the state of Latin America at that point in time to be “similar to the circumstances surrounding the fall of the Roman empire.” <br /> The first constitution that was adopted in Latin America was by Venezuela. Venezuela’s constitution “had as its most salient feature the creation of a federal republic, in which the provinces were given ample faculties to deal with local affairs while the central authorities took charge of matters of general interest.” Bolivar “firmly believed that the choice of federalism reflected an unwholesome fascination with foreign models that were inapplicable to Venezuela.” However Bolivar further argued that:<br /> the most grievous error committed by Venezuela as she entered the political<br /> arena was undoubtedly her fatal adoption of the governing ideal of tolerance,<br /> an ideal immediately rejected as weak and ineffective by every one of good <br /> sense, yet tenaciously maintained right up to the end with unparalleled blindness. <br /><br />It appears that by preaching tolerance and by allowing slaves to serve in the patriot armies that it created:<br /> instead, countless poorly disciplined militias were established, which had<br /> the effect not only of exhausting the national treasury with exorbitant salaries<br /> but also of destroying agriculture tearing the farm workers away from their <br /> farms and turning the government into an object of hatred, because it forced<br /> them to take up arms and abandon their families. <br /><br /> By creating a disciplined fighting force, Bolivar was able to conquer Venezuela in August of 1813, and he declared the Second Republic of Venezuela as a result of the conquest. However, the Second Republic of Venezuela would not last and fell in 1814 due to the Boves’ rebellion which swept the country. Bolivar left Venezuela for New Granada that same year but is forced to leave that country due to disputes with the government there. He fled to Jamaica where he writes the famous Jamaica letter about his thoughts on the independence process in South America. He concluded that “it is even more difficult to predict the future lot of the New World, or to make definitive statements about its politics, or to make prophecies about the form of government it will adopt.” <br /> While in Jamaica, Bolivar is able to attain military assistance from Haiti and lands in Venezuela in 1817 where he successfully captured the city of Angostura. After defeating the royalist forces at the Battle of Boyaca in 1819, Bolivar was able to add this territory to New Granada and form the federation of Gran Colombia on September 7, 1821 with himself as president. Once Gran Colombia had been founded, Bolivar turned his attention towards liberating the remainder of the continent, namely Peru, which had been a colonial Spanish stronghold since the 1532 beginning of the Spanish empire in the sixteenth century. In order to liberate Peru, Bolivar meets with the Argentine rebel leader, Jose de San Martin to discuss freeing Peru at Guayaquil in July of 1822.<br /> Bolivar along with Antonio Jose de Sucre’s assistance was able to conquer Peru and was named dictator by the Congress of Peru on February 10, 1824. The people of Upper Peru honored Bolivar and his great victories by founding the Republic of Bolivia on August 6, 1825. However, trouble was brewing in the federation of Gran Colombia as the various divisions of society was fracturing socially, politically and economically, leading to outright rebellion in Venezuela. Bolivar himself summarized this divide in the following words: “…America is divided by remote climates, diverse geographies, conflicting interest and dissimilar characteristics.” Bolivar faced great difficulty in keeping a grip on power over such a diverse federation. So in April of 1828 he called for a new constitution to be written for Gran Colombia at Ocana. Bolivar firmly believed that: <br /> I am of the opinion that until we centralize our American governments,<br /> our enemies will gain irreversible advantages. We will be inevitably<br /> embroiled in the horrors of civil dissension and in-gloriously defeated <br /> by that handful of bandits infesting our territories. <br /><br />He also believed that the primary reason for the hemorrhaging of the republic was that the pardos were gaining political, social and economic ground. <br /> The Ocana constitution that was drafted by was not acceptable to Bolivar as it called for the creation of a pure federalist government with diminished executive power. Bolivar believed that only strong military leadership could save Gran Colombia at this point in time. He proclaimed himself dictator on August 27, 1828. The people of Gran Colombia especially that of the pardos, “equated Bolivar’s dictatorship with the restoration of whites’ colonial privileges.” The various attempts to assassinate Bolivar as a result of him declaring himself dictator, took a toll on Bolivar and the republic in general. Rebellions against his rule broke out throughout Gran Colombia over the course of the next two years, which ultimately forced Bolivar to resign his political office on April 27, 1830.<br />Bolivar and Spanish colonization<br /> Bolivar made interesting comparisons between Spanish colonization and slavery. He stated that “the chains have been broken, we’ve been liberated, and now our enemies want to make us slaves” with regards to attempting to overthrow the Spanish yoke of power in Latin America. He did state that they did inherit some good traits as a result of Spanish rule but that it soon turned the opposite:<br /> the habit of obedience, a commerce of shared interests, knowledge, and <br /> religion; mutual goodwill; a tender concern for the birth land and glory<br /> of our ancestors; in brief; everything that constituted our hopes came <br /> to us from Spain. This was the source of a principle of adhesion that<br /> seemed eternal, even though the behavior of our rulers undermined <br /> that sympathy or to put it more accurately, that closeness imposed <br /> on us by rule of force. Today, the opposite is true: death, dishonor,<br /> everything harmful threatens us and makes us fearful. That wicked<br /> stepmother is the source of all our suffering. The veil has been rent,<br /> and now we can see the light, now she wants to return us to darkness. <br /><br />Bolivar identified South America as a slave state by:<br /><br /> virtue of their constitution or the abuse of it. People are slaves when<br /> the government, by its essence or through its vices, tramples and usurp’s<br /> the rights of the citizen or subject. Applying these principles, we will <br /> find that America was not only deprived of its freedom but deprived as <br /> well of the opportunity to practice its own active tyranny. <br /><br />He continued this theme of South America being enslaved at the Angostura Address on February 15, 1819:<br /> enslaved by the triple yoke of ignorance, tyranny, and vice, we American<br /> people have never experienced knowledge, power or virtue. As disciples<br /> of this pernicious trio of masters the lessons we learned and the examples<br /> we followed have been purely destructive. We’ve been ruled more by <br /> deceit than power and corrupted more by vice than by superstition. <br /> Slavery is the daughter of darkness. <br /><br />Blanchard argued that “those fighting for freedom used the word ‘slavery’ to describe the situation, accusing Spain of having ‘enslaved’ the colonies. The accusations occasionally detailed, but more often simply implied, through the use of the term that Spanish Americans had experienced all of the suffering that slavery denoted.” <br />Bolivar and slavery<br />Gran Colombia was difficult to unite due to the geographical remoteness from one province to the next. “After 1810, Caribbean Colombia, barely connected to the rest of the country, could well have become a strong untied region-perhaps even a separate nation-with its own distant economy, racial makeup and culture. Yet it did not” according to historian Aline Helg in her work entitled, Liberty and Equality in Caribbean Colombia, 1770-1835. The independence movement in New Granada was led by “a fragmented and conflictive elite-led movement limited to some cities and areas whereas other cities and villages remained faithful to Spain.” Overall, the independence movements between 1810 and 1811 in New Granada “blended elements of traditional order with social revolution.” The right to vote in the cities was given to all males “regardless of race but did not destroy the colonial hierarchy and corporatist order.” The entire independence movement was only able to be established “when a powerful nucleus of the local elite was committed to reform and when together with leaders of African descent, they mobilized and armed lower-class men of color.” Helg argued that:<br /> By not forming their own political movement in 1810-11, the free people<br /> of color missed a unique chance to make demands beyond what the elite<br /> was ready to concede. Although they briefly showed their capacity to act<br /> independently from the white leadership in the revolt against the conspiracy<br /> of the Fijo in February 1811, afterward they returned to their homes and <br /> barracks. <br /><br />Slavery was also not a major issue for New Granada because the slaves themselves were not involved in the fight for independence and failed to take the opportunity that presented itself with the revolution in order to free themselves. According to historian Marixa Lasso in her article that explored race and Gran Colombia, this period of 1810-1812 independence movement by calling the period “a myth of racial democracy.” She further argued that:<br /> it seems clear that the future of race relations was one of the most<br /> controversial and conflictive problems of the independence period,<br /> and the myth of racial harmony was one of the most important<br /> political legacies of the Age of Revolution. <br /><br /><br />This myth of racial harmony prevailed throughout the period of the independence movements and even echoes in the politics and historiography of Latin America today.<br />Colombia has a diverse population where one in three Colombians has either full or mixed African ancestry. Before the modern nation of Colombia came into existence, the area of modern day Colombia near the Caribbean was known as New Granada. It was this very area that “…was demographically an important part of the African diaspora in the Americas” according to Aline Helg. Helg argued that conditions were ripe for a social revolution between 1770 and 1830, however:<br /><br /> …free black people of African ancestry did not seize such opportunities or take <br /> advantage of their demographic superiority to gain power over whites and <br /> impose their rule in any part of the region. Nor did they attempt to unite across<br /> class, color, and residential lines or to organize autonomously or in union with<br /> slaves and Indians to achieve equality and liberty on their own terms. <br /><br />The Creoles of Cartagena made the decision in 1811 “to admit free African men and their full or mixed male descendants to the body of citizens-in opposition to the decision of the Spanish Cortes (Parliament) to grant suffrage only to male Spaniards, Indians and mestizos.” Bolivar believed that the slaves must be freed. He decreed that, “considering that justice, policy and the country imperiously demand the inalienable rights of nature, I have decided to formally decree absolute freedom for the slaves who have groaned under the Spanish yoke during the three previous centuries.” The decree imposed that all males between the ages of fourteen and sixty had to enlist in the military as a condition of their freedom. It also stated that if a freed slave refused to serve in the military, then they could not be freed nor could their family members. However, Bolivar moved to a different position on just how many slaves should be freed for military service in an April 18, 1820 letter that he wrote to General Francisco de Paula Santander: “I have ordered that slaves fit for military service be recruited. It should be understood that this means only those needed for military service, as an excessive number of them would be more harmful than useful.” <br /> When it comes to slavery, Bolivar appeared to be constantly changing his opinions on the subject. In one instance he portrayed freeing slaves as the right thing to do “considering justice, policy and the country imperiously demand the inalienable rights of nature.” He then stated that “the soul of a slave rarely manages to appreciate the wholesome condition of freedom. It turns to rage during uprisings or to servility in its chains.” The leaders of Gran Colombia seemed to follow Bolivar’s example. Although they claimed to want freedom for everyone, the leaders of the federation “clung to the view that Indians were pitiable and backward but docile, whereas they believed that any gathering of individuals of African descent could degenerate into a rebellion against the white minority.” There was clearly a shift from the idea of freedom for all to only freedom to those “who could demonstrate ‘civilization’ and economic independence displaced military achievement.” <br />Bolivar and pardos<br /> Although Bolivar was concerned with slavery, he was most concerned with pardos or free blacks, and that intermarriage between races, or miscegenation “would lead to the extermination of whites in Venezuela and Caribbean New Granada.” This fear of the pardos “dated back to his first phase of Venezuela’s anti-colonial struggle, often referred to as a race war, when in 1814 royalist Jose Tomas Boxes led an army of pardos and manumitted or fugitive slaves against the white creoles.” However, it appears that Bolivar appreciated the efforts of his black soldiers by stating that “the war…had taken a heavy toll on people of African descent, who had provided most of the troops and many lower-ranking officers” according to Helg. Bolivar in his address to the Constituent Congress in Lima on May 25, 1826 stated, “…what can I say of the soldier, born among slaves and entombed in the deserts of his country, whose political experience is limited to the sight of captives in chains and their fellow soldiers taking up arms to set them free?” <br />Helg argued that “the two-century old tradition of presenting Colombia as a mestizo nation has greatly contributed to black Colombians’ invisibility.” It is only today that black Colombians are finally gaining the recognition that they are and were an important part of the population in Colombia and in the history of the Latin American independence movements. It may have taken “more than a decade of war, accompanied by immense loss of life and property, most of Latin America had won its political independence.” However, that political independence did not come for everyone in Latin America, especially those of African descent. This was due to the fact that “no structural economic change took place, aristocratic values continued to dominate Latin American society, despite an elaborate façade of republican constitutions and law codes.” <br />Conclusion<br />The ideas of Simon Bolivar and the Latin America independence movements present historians with many complexities in writing the history for that period in time. Bolivar’s demonstrated consistency in his efforts to promote centralized, quasi-dictatorial regimes and his reluctance to end slavery, and the legendary man known as El Libertador have been contrasted with the revolutionary who exhibited authoritarian, aristocratic, and anti-democratic tendencies. However, further research in this area of Latin America historiography is greatly needed.<br /> Bolivar’s ideas behind both governance and race in Latin America still resonate within modern Latin America today. Venezuela’s Chavez seek to emulate Bolivar and his ideals today, which at times conflict with what others want in governing region. Race relations, especially the acknowledgement of the important role that Africans played in the independence movements have quite a ways to go, before their contribution is completely accepted by the non Africans today. Hopefully these ideals will be reconciled with the greater history of the region and that the efforts of those under represented groups will appear more integrated in the historiography of Latin America.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> Bibliography<br /><br /><br />Primary Source<br /><br />Bolivar, Simon. El Libertador<br /><br />Biographical Sketches on Simon Bolivar<br /><br />Belaunde, Victor Andres, Bolivar and the political thought of the Spanish American revolution, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1938.<br /><br />Frank, Waldo David, Birth of a World: Bolivar in Terms of His Peoples, Houghton Mifflin, 1951.<br /><br />Johnson, John J. Simon Bolivar and Spanish American independence, 1783-1830 Princeton, NJ: Van Nostrand, 1968<br /><br />Lemly, Henry Rowna, Bolivar, liberator of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, Boston, Mass: The Stratford co., 1923.<br /><br />Masur, Gerhard., Simon Bolivar, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1948.<br /><br /><br />Parra-Perez, C., Bolivar: a contribution to the study of his political ideas, Paris: Editions Excelsior, 1928.<br /><br />Salcedo-Bastardo, J.L., Bolivar: a continent and its destiny, Richmond, England: Richmond Publishing Co., Ltd., 1977.<br /><br />Trend, J.B., Bolivar and the independence of Spanish America, Bolivarian Society of Venezuela, 1951.<br /><br />South America History, Wars of Independence, 1806-1830<br /><br />Beals, Carleton, Eagles of the Andes: South American Struggles for independence, Philadelphia: Chilton Books, 1963. <br /><br />Helg, Aline. Liberty and Equality in Caribbean Colombia, 1770-1835<br /><br />Moses, Bernard, The intellectual background of the revolution in South America, 1810-1824, New York: Russell & Russell, 1966.<br /><br />Nicholson, Irene. The liberators: a study of independence movements in Spanish America New York: Praeger, 1969.<br /><br />Rodriquez, Jaime E. The Independence of Spanish America Cambridge, U.K.; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998.<br /><br />Uribe-Uran, Victor M. State and Society in Spanish America during the Age of Revolution Wilmington, Del.: SR Books, 2001.<br /><br />Colombia: History, Politics, & Government<br /><br />Bushnell, David. The Santander regime in Gran Colombia Newark: University of Delaware Press, 1954.<br /><br />____________, The making of modern Colombia: a nation in spite of itself, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993.<br /><br />Antonio Jose de Sucre biographies<br /><br />Sherwell, Guillermo Antontio, Antonio Jose de Sucre hero and martyr of American independence, a sketch of his life, Washington DC: Press of B.S. Adams, 1924.<br /><br />Articles<br /><br />Blanchard, Peter. “The Language of Liberation: Slave Voices in the Wars of Independence” Hispanic American Historical Review 82:3.<br /><br />Collier, Simon. “Nationality, Nationalism, and Supranationalism in the Writings of Simon Bolivar” The Hispanic American Historical Review Vol. 63, No. 1 (Feb., 1983)<br /><br />Collings, Harry T. “The Congress of Bolivar” The Hispanic American Historical Review Vol. 63, No. 4 (Nov., 1926)<br /><br />Castro-Klaren, Sara. “Framing Pan-Americanism: Simon Bolivar’s Findings” Project Muse.<br /><br />Lasso, Marixa. “Race War and Nation in Caribbean Gran Colombia, Cartagena, 1810-1832”, The American Historical Review Vol. 111, no 2 (2006) <br /><br />Lynch, John. “Bolivar and the Caudillos” The Hispanic American Historical Review Vol. 63, No. 1 (Feb., 1983)<br /><br />Ethnic relations<br /><br />Chirot, Daniel & E.P. Seligman, Ed., Ethnopolitical warfare: causes, consequences, and possible solutions Washington DC: American Psychological Association, 2001.<br /><br />Wade, Peter. Race and ethnicity in Latin America, London & Chicago: Pluto Press, 1997.<br /><br />Race relations<br /><br />Andrews, George Reid. Afro-Latin America, 1800-2000 Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.<br /><br />Graham, Richard. The Idea of race in Latin America, 1870-1940 Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990.<br /><br />Harris, Marvin. Patterns of race in the Americas, New York: Norton, 1974.<br /><br />Morner, Magnus. Race mixture in the history of Latin America Boston: Little, Browm, 1967.<br /><br />Toplin, Robert Brent, Slavery and race relations in Latin America, Westport Conn: Greenwood Press, 1974.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-26864498561291167782008-05-16T14:24:00.002-04:002008-05-16T14:32:53.007-04:00Finally a Mom and almost ABDSorry I have not posted in almost 2 months. I did not fully realize how much work a new baby is and just how sleep deprived I really am as a result. However, I would not trade it for the world. My daughter is so amazing to me. To think that my husband and I created such a beautiful (not that I am biased or anything) baby that we love so much is incredibly amazing to me even seven weeks after her birth. Everything is going well as we start out on our journey as parents.<br /><br />Now a quick note on the school front. I am finishing my readings for my minor field over the summer and should have both the major and minor fields completed by the end of this summer, so I will be <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ABD</span>. The hard part will be to complete my dissertation as the majority of my research is sitting in archives overseas. So, I will have to find a way to make that happen.<br /><br />I will try and most some historical items in the future instead of just blogging about my personal life.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-82944103942210320642008-03-24T14:21:00.002-04:002008-03-24T14:30:49.502-04:00New house and soon a new babySorry that I have not updated this blog in over a month. I was quite busy with the process of buying a house, moving and getting ready for the new baby. Buying a house in the midst of the mortgage crisis was a long, stressful and difficult process that took two months before we were able to close. We began the process on January 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> when we applied for a loan through Key Bank via FHA financing (Federal Housing Authority). We did not get the clear to close until March 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">nd</span>. After submitting every single piece of paper about our financial and personal lives we were able to close on our new house and finally move out of the ghetto of North Toledo on March 8<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">th</span> in the middle of the snow storm. <br /><br />While moving in the snow storm, my husband and I were both extremely sick with bronchitis, strep throat and sinusitis. With the help of our family and friends we were able to move. Once we had moved, my husband had hurt his knee at work and was not able to do much around the house, so once again our wonderful family pitched in and helped to get things done such as painting the baby's room.<br /><br />My husband's knee is on the mend and he is able to do things around the house and we were able to finish the nursery last night. We are now ready for our daughter to be born. We will be going to the hospital within the next week to have labor induced and we will be able to finally meet our daughter, Grace <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">O'Malley</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Cassidy</span> in the flesh. We are both excited, scared and nervous by this event, but I know we are ready to be parents and will make great ones.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-23207942189248771502008-02-03T11:26:00.000-05:002008-02-03T11:37:03.990-05:00Dealing with fellowship rejection once againLast year when I applied for the Fulbright Fellowship I did not think that I would make it past the first round as it was my first year of applying for the fellowship to Portugal. As luck would have it, I actually made it past the first round and was one of six semi-finalists for one of three grants to Portugal. So I decided to think positive for once in my life and I assumed that I would probably get the fellowship for this coming year, considering I came so close last year. <br /><br />It turns out that I did not make it past the first round for the Fulbright this year. I know I can always apply again next year and that everything happens for a reason. Maybe I needed the time in the states to adjust to being a new mom and for my husband and I to adjust to being parents together without having the overseas obstacle to deal with in the first year of our daughter's life. <br /><br />I just hope that I find enough funding in the future so that I can go overseas to get my research done so that I can write my dissertation and finish my doctorate. I really want to finish up within the next two years but if I keep getting rejected, I will never be able to finish my degree and be able to be on the job market so that I can do what I really love for a living, which is teaching at a university or college.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-25887224857312610092008-01-02T19:39:00.000-05:002008-01-03T19:49:27.948-05:00Tragedy on I-280If you are from Toledo, I am sure that many of you have heard of the tragedy that occurred on I-280 on December 30, 2007 when a family of eight was hit by a drunk driver by the name of Michael <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Gagnon</span> who was traveling north on southbound I-280. His blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit. His drunk driving resulted in the deaths of five of the eight people in the van, the mother, 36 year old Bethany Griffin, and her daughters: Jordan, 10, Lacie, 7, Haley, 10, and 8 week old <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Vadi</span>.<br /><br />He has been charged with their deaths and is now spending time in the Lucas County Jail. I have seen the photos from the crash scene and what really struck me was the infant car seat laying on the interstate surrounded by pink blankets. The sight of this sent chills down my spine, especially since I am pregnant with a baby girl.<br /><br />I hope <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Gagnon</span> is put away for good, although I would rather see the scumbag dead then alive. It is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">despicable</span> how one man's selfish actions have wiped out an innocent family, a mom who will not be around to comfort her remaining children and husband and little girls who will never grow up and become mommies someday. This tragedy just reminds me how precious life is and how the drunk driving laws in this country need to be harsher and carry stricter penalties so that drunks who drive are not given a free ticket to drive under the influence and have the ability to take innocent lives. My fervent wish is for this scumbag to rot in eternal hell.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-26247560725064710432007-12-19T16:49:00.000-05:002007-12-19T16:55:56.787-05:00Baby Gender Mystery SolvedThe mystery surrounding my unborn child has been solved!! We found out on Monday that we are having a baby girl. Her name will be Grace O'Malley after my grandmother and the Irish pirate/rebel, Grace O'Malley. She will be called Malley for short in order to distinguish her from another Grace that we know whose parents we are friends with. Malley weighs 1 pound, 7 ounces and is right on target. She is kicking all of the time now and seems to be very laid back and shy.<br /><br />The reason that I believe that she is laid back and shy is because her kicks are very gentle and nothing seems to affect her, even sugar and caffeine! She is shy because she is always trying to hide her private parts or her face with her hands during ultrasounds. We were able to find out what she is when she was hiding her face for a change instead of her privates. She does not seem to like the ultrasound wond and will contort herself into positions that it make it difficult for the ultrasound tech to get accurate measurements which are required each month to check on her growth since I am high risk due to the MTHFR clotting factors which could stunt her growth.<br /><br />Well, that is all for now.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-78065788142035666532007-11-21T16:47:00.000-05:002007-11-21T16:55:57.920-05:00Jiggs's ModestyMy husband and I went for my 20 week ultrasound on Monday to find out if we were having a boy or girl. Everything looked great measurement wise and the baby was doing great. However, the question of what gender <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Jiggs</span> is could not be answered that day as he/she decided to be modest and not show us if it was a boy or girl. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Jiggs</span> kept its legs crossed Indian style and its hands between its legs, and the ultrasound tech had no luck in getting the baby to move at all. I was very upset and even told the baby that it was a pain in the arse since all of the pregnant women that I know already know what they are having. I was upset that I had to still call <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Jiggs</span> an it. <br /><br />However, I realized today that the baby is healthy and is right on target and that is the only thing that matters. I will have to have an ultrasound done every month since my pregnancy is high risk due to my blood clotting issues and the fact that I have to take heparin injections to carry the baby to term. So hopefully we will find out next month. Until we find out, I will keep getting gender neutral items for the baby until we know if it is a boy or girl.<br /><br />Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. I know I have very much to be thankful for.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-15541653650932009562007-11-12T15:33:00.000-05:002007-11-12T15:43:03.346-05:00I passed comps and baby thoughtsJust a quick post to update everyone about comps. I passed them with flying colors. So, now I am half-way to being ABD (all done but dissertation) for my PhD. I have two exams left: major field and minor field exams. Once I have completed them, I can begin work on my dissertation on the transfer of Bombay from Portuguese to English hands. It is amazing how the stress has lifted from my shoulders and how relaxed I feel now that the ordeal of comprehensive exams are over with.<br /><br />Now, on to the baby front. We will find out the sex of the baby in only seven more days. We think it is a boy but we would be happy if it was a girl too. We have finally decided on names for a boy and girl. Michael Collins or Grace O'Malley are what we decided upon. Both names are based on Irish rebels from Irish history, so it seems fitting to name our child after an Irish historical hero since we are both Irish and very active in the Irish-American community here in Toledo. I also finally felt the baby kick. It felt like bubbles popping in my stomach. It was a pretty neat feeling and I can't wait to feel the baby kick on a regular basis.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-58949183933338028052007-11-04T11:41:00.000-05:002007-11-04T11:45:57.992-05:00Turning 30I will be turning the ripe old age of 30 this month and I wanted to post my thoughts on the subject. This time last year I thought I would be really upset about turning 30, but I have realized lately that I have accomplished a lot in my life and that I shouldn't let getting another year older get to me. I have graduated with my bachelor and master's degrees and I am working on my doctorate. I am also employed as an adjunct instructor, so my career is heading in the right direction. In my persona life, I am married to my best friend and love of my life, have two great dogs and my husband and I are expecting the child that we have always wanted. So, life is good overall. So, I have decided to not let a number such as 30 make me feel depressed or think about what I have not accomplished in life. Instead, I am going to think about what I have accomplished and what all I have to look forward to in the future.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-48525170295217085492007-10-28T16:27:00.000-04:002007-10-28T16:37:20.129-04:00The joy of doctoral examsI haven't posted on my blog this past month as I have been busy concentrating on my comprehensive exams for my PhD in history. Comprehensive exams or comps as they are called are a two day testing process where you are tested over the entire field of European history from 1600 to present. You are not allowed notes or other study aides, just some clean notebook paper, your exam questions and a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">lab top</span> which you type your answers into. Day one consisted of European history 1600 to 1815 while day two was 1815 to present. I don't feel like I did very well at all. The only thing that I am sure of is that I know absolutely nothing about European history or at least that is how I feel at the moment. I will not know find out if I passed or not until a couple of weeks from now. If I did actually pass (which will be a miracle) I will get to move on to the oral examination which is two hours of grilling by my committee members about what I did not write down in my exam or what I got wrong. So, if I pass the orals, then I will have passed my comps and get to move on to my major and minor field exams and write a dissertation.<br /><br />Now back to my post comps feeling like my brain is fried.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-28461354345614896022007-10-05T14:50:00.000-04:002007-10-05T15:00:43.134-04:00The highs and lows of pregnancyThere are many things that are wonderful about pregnancy and not so wonderful. The not so wonderful things are nausea, exhaustion, headaches, and the emotional craziness that comes along with it. The wonderful things are seeing the baby on the ultrasound, hearing its heartbeat, and the comfortable yet stylish maternity pants that you get to wear. I am looking forward to feeling the baby kick and to find out if we are having a boy or girl so that I can stop buying gender neutral clothing for the baby. Now I have a quick story to tell about my baby, Jiggs.<br /><br />I went for my 12 week appointment last Friday. They could not hear the heartbeat on the doppler so they decided to do an ultrasound. As they are leading me back to the ultrasound room, I am sobbing with worry, thinking that the worst has occurred, that Jiggs is no longer with us. But as soon as they put the wand on my belly, Jiggs appears in all of his or her glory on the screen. This time he/she looks like a real baby and not some sort of blob. He/She was kicking its legs, jabbing its fist into my stomach and slapping itself upside the head with its other hand. It turns out that there are two reasons for the heartbeat not being able to be heard on the doppler: (1) the placenta is located at the top of my uterus and acts as sound proofing to some extent and (2) the baby was moving around so much and wasn't laying still long enough for the doctor to be able to get a heartbeat.<br /><br />So, everything looks good with both Jiggs and me. I will keep you all posted as we progress through this wonderful journey.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-27124279539574856672007-09-20T18:15:00.000-04:002007-09-21T06:53:12.329-04:00I'm sick of it allThis blog is more of a rant today. I am sick and tired of all of the crap that is going on this country. I am sick of President Bush, Mayor <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Finkbeiner</span>, the shitty housing market, living in the ghetto, doctors who won't listen to their patients, and anyone who is in a position of authority. I am sick of the bull shit, the inability of anyone in a position of authority and power to listen to the needs of all their stakeholders, not just the ones they deem important. I could go into more specifics about some of the above, but I don't feel like being arrested for speaking out against the president, getting shot in the ghetto, having to find another ob/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">gyn, and there are other other things that I can't mention for fear of reprisal by people in position of authority.</span><br />I AM SICK OF IT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-40671276366833020842007-09-13T18:41:00.001-04:002008-12-10T04:37:13.923-05:00Introducing Jiggs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXvW41mV2cnZj47vC7YEp9-oJLsennMm03Lqu753gzhyphenhyphenBf3zoA_MIjPKBu9cLpzrQKI3JlTtPHEXnNqTWRdxcDcrOcH65eTuImjwyAIzo_117TnfdvjO5zhkgr_vjXr8WhPrT6lsws6rI/s1600-h/Jiggs+8+weeks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXvW41mV2cnZj47vC7YEp9-oJLsennMm03Lqu753gzhyphenhyphenBf3zoA_MIjPKBu9cLpzrQKI3JlTtPHEXnNqTWRdxcDcrOcH65eTuImjwyAIzo_117TnfdvjO5zhkgr_vjXr8WhPrT6lsws6rI/s320/Jiggs+8+weeks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5109822998618794002" border="0" /></a><br />To the left is our baby (my husband and me) nicknamed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Jiggs</span> in honor of my Grandma who gave me that nickname when I was in-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">utero</span> thirty years ago. At the time of this ultrasound, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Jiggs</span> was about an inch long and weighed not even an ounce. We are hoping to find out the sex of our child by the end of this year, if <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Jiggs</span> cooperates with us and the ultrasound tech.<br /><br />I am excited about being a mother. I can't wait to see what he or she looks like and what kind of personality they will have. My husband and I just want a healthy baby but several members of our family have put their request in as to whether they want a boy or girl. My mother-in-law wants a red-headed girl named Moira born on March 17. However, March 17 is way too early for the baby to be born, I have no control over the red hair thing, Moira is no longer in the running for a girl's name and I hope its a boy, although I would love a girl too. My uncles-in-law want a boy to carry on the family name (which they weren't that serious about because they put that request in on the day that I met my husband for the first time). So what do you think we will have? You can leave your guess as a blog comment or vote in the poll that is on this page.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-52483681356487307872007-09-09T19:40:00.000-04:002007-09-09T20:29:58.844-04:00MemoriesThis weekend was my Mom's birthday. After going out with my family for her birthday lunch, we went back to the old homestead and went through stacks of letters and photos that my grandma had left us when she died of cancer in January of this year. It was great to see old photographs and to see letters that I had written to my grandma when I was a child. Among the items was baby blanket that she had left to my Mom and me. Its almost like my Grandma knew that I was going to be pregnant sooner rather than later. So in addition to the letters, photographs, and a healing medallion, I took the blanket back with me to Toledo where I added it to the few items of clothing that I bought for the baby and the stack of books that my Grandma had read to me as a child. These items are something that I can give to my baby once they are born and share with them the wonderful great grandmother that they will never know, but will come to know through my memories and stories that I will share with them. I love you Grandma and you will always live on in my heart and memories.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-84563116067740438882007-09-03T19:30:00.000-04:002007-09-03T19:31:32.319-04:00Ancient Order of Hibernians and Culture Part IIThroughout the 1920s and 1930s, the usual mass and banquet combination of celebrating St. Patrick’s Day and Irish heritage continued in Ohio. Youngstown AOH’s program was to follow mass and “recount the glories of Ireland and of St. Patrick in songs and stories.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a> A year later, in 1926, the Mahoning County members focused their celebration on the Gillespie Fiddlers’ Orchestra of Five Instruments whose presentation focused on “the endearing ballads of Irish tradition during the [St. Patrick’s Day] feast.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> Dayton AOH and LAOH held dinner banquets for St. Patrick’s Day throughout the Great Depression.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a> Dayton celebrations in 1936 focused on “Irish wit and Irish song [which] permeated the green-festooned ballroom of the Miami hotel [and speakers] who spoke on subjects pertinent to the Irish people and nation.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a><br />During the decades between the thirties and sixties, Irish-American culture took a hiatus according to historian Dennis Clark in his work entitled Hibernia America: The Irish and Regional Cultures.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5">[5]</a> He argues that:<br />The hitatus in the Irish-American tradition in the second half of the twentieth century had numerous causes. Decreased emigration, changes in the Catholic Church after Vatican II, decline of traditional roles for members of the group, displacement by other groups, and failure to renew organizational forms all contributed.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6">[6]</a><br /><br />However, it was the onset of the civil rights movement during the 1960s that inspired many Americans to work in the interests of their communities.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7">[7]</a> Irish-Americans were drawn to this struggle as well. Many women [and men] “rediscovered their ethnic backgrounds” as a result of the work they embarked upon in their local communities.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8">[8]</a> Third generation Americans:<br />were now secure enough in their American identity to turn more openly to ethnicity;moreover the “new ethnicity” was encouraged in the late 1960s and after by a national climate more favorable to individuality and diversity.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9">[9]</a><br /><br />According to historian Maxine Seller:<br /><br />The impact of the new ethnicity varied from individual to individual. Some women were virtually untouched. Others participated in ethnic heritage festivals,<br />revived ethnic arts, crafts, dances and foods, conducted ethnic holiday celebrations in their homes, sent their children to ethnic schools and camps, and read-and sometimes wrote-about their ethnic backgrounds and immigrant ancestors. Some traveled to the ethnic homeland as tourists or students. Grandchildren sometimes made efforts to learn the language of their grandparents, efforts that helped bring the generations together.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10">[10]</a><br /><br />This new found sense of cultural and ethnic identity encouraged many Irish-Americans in Ohio to join the old Irish ethnic organizations such as the AOH and LAOH beginning in the 1960s.<br />The latter half of the 1960s was the beginning of a new generation of the AOH and LAOH in Ohio. It is necessary to examine why the AOH and LAOH developed a new focus in their promotion and preservation of Irish culture and history before examining the organization’s activities during the latter 1960s. This new generation of Hibernians strove to get the community as a whole to participate in Irish cultural activities such as parades, festivals, concerts, and other events. The primary reason for Hibernians to involve the community at large was to illustrate the positive side of being Irish-American according to leading AOH members in Ohio.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11">[11]</a> Another Hibernian goal was to ensure that there was a “historical context to what we’re trying to do.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12">[12]</a> An example of this “historical context” is the pike carrying division of the Columbus AOH which carries pikes in the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade to honor those Irish who fought the British with pikes during the rebellion of 1798.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13">[13]</a> In order to promote Irish culture, the AOH sponsors “Irish dance, Irish language, involving other Irish groups in their history projects, financial support of PBS programs which concentrate on the Irish, attending Irish cinema and theatrical productions.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn14" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14">[14]</a><br /><br />Parades became the first and one of the most popular activities that promoted Irish culture during the latter 1960s. Following the St. Patrick’s Day parades in cities such as New York and Chicago, the AOH in Cincinnati planned the first St. Patrick’s Day parade in a century for that city in February of 1967. The primary goal was to involve the community at large in an Irish-American cultural tradition. The parade featured:<br />the bands of both Xavier University and the University of Cincinnati, Irish dancers and musicians, uniformed members of Cincinnati’s Police, Fire and Postal Departments and all the Irish organizations also will be represented. And there’s a place for any loyal Irishman who feels he’d like to participate. But get out those maps of Ireland, because the Irish will be divided into groups according to the province of ancestry: Connaught, Leinster, Munster and Ulster.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn15" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15">[15]</a><br /><br />The parade has been held every year since 1967. Each year the Hibernians of Cincinnati “borrow the statue of St. Patrick from Immaculata Church in Mt. Adams.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn16" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16">[16]</a> The statue leads the St. Patrick’s Day parade. The Cincinnati members attend an Irish language mass “before purloining the statue and hiding it away for the parade.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn17" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17">[17]</a> According to the AOH members, borrowing the statue is a somewhat complicated task as the statue “is ceramic, 6 feet tall, and requires the muscle of about six strong men to hoist it aboard the pickup truck for its trip to its day of glory.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn18" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18">[18]</a><br /><br />Community participation is encouraged through a variety of ways. One way is the nationality division in the parade. The “various ethnic groups of Cincinnati march in costume.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn19" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19">[19]</a> Nearly “40,000 people and 67 bands participated in the parade” in 1973.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20">[20]</a> Another way to encourage participation is the “interrelationship between the [different] Irish groups and you’ll find that those people who are active in one [Irish organization] are usually active in the others” according to Gordon Thomas in an interview with the Cincinnati Post in September of 1973. This interrelationship is important due to the fact that various Irish American groups collaborate on large events such as festivals and parades in order to increase capital and participation amongst a community’s Irish American citizens. Cleveland’s United Irish Societies is an excellent example of this interrelationship of the different Irish groups working together to put on Irish events such as parades, dances, and festivals.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn21" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21">[21]</a> Both the AOH and LAOH in Cleveland work with the United Irish Societies in order to put on the annual parade on St. Patrick’s Day and Irish festival in the summer. Without the help of other Irish organizations, large scale events such as these would be difficult for a small organization such as the AOH to organize. <br /><br />Besides St. Patrick’s Day parades, the AOH “either coordinates or supports various Irish events” throughout the year all over the country, these events feature Irish music, food, dance, and culture according to AOH member, Joe Casey.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn22" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22">[22]</a> Youngstown AOH invited an Irish step-dancing organization called the Theresa Burke Irish Dancers to their annual St. Patrick’s Day luncheon in 1973.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn23" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn23" name="_ftnref23">[23]</a> Cincinnati LAOH “sponsors the Hibernian Dance Group” which is made up of mainly children of Irish descent but does include members of non Irish descent.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn24" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24">[24]</a> Akron AOH sponsors an Irish dancing organization as well.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn25" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn25" name="_ftnref25">[25]</a> Originally, “Irish immigrants brought traditional step-dancing to America, where it became part of theatrical dancing” according to author Maureen Dezell in her work entitled, Irish America Coming into Clover the evolution of a people and a culture.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn26" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn26" name="_ftnref26">[26]</a> Dance has played an important role in Irish history. It was one aspect of Irish culture that the British were unable to stamp out of Ireland. Although Irish dancing schools existed in the United States before the 1990s, it was not until the popularity of Riverdance that led to the explosion of Irish step-dancing in America.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn27" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn27" name="_ftnref27">[27]</a> The Hibernians decided to sponsor Irish step-dancing schools in order to meet the demand for dancing instruction amongst their membership and to expand the organization’s attempts at involving the community at large in Irish cultural activities.<br />Another way that the AOH promotes Irish culture is through the Irish language. Many Hibernians join Irish language societies such as Cumman na Gaeilge in Cincinnati whose goal is to “revitalize Irish, the oldest language in western Europe.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn28" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn28" name="_ftnref28">[28]</a> At Hibernian meetings, the Irish language is used in prayers, rituals, and sometimes voting in order to educate members about the language of their ancestors.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn29" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn29" name="_ftnref29">[29]</a> <br /><br />Hibernian divisions in Ohio also recognize their members and others in the community who promote Irish culture. An example of this is the Kevin Barry Award given by the AOH and LAOH in Cincinnati “in recognition of service within the local order in promoting the Irish and the goals of the Hibernians in Cincinnati.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn30" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn30" name="_ftnref30">[30]</a> The Youngstown AOH gives out the “Irish persons of the year” for service to the community at large.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn31" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn31" name="_ftnref31">[31]</a><br />Hibernians in Ohio are active in preserving their own history in addition to the numerous activities they pursue in promoting Irish culture and heritage. The preservation and documentation project that Ohio has embarked upon has garnered national attention. “In the latter part of the 1800s and early 1900s the AOH donated stained-glass windows to many Catholic churches in Ohio and across the country.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn32" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn32" name="_ftnref32">[32]</a> The windows have been found in churches “of all sizes, from cathedrals to small mission churches.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn33" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn33" name="_ftnref33">[33]</a> Many have been found where there are no longer active AOH divisions.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn34" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn34" name="_ftnref34">[34]</a> The Hibernians:<br />are now involved in a project to identify and photograph all of these windows. To date, the organization has identified eleven churches in Ohio that currently have or have had Hibernian windows. Several of these churches have two windows, one donated by the AOH and one by the Ladies Auxiliary (now known as the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians).<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn35" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn35" name="_ftnref35">[35]</a><br /><br />The project began in 2001 when the state board:<br />began a campaign to raise funds for the preservation and restoration of the AOH window at St. Lawrence O’Toole Church in Ironton, Ohio. This fundraising effort drew the attention of the Hibernian National organization, which also made a financial contribution to the Ironton project. Subsequently, a project was begun through the National Archivist’s Office to identify all of the AOH windows around the country, Dan MacDonald, AOH state president, said, “We are pleased that our continuing efforts to assist the parish of Ironton St. Lawrence with their window preservation effort has resulted in this nationwide campaign to identify these physical pieces of our history.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn36" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn36" name="_ftnref36">[36]</a><br /><br />The project has been taken on by the national AOH board as well. According to national AOH president, Ned McGinley:<br />This gifting of the stained glass windows began as early as 1870 in PA and across the nation wherever the immigrant Irish went to work. In the past three years 227 windows have been discovered and this is thought to be only a fraction of the number originally gifted. Of that amount, eight no longer exist so it is likely that hundreds may be lost already.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn37" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn37" name="_ftnref37">[37]</a><br /><br />Besides historic preservation projects, the AOH holds cultural activities in order to bring in new members for the Order.<br />The AOH in Ohio organizes and supports numerous Irish themed festivals, dinners, and religious services that are open to the public at large. The goal in opening up such events to the public is to increase membership. According to Toledo AOH president, Maury Collins, the belief is that “the more people you have involved, the more good you can accomplish.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn38" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn38" name="_ftnref38">[38]</a> Both the AOH and LAOH:<br /> Sponsor or support cultural programs such as festivals wherein Irish dance, music,<br />instruments, storytelling and clothing are featured. Many LAOH divisions also help sponsor competition festivals (a.k.a. Feis) wherein children and adults compete in dancing, singing, and instrumentals. Many divisions also work on Masses dedicated to the feasts of St. Patrick, St. Brigid, and the Our Lady of Knock apparition of Mary.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn39" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn39" name="_ftnref39">[39]</a><br /><br />At the national level, the AOH sponsors high school students to study and travel in Ireland for five weeks through the Irish Way Program.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn40" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn40" name="_ftnref40">[40]</a> The program “is a unique cultural and educational program for American High School students.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn41" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn41" name="_ftnref41">[41]</a> Students involved in the program travel to Ireland and live with an Irish host family for five weeks. While in Ireland, “they learn about Irish history, literature and language through classes and field trips; experience Ireland’s culture through traditional Irish music and dancing…and travel the Irish countryside.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn42" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn42" name="_ftnref42">[42]</a> Both the national boards of the AOH and LAOH give two $500 scholarships to help send the children of members to Ireland for the program. Hibernians also sponsor a study abroad scholarship for juniors in college who are children of AOH/LAOH members in order to study in Ireland. The national board gives away two $1000 scholarships and in return the recipients of the scholarship:<br />are expected to do two years of a community service project. The community service project could possibly be a lecture on his/her experiences or the setting up of a display of Irish books at their local library during National Library Month.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn43" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn43" name="_ftnref43">[43]</a><br /><br /> Additional programs that the national board involves themselves with are historical projects that promote and preserve Irish and Irish-American history in the United States. One such project known as the Jeanie Johnston Project, is a replica of a ship, which brought Irish immigrants to America who were fleeing An Gorta Mor. The AOH and LAOH sponsor historical sight-seeing trips to Ireland as well.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn44" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn44" name="_ftnref44">[44]</a><br /> The AOH and LAOH have and will continue to preserve and promote Irish culture and history through their variety of projects, festivals, parades, and competitions. Many people joined the AOH and LAOH because they “wanted to become more of an Irish-American and learn as much as …[they] could regarding …[Ireland’s] history, politics, and culture.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn45" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn45" name="_ftnref45">[45]</a> Another reason for membership was Irish-Americans to join was so that they “…wanted to be more than a St. Patrick’s Day Irishman” according to AOH member Joe Casey.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn46" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn46" name="_ftnref46">[46]</a> However the most important factor of taking part in the AOH and LAOH is the fact that many Irish-Americans “need to know where [they have] been and where [they are] going.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn47" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn47" name="_ftnref47">[47]</a><br />Both the early and latter time periods of both AOH and LAOH activity promoted and preserved the various aspects of Irish culture not only for its own membership, but for the state of Ohio as well. The AOH of the latter twentieth century has utilized the activities of the early twentieth century and expanded them to include dance, literature, language, music, and historical preservation projects such as the Jeannie Johnston Project. By building upon the past, present and future of Irish culture, the organizations have been able to “foster the ideals and perpetuate the history and traditions of the Irish people [and] to promote Irish culture.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn48" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn48" name="_ftnref48">[48]</a><br />An important aspect of “…the ideals [and] the history and traditions of the Irish people [and]…culture” is the Catholic faith.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn49" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn49" name="_ftnref49">[49]</a> Catholicism and Irish history and culture have been intrinsically linked since the time that St. Patrick brought Christianity to the Emerald Isle. That faith and culture have also played an important role in both the AOH and LAOH history as well. The importance of religion to the organizations has shaped the activities of the Orders, especially in regards to charitable activities throughout the nineteenth, twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> Youngstown Telegram, March 13, 1925.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> The Youngstown Vindicator, March 7, 1926.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> Dayton Journal, March 8, 1936 and March 18, 1936.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> Ibid., March 18, 1936.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5">[5]</a> Dennis Clark, Hibernia America: The Irish and Regional Cultures, (New York: Greenwood Press, 1986), 193-194.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6">[6]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7">[7]</a> Maxine Schwartz Seller, Ed., Immigrant Women (New York: State University of New York Press, 1994), 304.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8">[8]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9">[9]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10">[10]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11">[11]</a> Interview with author, J. Michael Finn, February 8, 2004. and interview with author, Dr. Thomas O’Mahoney, February 8, 2004, Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12">[12]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13">[13]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn14" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14">[14]</a> Interview with author, Dr. Thomas O’Mahoney, February 8, 2004.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn15" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15">[15]</a> Cincinnati Post –Times-Star, February 9, 1967, 20.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn16" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16">[16]</a> Cincinnati Post, February 19, 1979, 18.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn17" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17">[17]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn18" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18">[18]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn19" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19">[19]</a> The Cincinnati Post, September 18, 1973. Ethnic groups such as Polish-America Society, Germania Society, Oriental Band, and Mexican American groups according to an article in the Cincinnati Enquirer, March 17, 1978, E13.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20">[20]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn21" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21">[21]</a> Catholic Universe Bulletin, March 16, 1979. Other cities where AOH/LAOH works with other Irish organizations are Columbus, Cincinnati, and Toledo.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn22" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22">[22]</a> Email correspondence with author, February 17, 2004. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn23" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23">[23]</a> Catholic Exponent, March 16, 1973.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn24" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24">[24]</a> The Cincinnati Post, September 18, 1973.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn25" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25">[25]</a> Akron Beacon Journal, March 17, 1975.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn26" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26">[26]</a> Maureen Dezell, Irish America Coming into Clover the evolution of a people and a culture, (New York: Doubleday, 2000), 19. <br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn27" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27">[27]</a> The Irish World, December 6, 2002<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn28" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28">[28]</a> Cincinnati Enquirer, March 16, 1979, E21.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn29" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref29" name="_ftn29">[29]</a> Lucas County LAOH meeting minutes from the years of 2002-present, Ohio State board meeting minutes, 2003-present. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn30" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref30" name="_ftn30">[30]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn31" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref31" name="_ftn31">[31]</a> Catholic Exponent, March 16, 1990 & March 15, 1991.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn32" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref32" name="_ftn32">[32]</a> Catholic Exponent, May 23, 2003.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn33" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref33" name="_ftn33">[33]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn34" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref34" name="_ftn34">[34]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn35" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref35" name="_ftn35">[35]</a> Ibid. Following is the list of churches in Ohio where AOH/LAOH windows can be found: Diocese of Youngstown: Immaculate Conception (two windows), there have been other documented windows but those churches are no longer in existence within the diocese; Toledo: Historic Church of Saint Patrick and the Catholic Church located in Ironton.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn36" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref36" name="_ftn36">[36]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn37" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref37" name="_ftn37">[37]</a> “Media Release Regarding AOH Window Search, January 31, 2005” J. Michael Finn, Hibernian email listserv, Yahoo groups. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn38" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref38" name="_ftn38">[38]</a> Email correspondence with author, July 26, 2004. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn39" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref39" name="_ftn39">[39]</a> Email correspondence with author, February 15, 2004. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn40" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref40" name="_ftn40">[40]</a> <a href="http://www.aoh.com/reports/irishway_20021231.htm">http://www.aoh.com/reports/irishway_20021231.htm</a><br />77 Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn41" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref41" name="_ftn41"></a><br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn42" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref42" name="_ftn42">[42]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn43" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref43" name="_ftn43">[43]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn44" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref44" name="_ftn44">[44]</a> http://www.aoh.com/letter/99main.htm<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn45" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref45" name="_ftn45">[45]</a> Joe Casey correspondence. Uncatalogued materials, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn46" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref46" name="_ftn46">[46]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn47" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref47" name="_ftn47">[47]</a> Dr. Thomas O’Mahoney interview.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn48" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref48" name="_ftn48">[48]</a> AOH constitution preamble.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn49" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref49" name="_ftn49">[49]</a> Ibid.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-135975167926294942007-08-10T12:16:00.000-04:002007-08-10T12:27:10.446-04:00A real face of warAs many of you know I work at a local moving company here in Toledo that is an agent for one of the national moving companies. From time to time we have a number of military shipments that come into storage at our warehouse. Today, a 24 year old soldier's belongings have returned home. The sad news is that this is not a joyful homecoming of a solider. This soldier was killed in Iraq in early July and his truck and 8 boxes are being returned to his family here in Northwest Ohio. I looked up the soldier's name online and was presented with a real person, Keith Kline, which put a face on this senseless and tragic war in Iraq. <br /><br />I never knew this soldier but seeing his things come of the truck and into our storage put a real face on this war. Before when I had heard of deaths in combat in Iraq, it saddened me at the moment, but I couldn't put a face on it so I would go about my day. Today, I saw his face and I will never let it be a fleeting moment again. Our young soldiers are dying everyday and for what? I don't understand why we are at war and why so many young lives have been lost. What is the best way that we can honor these young men and women killed in the line of duty, a duty that many Americans such as myself do not fully understand. Although I do not support the reason why we are in Iraq, I do support our troops, because they have been sent to do their job, whether or not I agree with the reason for them being there. <br /><br />For the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">soldiers</span> of who have served in Vietnam and Iraq and their families, I thank you for your service and sacrifice. You will always be remembered in my heart and I am sure in the hearts of millions of our fellow Americans, even if it is just in passing.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-17051321343724113232007-07-22T20:36:00.000-04:002007-07-22T20:54:51.304-04:00Ancient Order of Hibernians and Irish Culture Part IThe promotion and preservation of Irish culture have played important roles in AOH activity and history since it’s beginning in Ireland during the mid-sixteenth century. In regards to promotion and preservation, AOH involvement in Ohio can be traced to two distinct time periods: 1880 to 1936 and 1967 to 2004. The first time period is important because it was those years that AOH began in Ohio and grew to become one of the largest in the nation. This earlier period is ripe with newspaper coverage of the various AOH events that promoted and preserved Irish culture. The second time period is important because the resurgence of the AOH can be traced to that time period. This period brought new Irish-Americans into the fold as events in Northeastern Ireland unfolded and the explosion of Irish cultural activities such as step-dancing in the 1990s.<br /><br />During the 1880 to 1936 era, the AOH in Ohio primarily focused on Irish history and music in preserving and promoting Irish culture. This earlier era primarily focused its promotion of culture amongst its own members, thereby overlooking the promise of promoting Irish culture within their local communities. The AOH of the 1967 to 2004 era has broadened its preservation and promotion of culture to include Irish step-dancing, literature and language in addition to the older era’s history and music cultural promotions. This latter era primarily focuses its attention on preserving and promoting Irish culture for the community at large, not just for the benefit of its own membership. The preamble of the AOH constitution clearly spells out that the AOH must “…foster the ideals and perpetuate the history and traditions of the Irish people [and] to promote Irish culture.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a><br /><br />One of the first accounts of the AOH promoting Irish culture was in Youngstown where the divisions held a procession through the town for St. Patrick’s Day in 1876. A lecture was held for the AOH members about why Irish-Americans celebrate the holiday in honor of their heritage.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> This lecture educated Hibernian members about the history of their native country and why it was important to honor their heritage at their gatherings. The Dayton AOH members in 1890 held a gathering for St. Patrick’s Day in order to educate their membership about the importance of preserving their Irish heritage in America.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a> That same year, the Cleveland AOH held a procession through the streets of Cleveland followed by a speech that was given by the Speaker of the Ohio State House, Representative Hysell. According to the newspaper account of the speech, Representative Hysell said, “he could appreciate the love of country implanted in every true Irishman’s breast” after viewing the parade.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a> Mr. Thomas McNamara, Jr. spoke at the gathering in Youngstown in 1893 on how Hibernians “appreciate what St. Patrick’s day is in the green isle beyond the sea.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5">[5]</a> In March 1890, Cleveland’s AOH divisions hosted two speakers at a community wide event which focused on Ireland as It Was and Irish-American as the topics for the evening.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6">[6]</a><br /><br />Columbus divisions of the AOH held a celebration of Irish heritage on St. Patrick’s Day in 1901. The morning began with mass at St. Patrick’s church with the AOH divisions of the city. Following mass, a parade consisting of Hibernian members, Columbus police, Hibernian military divisions known as the Hibernian Rifles, and civic leaders of Columbus. The evening entertainment was held at the Board of Trade auditorium with speakers, music, and dramatic recitations of famous Irish speeches in order to educate the community at large about the culture and history of Ireland.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7">[7]</a><br /><br />The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH) in Youngstown held its first annual ball in honor of St. Patrick’s Day with music provided by the Mahoning Orchestra in 1903.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8">[8]</a> For Cleveland’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration, the shops of the city were decorated with “…pots of hardy shamrock…and the bits of fluttering green on every other pedestrian gave the proper note to a festival which has the peculiarity of being almost a national holiday in every country on the globe” according to the Cleveland Catholic Universe during that same year.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9">[9]</a> The AOH in Cleveland organized a banquet featuring speakers and Irish music at a local parish for their members later that evening.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10">[10]</a><br /><br />AOH in Columbus focused on promoting Irish history during the centennial anniversary of the execution of Robert Emmet by the British in 1803. A tribute “of word and song” was one of the highlights of the remembrance according to the Sunday Columbus Dispatch during the event in 1903.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11">[11]</a> Speakers for the ceremony were Ohio Governor George K. Nash, Mayor Robert H. Jeffrey of Columbus, Honorable T.S. Hogan (state president of the AOH), and Captain George Sweeney (chairman of the state AOH committee). LAOH took charge of the evening program where Irish songs were sung and a presentation was made on the historical contributions of women in Ireland.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12">[12]</a><br /><br />In December 1903, national AOH president James E. Dolan spoke to the Cleveland AOH about the movement to revive the Irish language in America. Cleveland Catholic Universe stated that the AOH are “devoting thousands of dollars a year to spread the movement, because they believe that with a general knowledge and use of their native tongue, Irishmen will regain their racial individuality and her national independence.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13">[13]</a> To help with this endeavor, the AOH created an endowed Chair of Gaelic at Catholic University for $50,000.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn14" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14">[14]</a> In addition to the Irish language, Hibernians placed an emphasis on Irish literature when the AOH in Cleveland also planned a literary evening with lectures given by Irish writers such as Seamus McManus in order to educate their members about Irish literature.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn15" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15">[15]</a><br /><br />The AOH members in Youngstown decided that in lieu of the traditional St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, they decided to celebrate the division’s fortieth anniversary on March 9, 1904. Michael Davitt, “the famous Irish member of Parliament, will be here to deliver an address” in celebration of the order’s existence.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn16" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16">[16]</a> Toledo AOH held a program celebrating Ireland’s literary tradition entitled, “Modern Irish Literature” in March 1904. The speaker, J.P. Madigan talked about “the position that Ireland held in the world of letters and her educational institutions, [which were made] famous during the early centuries…[and how modern Irish writers] are restoring Ireland to her ancient literary glory” according to the Cleveland Catholic Universe.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn17" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17">[17]</a> AOH Cuyahoga county board members published “a list of books in the public library relating to Ireland and by Irish writers” so that its members could educate themselves about their Irish heritage.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn18" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18">[18]</a><br /><br />In 1904, the Youngstown AOH hosted the Ohio state convention for three days in August. “A parade through the principal streets of the city, in which home and visiting folks… [took] part” was held after the opening of the convention.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn19" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19">[19]</a> An estimated “10,000 people … [were] expected in the city while the convention is in session” according to the Youngstown Telegraph.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20">[20]</a> Ireland’s history was celebrated throughout the course of the parade:<br />The parade was headed by a squad of the city police. Next came the Youngstown<br />Military band with brilliant white head pieces, and the rifle companies in the following named order: Springfield, Cleveland, Columbus, and Zanesville, followed by the Gallow Glass pikemen, wearing the costume of the fighting men of the time of Ireland’s patriot, Brian Boru who drove the Danes from that country about the eleventh century.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn21" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21">[21]</a><br /><br />During the state convention, a resolution was passed which stated:<br />Resolved, That we most heartily endorse the action taken by the national convention at St. Louis, commending the efforts and work of the Gaelic League, in endeavoring to revive the interest in the Irish language, and that we, this committee, request that wherever possible, the work be taken up by our sisters [in the LAOH].<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn22" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22">[22]</a><br /><br />With the passage of this resolution, Hibernian members wanted to stress the importance of promotion of Irish culture and history were to the Hibernians in Ohio. They had a real desire to keep various aspects of their culture alive, especially the Irish language which was struggling to survive in the Emerald Isle.<br /><br />The AOH in Cleveland continued to honor and promote Irish history in a celebration “commemorating the 127th anniversary of the birth of Robert Emmet” in March of 1905.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn23" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn23" name="_ftnref23">[23]</a> The event was:<br />attended by over 800 people, who crowded the large auditorium and the ante-rooms. County President Callahan made the opening address, after which the Hibernian Rifles, of Division No. 12, under Captain A.F. Burke, gave an exhibition drill lasting half an hour. The ladies especially were much interested in the work. Panoramic views of scenes in Ireland …were then shown under the direction of John Graham, of Division 12. While the picture of the trial scene was displayed on the canvas, Miss Conroy recited Emmet’s speech in the dock.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn24" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24">[24]</a><br /><br />The reenactment of important themes from Irish history such as Robert Emmet’s speech from the dock reinforced the themes of struggle and triumph over tragedy that have been rampant throughout the history of Ireland. By keeping their members aware of those themes, they AOH was able to keep the flame for Irish freedom from the British alive and to keep their members interested in their culture and heritage.<br /><br />Promoting Irish music became the focus of the Youngstown AOH during the summer of 1906. The program concentrated on “…the music of Irish composers and the tunes so dear to the Irish hearts” according to the Youngstown Daily Vindicator.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn25" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn25" name="_ftnref25">[25]</a> The musical program was such a success that more and more people flocked to AOH sponsored events that promoted Irish culture. At the 1907 St. Patrick’s Day banquet, “it was estimated that the crowd would probably number from 1,200 to 1,400 people, but it is safe to say twice this number turned out, the outpour being simply amazing” according to the local newspaper.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn26" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn26" name="_ftnref26">[26]</a> The program consisted of dinner, music, and comedy acts. Entertainment was limited during the first couple of decades of the twentieth century before the advent of television and radio due to the fact that access to facilities was limited and that many Irish worked a six day work week. Musical shows held within the local community were an important part of bringing people such as the Irish together for an evening of culture and fun.<br /><br />At a March 1909 open house celebrating the dedication of new AOH headquarters for Mahoning county, Father John L. Moran addressed the gathered Hibernians on the subject of St. Patrick. Youngstown Telegram said that Moran:<br />referred to the early life of Ireland’s patron saint when the youth was a slave, to his return to preach the gospel of Christianity, to the prosperity, the learning and the wealth of Ireland at that time and lastly to the indissoluble relations of the history of St. Patrick and the history of Ireland.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn27" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn27" name="_ftnref27">[27]</a><br /><br />The focus on Irish history and Christianity continued at Youngstown’s St. Columba Church in March 1910. Father Maurice Griffin reviewed:<br />the history of the Green Isle during its missionary period when its children entered the church and spread the gospel throughout Europe. After three hundred years of religious zeal persecution followed, and after drinking the cup of sorrow the Irish people came through the frightful period lasting for centuries, stronger in their faith than ever [before].<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn28" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn28" name="_ftnref28">[28]</a><br /><br />Youngstown brought a speaker by the name of P.H. O’Donnell from Chicago who spoke on “Irishmen’s Contributions to Civilization” at the St. Patrick’s Day banquet.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn29" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn29" name="_ftnref29">[29]</a> The Youngstown Daily Vindicator concluded that O’Donnell’s presentation was “…pleasing, inspiring, [and] ennobling.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn30" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn30" name="_ftnref30">[30]</a> Hibernians brought speakers in to keep their membership informed about Irish history and culture.<br /><br />The AOH divisions of Columbus held a parade through downtown and a mass where Father Gaffney spoke on “Irish Ideals.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn31" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn31" name="_ftnref31">[31]</a> According to The Catholic Columbian, Father Gaffney’s sermon was:<br />a tribute to the trinity of trait characteristic of the Irish race-loyalty to God, to Church,and Country. Devotion to these Irish ideals during the past sixteen centuries was briefly traced down to the history of the Fighting 69th, recently issued by Father Duffy, its Chaplain. It was pleasing and inspiring to listen to Father Gaffney, who always stays with his text and emphasizes his points with apt quotations from recognized authors.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn32" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn32" name="_ftnref32">[32]</a><br /><br />In 1921, the Chamber of Commerce was the setting for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in Columbus under the auspices of the AOH and LAOH. The local Catholic newspaper described the event as:<br />The most complete Irish program ever attempted in this city…The entertainment…will include a review of Ireland’s most loved songs, dances and instrumental numbers. The famous marching song of the Irish Republican Volunteers will be given by members of the Hibernian Rifles chorus and many beautiful Irish melodies will be given by the most prominent Irish singers of the city. Musical numbers including the Irish harps, concertinas, melodians and flute will be given and a chorus of pretty colleens will sing delightful Irish airs.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn33" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn33" name="_ftnref33">[33]</a><br /><br /><br />In addition to events previously discussed, which were held to promote Irish culture and history, the Hibernians decided to expand their outreach to the children whose parents were already members or those who were not in order to educate Irish-American children about their ethnic heritage.<br /><br />In January of 1923, the outreach activity decided upon by the national AOH was to create an essay writing contest that was open to all parochial and public schools “for the purpose of stimulating an interest in the study of Irish and American history.” <a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn34" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn34" name="_ftnref34">[34]</a> The contest was open to grades seven through twelve and college students and contestants need not be of Irish descent. “Twelve cash prizes ranging in value from $200 down, will be given successful contestants in the competition.”<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn35" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn35" name="_ftnref35">[35]</a> The division of subjects were the following:<br />The choice of two subjects is given the essayists in each class. In the college division the subjects indicated are: “Did Ireland Gain or Lose, or Both, and How, by Not Becoming a Part of the Roman Empire?” and “Ireland’s Influence on American Affairs and America’s on Irish Affairs.” The prizes for this class will be $200, $100, $75 and $50. The length of the essays for this class will be about 3,000 words. In the high school and academy class the subjects will be “The Relation of the American Colonies to England and That of Ireland, Till the Year 1800, Compared,” or “Why We Should, and How We Can Best Study Irish History.” The prizes in this class will be $100, $75, $50 and $25 and the length of essays about 2,000 words. In the grammar school class the subject will be:<br />“What in Your Opinion, Was the Greatest Event in Irish History, and Why?” or “My Favorite Irish Hero or Heroine.” The prizes will be $50, $25, $15 and $10 and the length of the essays about 1,000 words.<a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn36" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftn36" name="_ftnref36">[36]</a><br />The essay contest continues to play an important role for Irish cultural outreach for American children today.<br /><br /><br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> AOH constitution preamble, (circa 2000), uncatalogued material, Ward M. Canaday Center, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, March 24, 1876.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> Dayton Daily Journal, March 17, 1890.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> Cleveland Plain Dealer, March 18, 1890.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5">[5]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, March 18, 1893.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6">[6]</a> Cleveland Plain Dealer, March 18, 1893.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7">[7]</a> Columbus Sunday Dispatch, March 17, 1901., This is the only account of a Hibernian Irish culture event that was open to the public at large. All other events during this era continued to be geared towards the education of their own members.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8">[8]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, February 5, 1903 & February 25, 1903.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9">[9]</a> Cleveland Catholic Universe, March 20, 1903.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10">[10]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11">[11]</a> Columbus Sunday Dispatch, September 20, 1903.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12">[12]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13">[13]</a> Cleveland Catholic Universe, December 4, 1903.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn14" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14">[14]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn15" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15">[15]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn16" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16">[16]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, March 9, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn17" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17">[17]</a> Cleveland Catholic Universe, March 25, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn18" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18">[18]</a> Ibid., July 15, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn19" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19">[19]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, August 5, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20">[20]</a> The Youngstown Telegram, August 8, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn21" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21">[21]</a> Ibid., August 10, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn22" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22">[22]</a> Ibid., August 11, 1904.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn23" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23">[23]</a> Cleveland Catholic Universe, March 10, 1905.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn24" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24">[24]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn25" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25">[25]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, June 12, 1906.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn26" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26">[26]</a> Ibid., March 17, 1907.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn27" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27">[27]</a> Youngstown Telegram, March 15, 1909.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn28" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28">[28]</a> Youngstown Daily Vindicator, March 14, 1910.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn29" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref29" name="_ftn29">[29]</a> Ibid., March 13, 1914.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn30" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref30" name="_ftn30">[30]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn31" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref31" name="_ftn31">[31]</a> The Catholic Columbian, March 12, 1920.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn32" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref32" name="_ftn32">[32]</a> Ibid., March 19, 1920.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn33" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref33" name="_ftn33">[33]</a> Ibid., March 11, 1921.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn34" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref34" name="_ftn34">[34]</a> Ibid., January 19, 1923. The contest is now run by the LAOH today.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn35" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref35" name="_ftn35">[35]</a> Ibid.<br /><a title="" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn36" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5380083270833747217#_ftnref36" name="_ftn36">[36]</a> The Catholic Columbian, January 19, 1923.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-86349940501198318832007-07-17T12:52:00.000-04:002007-07-17T12:57:36.870-04:00A sense of accomplishmentI have decided to leave the kid thing to God and to focus on school. I began studying for my comps yesterday. I have already plowed through two chapters on early seventeenth century European history on topics such as expansion, slavery, and the Austrian War of Succession. So far, I seem to have maintained a lot of the knowledge that I have learned in years past. While I seem comfortable with the facts, I need to work on the historiography. That will come with time and studying. <br /><br />I have a study plan somewhat mapped out and I will be going to the library this weekend to get some research material as I am working on a possible publication for my CV. I also had a job interview with a local college here in Toledo for teaching a class in the fall. There is a good chance that I will get it. They offered me a course already but it conflicted with my class schedule at UT, so I am hopeful that they will find something else for me to teach. Everything seems to be coming together and I know that I will be ABD by the end of this coming academic year. <br /><br />This post is short due to the fact that I have to return to work from my lunch hour.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-14286047854166802282007-07-11T09:43:00.000-04:002007-07-11T10:11:48.992-04:00Life is easy for some and hard for others.I have often marveled at how life in general appears to come easy for some people, while everything is a constant struggle in life for others. Then again, the grass always appears greener on the other side. I will admit that life in general seems to be a constant struggle for me and that nothing comes easy for me. But that is my perception and others may disagree with me on my opinion. I tend to see the glass as half empty and not half full. People tell me to just think positive and that everything will work out. I try to think positive, but it always seems to backfire. How does a person focus on the positive and not on the negative in life? How can you change your perception of life and believe that it can come easy for you in some ways. This is the question that I have struggled with most of my life. <br /><br />I know that I have been blessed with many good people and events in my life such as my husband, parents, siblings, friends and my two dogs. I have been fortunate to earn both my bachelor and master's degrees in history and that I can pursue my dream of becoming a historian and college professor. However, the one thing that I want in my life more than anything else in the world is a child and that does not seem to be easy for me to achieve. The people around me seem to get pregnant easily while my womb remains empty. I know that I have PCOS which will make getting pregnant difficult (see prior posts about this subject). I take my temperature every month and chart it to ensure that I am ovulating and my husband does his part, but still no baby. I feel that time is working against me, both because of my age (turning 30 in November) and my health issues. We can't afford fertility treatments because our health insurance will not cover it. <br /><br />People tell me to relax and it will come. But every time I hear that, I want to scream. I don't want to be told to relax and it will happen. That does not help with how I feel. It does not help with the empty feeling inside and the feeling of inadequacy of not being a complete woman since I can't seem to get pregnant. Hopefully writing this will make me feel better. Thanks for reading.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-53241566286276232442007-07-09T10:36:00.000-04:002007-07-09T10:49:19.040-04:00Response to Historymike's tagI was tagged by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Historymike</span> at historymike.blogspot.com ans so I have to respond to this tag. The rules according to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Historymike</span> are: "1. Let others know who tagged you.2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts.4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged."<br /><br />1. I began my undergraduate career at Ball State University as a vocal performance major with a history minor.<br /><br />2. I collect hurricane glasses from every Hard Rock Cafe location that I visit.<br /><br />3. I have been to Ireland two times. During those two trips, I met a guy and on the second trip we broke up. Lesson learned from this experience is don't date the tour guide that hits on you during a walking tour. By the way, Ireland is a beautiful place to visit and I would highly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">recommend</span> visiting if you ever get the chance to vacation there.<br /><br />4. I attended law school for a year at Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing Michigan. I realized it wasn't what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. However this experience wasn't priceless, it costs me thirty grand in student loans in order to figure this little life lesson out.<br /><br />5. I have had three different last names, but only have been married once.<br /><br />6. I am addicted to General Hospital.<br /><br />7. My fast food obsession is Taco Bell. I have to eat there at least once a week to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">satisfy</span> my cravings.<br /><br />8. I really want to be an Irish history historian but since there are no jobs in Irish history, I have turned my research interests toward European Expansion to Asia and World History.<br /><br /><br />I don't know eight people who write blogs. So the buck stops here and I have violated one of the 4 cardinal rules of blog tag.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380083270833747217.post-59627839974230370082007-07-06T11:05:00.000-04:002007-07-06T11:07:12.336-04:00General musingsIt started up again this morning at midnight and lasted until 5am. So not much sleep last night either. At least we got three hours, which was more than the 4th. Not much else going on. Just starting the process of studying for my comprehensive exams. Hope everyone has a great weekend.Historychichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15961836245207379061noreply@blogger.com