KontansPlace

My Waterloo

For the past several nights I have been working my tush off on a PowerPoint of the French Revolution. Here’s the deal, it may or may not get used in class. Not all of the rooms I float to have the capability to project. Sometime when I’m not having to correct every other spelling error b/c I’m so wiped out I will share why. I worked and I worked and I worked and I worked…Then I made my first publish to slideshare.net

My current message:

I hope it posts b/c I would love to be able to post the thing on my school site. Here’s my big issue. I create in Office 2007, but have to save in then 2003 format. Crudmuffins, it always messes up the fonts or spacing. This means that if I desire to continue publishing on slideshare.net I will have modify all my publications to accommodate for their lack of updating. Is it really worth it?

OOOEEEE guess what! It worked and I don’t have to edit the spacing! This makes me very happy.

Now I shall share…It is rather simple, but VERY wordy. Students will have a printout that does not include all slides. They will have to condense the information, based on the “so what does this mean” slides that they will not be given in the handout. Watching, listening, and notetaking will be key activities.

Since this is for the purpose of review I lifted the content from a Sparknotes summary and will be adding to it in class. woo-hoo.

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Bitterness and Blame: Prisons and Prisoners of the Civil War

The emotional turmoil of prison life is profoundly identifiable in prison diaries, memoirs, and historical evaluations. In the evaluation of life in the prisons, historians struggle to lay blame and explain how both Confederate and Union governments as well as the citizens nearby seemingly overlooked atrocities of war such as those prisoners of war experienced. There are many commonalities in the historiography of prisons and prisoners of the Civil War period. The prisons, described most often as dens of filth with prisoners suffering from inadequate food and poor sanitation, most scholars agree, were deplorable. Most historians agree prison conditions were atrocious. Conclusions deviate in the tone of writing and with the assigned culprit for blame.
Personal accounts, narratives, and diaries published immediately following the Civil War were much harsher in their descriptions of prison life and treatment. It is the opinion of some historians that the elaborate descriptions of maltreatment were resulting from the need to convince the government those former prisoners of war deserved pensions. Some accounts demonstrated obvious anger for the captors. Union prisoners held by the Confederacy attempted to show how brutal their captors were. Confederates, defending their virtue, portrayed the North as oppressors. These views are rather indicative of the Lost Cause evaluations emerging after the war.
William Best Hesseltine, in his introduction to Civil War Prisons (1997), simply states, “no prisoner loves his jailer”(p6). This statement alone gives explanation to the various tones of writing regarding the Civil War. He further states, “prisoners in confinement and in varying states of illness were in no position to make objective judgments” (p7). When in misery it is easy to declare deliberate the hardships imposed by one’s captor. To some degree, the captor may be at fault for improper treatment, but maybe not always.
Civil War Prisons (1997), edited by Hesseltine, is a collection of essays concerning various Union and Confederate prisons. Papers presented in this work describe life at Andersonville, Fort Warren, Rock Island, Libby Prison, Elmira, and Johnson’s Island. The final chapter deals with the prison diary of Edmund E. Ryan. Hesseltine, a leading Civil War scholar, was before his death president of the Wisconsin Historical Society and professor of history at the University of Wisconsin. He strives to portray the history of this era without bias. Hesseltine declares that records of the Civil War prisons were incomplete and inadequate to use as a determination to place blame. He does not minimize the brutal nature of prison life, but indicates there are more forces at work than mere thirst for power upon the part of captors. The purpose of his work is to illustrate how carefully objective students studying the Civil War prisons need to be in separating truth from propaganda (p8).
Minor H. McLain, former prisoner of war during World War II and later associate professor of history at the State College in Salem, Massachusetts, presents two scenarios in his doctoral thesis regarding how prisoners may react to their captors. In “The Military Prisons at Fort Warren”, included in Hesseltine’s Civil War Prisons, McLain presents the theory that the prisoner will develop a respect, not to be confused with a like of friendship, for his captors; or the prisoner will develop a hatred for his enemy unparalleled on the battlefield (p32). This is easy to discern when comparing diary accounts published in the years immediately following the war and memoirs published twenty or thirty years later. Generally, accounts published just after the Civil War reveal bitterness and uncompromising descriptions of atrocities faced. Such is the case in Beyond the Lines (1864) by J.J. Geer.
Geer’s account, written from the perspective of a prisoner with no respect for his captors, regards Confederates as savages because of their views on slavery. Geer declares he is presenting a “straightforward and unvarnished account of facts”(p3). Declaring slavery repulsive and necessary to expose, Geer’s bias is apparent. The tone of his writing expresses hateful sentiment for his captors and a grand scale view of the Union. He describes Union military personnel as “the noblest men in the nation . . . (suffering) for country’s sake” (p17). Geer’s work is indicative of Lost Cause views. However, his tone of bitterness is probably more the result of resentment than an effort to portray prevailing thought of the period.
The memoir of Ezra Hoyt Ripple’s, Dancing Along the Deadline: The Andersonville Memoir of a Prisoner of the Confederacy (1996), edited by Mark A. Snell, contrasts Geer’s bitterness. Ripple claims to compose his memoirs for posterity’s sake, it is not meant as propaganda. Throughout the work Ripple does not portray anger or resentment toward his Confederate captors. He usually references them with respect, especially those who had actually seen combat. Snell speculates this may have been because of Ripples softening feelings over the years or because of patriotism of the early twentieth century. During this revisionist period there was much recognition of both the good and bad of Civil War and Reconstruction eras. Ripple may not have been intentionally propagandizing his experiences, but to some degree that is the effect. Although little embellishment is obvious in Ripple’s memoir, he does reveal prison officials as victims of circumstance and strives to portray them as such instead of the evil and inhumane characters many had made them out to be. As Hesseltine evaluates in his article “The Propaganda Literature of Confederate Prisons” (1935), embellishments of prison atrocities are tools of propaganda during and immediately after the Civil War.
All historical accounts of prison life during the Civil War are a testament to the devastating life experienced. Hesseltine states in the “The Propaganda Literature of Confederate Prisons” (1935) and Civil War Prisons: A Study in War Psychology (1930), the 13, 000 graves at Andersonville evidence poverty and inefficiency of the Confederate prison system (p59). In review, Charles Ramsdell declares this as the “first systematic and adequate study of the subject” (p480). According the Ramsdell, Hesseltine refutes charges of confederate wanton cruelty.
History of Andersonville Prison (1968), Ovid Futch, attempts no comparison with other prisons. He attempts to present an unbiased account exposing speculations of deliberate abuse and neglect. Futch concludes Andersonvilles’s failures are a direct result of improper planning and poor timing. He declares not only Henry Wirz, prison supervisor, to blame, but also the entire confederate government. Andersonville atrocities were no secret. Even after periodic inspections, few changes took place. With the works of Hesseltine and Futch, the trend toward revisionist ideology becomes obvious.
William Marvel, in Andersonville: The Last Depot (1994), also argues Confederate inefficiency and poverty as being contributors to mass casualties in the Confederate prison at Andersonville declaring the prisons hasty establishment and failure to reach completion before the arrival of prisoners is to blame. Tried and hung for war crimes, Henry Wirz took blame for the death toll and poor conditions at the Georgia prison. Although not a pleasant or likeable character by description, Wirz suffered as a scapegoat for Andersonville sufferings. In reality, he became the victim of indifferent Confederate commanders and the failing Confederate economy. Marvel uses arguments declaring victimization to exonerate Wirz of being solely responsible for the lacking facility and care at Andersonville. Marvel also attempts to blame Union decisions to cease prisoner exchanges for the high death toll at Andersonville. This argument is unsubstantiated in this and other works. In his review of Andersonville: the Last Depot (1994), Walter Edgar, University of South Carolina, declares Marvel’s argument for the Unions deliberate exacerbation of the prison tragedies by suspension of exchanges as unconvincing and properly dismissed (p157). War is not pleasant, nor is prison life. It is not fathomable that the Lost Cause idea of suspending exchanges of prisoners was for creating more propaganda. It is more plausible the cessation of exchanges was due to conflict between Union and Confederate commanders regarding equal exchange of officers and black troops for white troops. To exchange a single black Union soldier for a single white Confederate soldier indicated equality, which the South was not willing to do.
Similar in detail to Andersonville: The Last Depot (1994) and Dancing Along the Deadline, Edward F. Roberts provides descriptions of Andersonville life in Andersonville Journey (1998). Roberts also declares Wirz a scapegoat. The book, divided into three parts, details an aspect of Andersonville in each section. Part one describes life at Andersonville, including the scarcity of food, shelter and clean water. Roberts evaluates attempted reforms to better accommodate prisoners. This section also introduces Henry Wirz. Part two is dedicated to the transfer of prisoners just before the end of the war, but concentrates mostly on the arrest, trial and hanging of Wirz. Part three discusses post-war actions of prisoner care, the establishment of a proper cemetery and remembering those kept at Andersonville prison and its horrific legacy.
Although Andersonville is the most notorious prison of the Civil War, it is not the only prison. Historiography addresses similar issues of inadequacy at other prisons, north and South. James I. Robertson Jr. directs attention to the Andersonville of the North in his essay, “The Scourge of Elmira”, presented in Hesseltine’s Civil War Prisons (1997). Robertson describes conditions similar to that at Andersonville: overcrowding, poor sanitation, and lack of necessities. Michael Horigan does the same in Elmira: Death Camp of the North (2002). Horigan declares the horrendous conditions where and aggressive retaliation policy adopted by Union government in response to known atrocities of prisoner life in the Confederacy. He also connects treatment with the cease of prisoner exchange as an attempt to hasten the end of the war. This connection is plausible if based on the idea that holding prisoners prevents them from strengthening enemy forces. However, it does not release officials from the responsibility of depravity experienced in the prisons.
Benton McAdams, Rebels at Rock Island: The Story of a Civil War Prison (2000), compares a sixteen percent mortality rate at Rock Island to the thirty percent at Andersonville and twenty-four percent at Elmira. Hardships faced at Rock Island pale in comparison to those at Elmira or Andersonville. McAdams declares the poor reputation of Rock Island stems from a propaganda war between the prison commandant, Adolphus J. Johnson, and journalist Joseph Baker Danforth Jr. Danforth, a Democrat opposing the war, using his journalistic forum to expose and embellish prison faults. Inappropriate comments by Johnson indicating a wish to see prisoners starve did not help ease tensions or remove substance for Danforth to elaborate.
Although propaganda offers negative connotations in evaluating literature, it is usually not without some foundation. Michael P Gray dedicates an entire chapter to prison torture techniques in his work The Business of Captivity (2001). Gray describes, in detail, torture methods used such as a seven-foot box known as a sweatbox that kept a punished prisoner enclosed for a few moments that seemed like hours. He also describes barrel shirts worn as a means of embarrassment for prisoners caught stealing from messmates or other smaller infractions. Reserved for severe punishment was hanging by the thumbs or a practiced called bucking and gagging. Bucking and gagging involved restriction of movement and a wooden block, large enough to split the corners of one’s mouth, placed as a gag (125). With such actions as this, it is no wonder historiography of Civil War prisons reveals much atrocity and bitterness.
Some prisoners did not sit idle without protest to their plight. Edited by George L. Anderson, A Petition Regarding the Conditions in the CSM by John Fraser describes inadequate shelter, rations and care received by prisoners in Columbia, South Carolina. Included in the petition is a statement that the petitioners do not believe their captors are recognizing the extent of prisoner sufferings. The next statement requests no retaliation for the petition. This indicates the previous statement was included to ease any tensions aggravated by such a petition.
In another work written during the war, Henry S. White details his three-month incarceration in eighteen letters compiled to the Zion’s Herald, and independent Methodist newspaper. These letters are published and include editor’s notes by Edward Jervey in Prison Life Among the Rebels (1990). Jervey states White’s anti-southern biases are clear and his opinions should not indicate fact (xiii). This statement is in concurrence with the earlier mentioned advice, by Hesseltine, for students to remain objective when evaluating such a sensitive and emotional subject as prison life.
In researching Civil War prison life one will come across terms such as heroism, nobility, horror, evil and cowardice. These are all aspects addressed in Yankee Rebel (1966), edited by John G. Barrett. This work consists of the diary of Edward Dewitt Patterson, a northerner who chose allegiance to the South. He was first kept prisoner at Fort Delaware, then Johnson’s Island. Although he describes the unsanitary conditions and inadequate food in the prisons, like Ezra Ripple, Patterson describes his captors as predominantly respectful. His tone of writing is matter-of-fact, not bitter nor condescending. He writes in a very descriptive style and describes Confederate soldiers as noble, honorable and high-minded. Bias to his adopted home in the South he does not speak poorly of the North. He continuously declares the North as more resourceful, and adopts Lost Cause sentiment in stating the Union knows it cannot defeat the will of the Southerner. Yankee Rebel (1966) is one of few personal accounts that address events of the war outside prison walls. The only outside information addressed in memoirs of Andersonville or Elmira are the rumors of prison exchange. Patterson was obviously more fortunate in obtaining outside information. In his writing as a prisoner of war, there is much reminiscence of days gone by.
In Libby Life: Experiences of a Prisoner of War (1865) General Frederic Fernandez Cavada offers another descriptive account of prison life. The published work, compiled from the frequent writings of Cavada upon newspaper margins and paper scraps, describes Libby prison in elegant detail and creates a mental picture of disappointing prisoner accommodations. Cavada took to writing of his experiences as a means to pass the time. A commonality between prisoners, regardless of where held, is the large amount of idle time they experienced. Unlike other works of this period, such as The Southern Side; or Andersonville (1876), by Randolph Stevenson, Cavada’s is not indicative of a propaganda tool to expand upon the horror or prisons or to illicit anger toward the opposing force.
In ”Libby Prison: A Study of Emotions” (1958), Frank Byrne declares propaganda and anger toward captors North or South, stems from events caused by fear. In his revisionist view, it was fear, Byrne says, not shortages, which caused actions condemned by propagandists. Prison officials feared losing control, therefore overcompensating to regain or keep power. As a means of control, guards used withholding of rations, ball and chains to restrict movement, or stockade confinement.
It is true that guards and prison supervisors feared losing control of their captives. In multiple works, scenarios are described where guards use withholding rations to gain information. Particularly was the case if suspecting a riot or escape attempt. Torture tactics earlier described presented a means of instigating fear, therefore keeping control.
Interpretations in the historiography of Civil War prisons and the life within are the same with regard to filth and depravity. Some prisons were better than others were; yet, none were adequate for quality care. Differences arise in the culprit to blame for atrocities committed in the name of war. The North blames the South and the South blames the North, each condemning the other for neglect.
Memoirs are the works with the most diversity in blame. Those published in the early twentieth century were less harsh in reference to their captors with some authors declaring them victims of inadequate funding and instructions from unaware ranking officials. Although some guards were brutal, others were respectful and described as such. The change from earlier published accounts is partly due to the passage of time and partly to patriotism and the desire to move past Reconstruction era animosity. There is revisionist influence upon writing of the early Twentieth century. Accepted is the fact that prison conditions were poor and prisoners suffered. However, revisionists declare the inability to correct problems was the cause of continued depravity, not intentional brutality. Accordingly, the governments did the best they could with what they had.
Written without obvious bias are relatively few works. The works of Hesseltine and Futch are the most revered by scholars. Before the Civil War ended works were being published and the topic of prisons being discussed among journalist outlets such as Harper’s Weekly and Zion’s Herald. It is only in the late Twentieth century that authors began suggesting that despite all the obstacles, governments were ultimately responsible for prison failures. Still, objectivity is required in any study of history. War is not pleasant and atrocity abounds. In evaluating any historiography, one has the benefit of hindsight to form opinions and evaluations. In the case of Civil War prisons and prison life, Hesseltine was correct in declaring, no prisoner loves his jailer. The evidence supports this. Regardless of the first hand narratives, the death toll speaks for itself. Governments were negligent, as were guards, prison commandants and even the citizens of the Union and Confederacy. Their choices of inaction sealed the fate of many individuals.

Coal Mining: Walker County, AL

In 1872 Jasper, Alabama was a small village located some distance from a railroad. The main industries were lumber and farming. Modernity had not reached this small area and life was content for its people. They new nothing of modern inventions and luxuries, such as telephones and electricity. There was a village blacksmith, the crude schoolhouse, the wooden store buildings, and a courthouse also built of wood. There were games of marbles, checkers, horseshoe pitching, and horse-trading.

Jasper, the county seat of Walker County, was incorporated in 1889 and can claim coal and timber as its main industries. The city is a trade and processing center for both products. Walker County, formed in 1832, is located in Northwest-central Alabama. Historically, the main industry in Walker County is coal mining. Combined with nearby Jefferson County, Walker was at one time credited with sixty percent of Alabama’s coal production. Although still an industry of the county today, coal mining is declining and other industries such as: hay, corn, livestock, poultry, timber and natural gas production are becoming increasingly important. In 1872, the tremendous profitability and future boom industry of coal was unknown to the citizens of Jasper and Walker County. Capitalism and the railroad would eventually transform the area to a producer of necessity. Coal for trains, furnaces, homes and manufacturers would become the future of the small village of Jasper.

Walker County, even before its official formation in 1832, claimed coal as an important resource. Although, if the legend is true, they may not have known just how important it was. The story credits Walker County as the site for the first coal discovery in Alabama. Apparently, two men were camping on Lost Creek and built a fire receptacle with three black stones. After awakening from several hours sleep, the men were terrified to realize the stones surrounding their fire area were red and glowing. Believing it to be the supernatural work of the devil, they made a hasty retreat. Upon curious and educated investigation, other men discovered the presence of coal explaining away the supernatural glowing rock phenomenon. By 1830, Alabama began commercially producing coal in Tuscaloosa County. It was dug from seams near the river and shipped by boat through the Alabama river systems to Mobile. Due to the treacherous nature of river shipping, which required great skill and navigation ability, it was necessary to transport coal during the flood season. The boom days of Jasper began in 1887 when the Frisco Railroad built a route through Jasper from Memphis, Tennessee to Birmingham, Alabama.

A mineral rich area such as Jasper can contribute its previous isolation from a railroad to the money saving tactics of the railroad companies. Railroad companies serve to connect large cities in the North to port cities of the South. It was beneficial to them to take the shortest, and least expensive, route. This meant avoiding the hills and mountains of North Alabama. Therefore, the vast quantities of mineral wealth were left hidden and unmined. Momentous change was signaled for Walker County in 1884 as the railroad was first used loading coal from mines near Corona. In 1888, a Northern Alabama route into Jasper from a city in northwestern Alabama, Sheffield, was built. With the building of the Frisco and Northern Alabama lines, the coal mining industry of Walker County began serious development. With the discovery of the profitable nature and abundance of Alabama coal, more rail lines were built in Alabama. By the Civil War Alabama was proving to be a valuable state to the nation and the South. In 1920 there were 162 coalmines in Walker County. By 1925, “the total tonnage of coal from the various mines in the county (had reached) several million tons each year”. Plentiful coal deposits allowed Walker to become one of the richest counties in the state during the early 1900s. Most of that coal was mined underground.

Early coal miners would use picks and crowbars to dig coal from the creek and riverbeds. As underground mining became more prevalent the men continued to use picks and shovels but used mules to pull coal out of the mines. Each miner had a round piece of metal known as a “coal check” that was imprinted with his company name and his ID number. When he loaded a coal car he hung the check on the car so the people above ground would know who loaded the coal. Each miner was paid by the amount of coal he loaded. The miner worked by the light of a carbide lamp attached to his hat. Canaries were used to warn underground miners of the dangers of noxious gases. The tools used were usually made and repaired at the mine site by a blacksmith. He played a prominent role in the early mines. The blacksmith could shoe as many as thirty mules in one day. The mules used to pull mining cars were generally kept near the caretakers’ home. The children of the home were responsible for the mules care. Everyone from a father to his children had a role in the mining camp.

By modern standards mining camp life was not easy. Miners and their families usually lived in a company house located near the mine. Several houses would be aligned on both sides of the street to form the mining camp. The houses were modest with usually a front and back porch, two bedrooms, and a kitchen. There was no indoor plumbing therefore a path to the outhouse was a necessity. Early homes had no electricity or running water. Wells were centrally located in the camp for community use. Lighting consisted of kerosene lamps and a fireplace provided heat or wood/coal burning stove. The wood or coal burning stove would also be used for cooking and boiling water for laundry. Washday was the most difficult for the miner’s wife. She washed clothes in hot soapy water and then boiled clothes over a wash pot heated by a wood fire in the back yard. The clothes were then rubbed on a scrub board and roll pressed to remove water so they could be line dried. Although everyone was poor and daily tasks were many times difficult, some recall the mining camps as not a bad place to live. Some camps provided dance halls and movie houses. There was also camaraderie in the camp as everybody knew everybody.

The social gathering place for early coal miner and his family was the company store. It was a place that the men could swap stories or play checkers while their wives purchased goods for the home. Almost everything the family needed could be purchased from the company store. “Many miners, unable to survive until the biweekly pay day, would have to take an advance in the form of clacker or scrip”. To get full value the clacker had to be used in the company store owned by the miner’s employer. Some clacker looked like an admission ticket and was assigned a specific value. It was considered a merchandise trade check and usually included the company name on the front. Coinage was also used. Each store had its own symbol engraved or punched on the coinage. If a miner did not go to the company store that produced the clacker he would receive value for only eighty cents per dollar. If the miner did not pay with clacker the good could be charged to an account and deducted on pay day.

By necessity, both black and white mining families shopped in the company store. However, their pay counters were segregated. Most life in the mining camp was segregated. Although housing was virtually identical, blacks lived in one section of the camp and whites in the other. They also had separate schools. Within the mine blacks and whites worked side by side. In the early 1900s Alabama mine labor was approximately fifty percent white and fifty percent black. However, some operations were twenty-five percent white and seventy-five percent black. The state remained non-unionized in 1924 despite efforts of the United Mine Workers. In attempt for union recognition a serious strike occurred in 1920-1921. Many blacks participated as scabs for the purpose of having a job and the monetary benefits. One particular group at Powderly mining camp sought reciprocity for their work actions. Representatives of the African-American school wrote the Debardeleban Coal Company, as well as other companies, seeking a monetary contribution for their role in the beginning of the mine strike. The success of labor unions was allowed by hard economic times of the Great Depression resulting in the reduction of tons produced in the mine. It also allowed for the success of labor unions. Safety was of utmost concern for both black and white miners. It was one issue labor unions could use to obtain support.

One safety issue miners had to face was the transportation of coal from the interior of the mine to the surface. Several precautions had to be taken with regard to hauling coal. The passages for transport were required to be at adequate width; therefore the tunnels were driven through the coal and overhead rock removed. Lumber was used to support the tunnel. The tunnel trains were constructed in virtually the same way as a narrow gauge railroad. However, the nature and space limitations of a mine required more complex rail systems. In the use of trolley locomotives workers must be protected from electric shock. “The ends of steel rails in the track must be connected with copper wires (bonded) and copper trolley wires suspended from the roof above the rail opposite the rooms or working places.” Trolley wires would be shielded or suspended at least six and a half feet above the rail. Other precautions include separate walking passages, frequent holes for safety when a railcar passes, signals to warn of approaching carts, dispatchers and block signals for when two rail cars operate on one track. Frequent inspections must be made to insure the safety of miners.

Other safety issues include the prevention of falling rock and water removal. In establishing tunnels and rail lines, as well as the actual mining process, workers had to contend with water removal. A 1936 report estimated that for each ton of coal, in some mines, twenty tons of water must be removed. This is an expensive process requiring pumps, pipe, and specialized labor. A silent danger miners face is ventilation.

Seasons and climatic conditions do not affect underground miners. Throughout the year mine temperature remains constant. However, it is of the utmost importance that underground mines have a continuous supply of fresh air. The dangerous gases in the mine must either be diluted with fresh air or removed. Two methods of ventilation practiced in Alabama mines were continuous and split systems. The continuous system allows air pulled by fans to travel in a continuous stream through the mine tunnels. The split system divides the air current into separate current using regulations in the entry points and doors. The air is diverted to a specific section while the other current continues to the next split until the mine is properly ventilated. Proper ventilation and safety training is essential to the mortality of miners. “Although there were some improvements in Alabama mines during the 1920s and 1930s, there was always a danger of death or injury from rock falls, explosions, and machinery.” Between 1921 and 1942 there were 1445 fatalities in Alabama coal mines. Coal companies continue to strive for improved safety. Technological advances of the late 1900s contribute to the improvements in safety and method. Alabama began commercially producing coal around 1832. In 1856 Alabama’s first large scale underground mine opened. Between 1870 and 1926 the mining output in Alabama steadily rose to meet demand. Production fell in 1956, but increased during WWII. Although post war production fell, 1954 marked an upward trend supported by demand. New methods of mining were adapted to increase output.

Of the two types of mining, surface and underground, the nature of the deposit determines the method used. Surface, or strip, mining is generally preferred because of the great return. This is the most economic method when the coal can be mined near the surface. In the early years of strip-mining very little reclamation was done. By the early 1970s environmentalists were outraged. Amidst pressure, companies began more reclamation of stripped land. They replaced topsoil and vegetation, usually pines. Critics were still not happy. A Birmingham News staff reporter, Charles Richardson, stated in 1971, “Alabama’s lasting legacy is a ravished countryside.” Others praised the productivity and efficiency of strip mining claiming strides had been made to improve the environmental impact. Today, approximately sixty percent of coal is taken from surface mines. There are fifteen surface mines operating in Walker County today and a total of 32 in the state of Alabama. There are specific requirements for operating a surface mine. A company must first research the site with regard to environmental issues such as, climate, wildlife, vegetation and soil composition. An application must be made for a federal permit and the company must “post bond for each acre of land it mines to assure that it will be properly mined.” After the proper permits are rewarded, and fees paid, the company prepares the land for mining. It is first cleared with the topsoil stored for later use. Holes are drilled to allow explosives to reach the coal seam. Once the coal is reached and removed the reclamation process begins. The soil is replaced and all attempts are made, in accordance with the Federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, to restore the land to a comparable or better productive state. Advocates of surface mining feel this process is sufficient and any risk is justifiable when evaluating the increased safety and output that surface mining offers.
As the demand for coal became greater, more efforts were made to increase production. Coal today is used to generate electricity. The demand has sustained Alabama coal production. “In 1992, about tree-fourths of Alabama coal production was distributed to domestic markets and nearly one-fourth was exported overseas.” Domestic use of coal was primarily more than 90% in Alabama. Since the 1960s, leading consumers of Alabama coal are electric utilities. Alabama coal is delivered to more than half of other industrial manufacturers. For example, paper and pulp mills, cement and lime plants, and organic fiber manufacturers. In Alabama, undoubtedly, coal is the most important mineral commodity with regard to production value. “In 1992, the State’s output of coal represented nearly one-half of the total estimated value of all mineral commodities production in the state, including crude oil and natural gas.”

The progress made in coal mining is directly related to the increase in consumption and demand. In the early history of the nation the forests of America provided the primary fuel. With industrial expansion an alternative fuel source was necessary. From the accidental use of black rocks for a coal fire in Walker County to being a leader in present day coal production, Alabama has made significant contributions to the coal mining industry.

The New Left

What was the ‘new left’ and what did it accomplish?

As the baby boomer generation begins to come of age, a new era of activism develops in America. The New Left develops in response to the desire for social change in America. The New Left proposes to combat civil wrongs and poverty in an era of cold war fears and opposition to foreign entanglements. Student organizations such as the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) push the agenda of the New Left movement. The SDS sought societal reconstruction, shunning systems of “power rooted in possession, privilege, or circumstance (323).” The New Left was a divided movement between politics and culture.

Reflected in the development of organizations such as the Students for a Democratic Society is the early history of the New Left. The Port Huron Statement, presented at the SDS annual convention, is an example of utopian desires and hope for a society abandoning racial prejudice, and eliminating poverty. The statement expresses Cold War fears, stating an awareness of mortality and realization that nuclear capabilities imperil the safety of society. SDS spoke against the materialism of society and indifference of and uninformed populace. They mourned the loss of idealism, believing it replaced by theoretic chaos (326). SDS proposed to seek a democracy where man could reach his full potential, where every man participated, and every individual had a say in the decisions of life. They sought public groupings, collective creativity, educative incentives, not material wealth, as well as an economy with resources open to all and governed by social regulation (328). Ultimately, the America that the SDS proclaimed to seek was an American commune where everyone lived happily ever after without the realism of the world stage. Other groups such as Young Americans for Freedom were less kumbaya, supporting American political and economic system organization while calling for accountability when such when beyond the realm of practicality threatening order and liberty. However, more radical groups such as the Weathermen proclaimed the United States obtained prosperity through the oppression of the Third World, calling for the destruction of U.S. imperialism and establishment of world communism.

Some abandoned their New Left proclamations to embrace the reality of moderation. Pete Collier and David Horowitz describe the New Left movement as “self-aggrandizing romance with corrupt Third Worldism . . .Soviet totalitarianism . . . hypocritical and self-dramatising anti-Americanism (334).” According to those driving the New Left, America was responsible for the nations racial and economic oppression as well as the oppression of the Third World failing to recognize the faults of brutal dictatorships.

Despite the radicalism of the New Left positive accomplishments in American society resulted from New Left activism. The Civil Rights movement resulted in voting rights and improved treatment for African Americans. Anti-war protests forced the government to evaluate foreign policy and Cold War decisions. Students gained a voice on university campuses. Eighteen year olds gained voting rights, and America saw the rebirth of the women’s movement. In addition, the nation became more environmentally conscious forcing a change in national and corporate policy. Due to the New Left movement, Americans in general became more socially aware of the problems facing the impoverished and underprivileged. Political parties were forced to adapt to the awareness to satisfy constituency.

The New Left movement developed out of a frustration for society’s struggles and the desire of young college students to make their mark on a world they viewed as unjust. Idealistic, they sought a utopia that the realities of society do not allow. Desiring to make right the ills of society some participants of the New Left movement took to activism while others chose to isolate themselves on community farms where small-scale socialism was operable. Blind to the positives of America, and protesting the ills of American society some New Left participants justified Soviet imperialism and communist oppression in areas such as Cambodia.

Harding and the legacy of MLK

According to Vincent Gordon Harding, what was the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.?

source: “King as Disturber of the Peace” in Major Problems in American History Since 1945

Martin Luther King Jr. is revered as a great orator and leader of the Civil Rights movement proclaiming nonviolence and civil disobedience. He is remembered most for his dream of black and white children playing together in the freedom of civil rights victory. Vincent Gordon Harding proclaims King to be so much more. Harding states, “Americans have chosen amnesia rather than continue King’s painful, uncharted, and often disruptive struggle toward a more perfect union (267).” The legacy of King is the groundwork of that struggle.

King made the choice to not just lobby for change. He made the choice to not just give speeches and organize marches. Harding describes the choice King made as one of determination and one of action. King committed himself to the cause of civil rights and to the betterment of life for poor citizens in America. He was willing to do more than just talk. King was willing to get in the trenches to lead the fight and fight along side those he tried to encourage. He was also aware of the growing discontent of African American youth and the attitude of the changing culture.

Black youth were more heavily affected by the rise in unemployment in cities such as Detroit. They saw little hope for a better life and altered their life goals accordingly. Many did not aspire to higher than what can be described as survival. The same youth questioned the nonviolence approach of Martin Luther King Jr. Harding explains that they did not understand why he preached a love of both black and white when so many African Americans did not even love themselves. There was a building rage among the youth that King, according to Harding, was aware of (268).

Harding describes a King that was not only determined to insight change, but a King that was willing to face the chaos that such change would bring. King wanted to see more than just doors opened for middle America. King wanted the poor to be lifted from their economic struggle, and to do so required American society to change. King began to challenge the mainstream of American life. In such challenge both black and white were uncomfortable. Many, of whom Harding refers to as respectable blacks, considered King’s aggressive push for societal change a threat to the professional gains they had made. King’s changes were based on negative assessment of the American economic order, a stance against the capitalism that did not uplift the poor in America (268).

Martin Luther King Jr. was a voice for change and had a vision of mobilizing the poor in America to liberate themselves from the plight of poverty. Harding reports King’s insistence that “the problem of racism, the problem of economic exploitation, and the problem of war are all tied together (269).” These are referred to as the triple evils. In order to overcome the triple evils a revamping of American society must take place. King called for a values revolution in America with the redistribution of American political and economic power to aid the poor (269).

Harding quotes a poem by Carl Wendell Hines stating “dead men . . . cannot rise to challenge the images we would fashion from their lives . . . it is easier to build monuments than to make a better world (266).” There is certainly an element of truth to Hines’ poem. When discussing the Civil Rights movement in America Martin Luther King Jr. is at the forefront, almost exclusive to all others. He is the first black man to receive national recognition in the form of a holiday. In this recognition many of his disruptive beliefs are lost in the grandeur of his accomplishments in the deep South. He is known for his accomplishments, with the disruption of struggle forgotten. Anything of such pivotal importance and extreme social reform will create disruption and will be a struggle. Kings’ legacy is the reminder of this struggle and the necessary fight for desired change. In the remembrance of King it is the struggle that Harding describes as part of the amnesia America faces.

According to Harding, the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. is the vision of a society based on social, political, and economic equality. The legacy of action, not mere words. Martin Luther King Jr. was not only a good orator; he was a man willing to take the necessary action to organize and insight change. He was willing to not only speak about change and organize for change, he was willing to risk himself for it. He knew and understood the likelihood of his demise. His awareness of the growing frustrations in a changing America encouraged his revolutionary hope for American society. Harding stresses it is this hope that historians must embrace and revive awareness for.

LBJ’s domestic programs

The Great Depression altered the way Americans viewed the responsibilities of the national government. Out of desperation Americans turned to the government seeking help, seeking a fix to the nation’s problem. This was not a new response, but it was much more widespread as the Great Depression touched lives from coast to coast, in every state and every city. In the 1960s President Johnson expanded the role of the government even further with a series of programs enacted to address concerns of health, housing, and education. President Johnson declared war on poverty. To many, the nations poor were invisible. It was easier than ever for the nations poor to blend in with the middle class, and for the middle and upper classes to turn a blind eye to the realities of poverty. It was President Johnson’s goal “to help each and every American citizen fulfill his basic hopes (219).” According to Johnson, the symptoms, not cause, of poverty were unemployment and low income. By giving the poor a boost with “entitlement” programs society in America would see improvement. The “war on poverty” was only one aspect of Johnson’s plan. Other programs were created to combat the symptoms of poverty.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed to outlaw literacy tests for the sake of qualifying voters. The 15th Amendment guaranteed the right to vote to everyone despite race. However, those wishing to discriminate against African-American voters argued that the party primaries were private and therefore not under the jurisdiction of the 15th Amendment. Primaries are tied to voting despite the individual party nature. Therefore, it seems primary voting should fall under the requirements of the 15th Amendment. Despite the seeming redundancy, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a positive step in the pursuit of civil rights.
Another program created in Johnson’s Great Society was HUD, or the Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD was founded for the purpose of developing and executing policy concerning housing and cities. The scope of HUD has been narrowed to focus mainly on housing offering special mortgage loans to those who would not qualify for a conventional loan, allowing more to pursue home ownership. Also dealing with civil rights and health, this branch pushed the Fair Housing and Equal opportunity housing to deter discrimination while also raising awareness to the hazards of lead. Certainly a positive aspect of the Great Society, however, like many programs, there is an element of the population that is left out of the assistance equation, the true middle. The true middle class do not qualify for assistance nor can they pursue such advantages at their current level.
The element of good works and society’s helping hand is taken away by programs such as VISTA, Volunteers in Service to America. Although a good deed for enriching communities across America in areas such as educational improvements and vocational training, it is not without the expectation of reward. Volunteers received a $10, 000 stipend, health coverage, post-service transitional wage, and educational rewards. Rather than seeking individuals to help their neighbor without the expectation of profit, and encouraging true community involvement, tax dollars were spent to pay volunteers. It is not a volunteer service if profit is gained.
Other programs, although beneficial to some, undermine the public educational system. For example Job Corps offers employment training, GED, and pursuit of high school diplomas to disadvantaged youth. It is certainly well intended to push the importance of education and job skills. However, disadvantaged youth could be better served by funding these programs through the already created public educational system by funding education at a level allowing for the vocational training of at-risk youth. Upward bound is another educational program preparing youth for the responsibilities of adulthood. Upward bound targets intelligent youth who are from low-income, rural, or first generation college candidates, training them for college success and offering incentives. It seems there is an overlap in government expenditure since the target group is considered the intelligent segment. If intelligent and doing well academically they would qualify for scholarships for college. Another education program targets a much younger audience, preschoolers. Head Start was created to prepare children of low-income families the opportunity to prepare for the social and educational demands of the public school system.
Although wonderful programs for meeting the needs of low-income and poverty stricken families there is a segment of the population that is left hanging out to dry, the true middle class. That group of the population that does not qualify for aid, but is one major setback away from falling into poverty. The group that is just barely getting by, and whose high school senior will not qualify for government aid to college, nor does the family have the funding. Furthermore many programs remove the work ethic of earning one’s rewards. Instead, rewards are handed out without expectation of return. Entitlements decrease the drive for self-improvement while increasing expectation, while allowing those in the middle to fall through the cracks. Many programs are also created with only short term funding in mind. Once created they are expected to continue and create much dispute when reduced or cut, Medicaid and Medicare being excellent examples. When created, funding for these medical programs was to be shared by the states and the federal government. Now they are a source of budget contention as states struggle to meet the massive need of medical assistance.
Despite being a noble goal, fulfilling the basic hopes of all America is not feasible in a capitalist society. Inevitably there will be haves and have nots. Extensive entitlements remove incentive, and decrease drive. With expectations of a government caretaker there is less initiative for private assistance organizations. There is also an overlap in assistance and the oversight of system abuse. The documents in Major Problems in American History indicate instances where families were better served by divorcing and receiving government aid in place of the husbands meager income. Critics such as Reagan quote Plutarch, warning “The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations, and benefits (221).” In “From Opportunity to Entitlement,” Gareth Davies explains the changing definition of independence. Instead of self-sufficiency, through the growth of “entitlements” independence came to mean freedom from want, even with government dependence. Although assistance is not a negative for a society, when allowed to become expected, it fosters a dependence that cannot be erased and is detrimental to that society.

A Great Society?

I am currently in the process of researching LBJ’s Great Society for the purpose of critical evaluation. In the process I ran across this article. Using the events in New Orleans after Katrina as foundation the author examines the breakdown of society and places much blame on what he calls the “the socialist experiment”, LBJ’s Great Society and war on poverty. As the article points out the GS was created to help the poor, reducing poverty, and raise the bar for neighborhoods in America while improving health care and conservation policies. I am not taking the stance that all aspects of LBJ’s plan were bad. However, the creation of such a broad welfare base is in some ways (IMO) detrimental to those in poverty, leaving them dependent on the welfare system, with no incentive to raise the bar of personal triumph. Does anyone else see that a dependency could, and does, develop? There are some cases where families are economically better off if they have more children, do not seek a job or a higher wage, or separate. In a document detailing Reagan’s opposition to the development of a welfare state a case is referenced where a woman was seeking a divorce from her husband, a laborer earning $250 a month. If she divorced him she could receive $350 a month from the Aid to Dependent Children Program. Granted this was an old case, but similar instances can be found today. Is the wrong message being sent to people? What about work ethic? Pride? Determination to make it on one’s own? I’m not saying leave the poor hanging out to dry, but what about reform with incentive to get off the system and make it in the world by personal initiative?

Here is another article also referencing the breakdown of society during Katrina. Despite inadequacies society still screamed for the government to come to the rescue failing to make a personal attempt.

To a degree I can see the argument. Not being in the situation I can not imagine the hopelessness. However, I also know my personal drive to figure out a way to help my family, to see that needs are met. Has government dependency overrun that drive for many?

happy days

The second article said about the same as the first regarding teens and behavior. Marchand addresses concerns of teen influences, James Dean, and the rebellion of youth against the expectations of their parents.

To answer the question regarding the essays and “Happy Days”…

The “Happy Days” persona of the 1950s is an attempt to gild the decade as the “good old days” when husband went to work, wife kept the home, and children did all they were supposed to without reeking havoc. “Happy Days” portrays a 1950s innocence that was not the reality. The mother of the house did not always stay home baking cookies and keeping the home. More than ever before she could be seen in the working world. Youth were not always innocent and proper. Promiscuity was not lost on the 1950s generation. “Happy Days” touched on some issues of 1950s society, such as dating, gangs, and propriety, while continuing to embrace the “good old days” of American society. Both articles make references that could easily be used to describe 21st Century concerns. Youth of today are technology dependent, seek social recognition, and strive for life unique from the era of their parents. Marchand addresses the popular influences upon 50s youth, such as the rebel attitude and James Dean image. Today’s youth are influenced by Hollywood heroes and industry Pop stars. Commercial advertising has a large influence on the expectations and desires of both youth and society. The debt of 21st Century society is tremendous. Wealth and happiness is defined by the acquisition of things. Society strives for convenience just as it did in the 1950s with the advent of new appliances and new gadgets.

“Happy Days”

My task is to now answer the following:

How do the essays by Beth Bailey and Roland Marchand challenge the popular “Happy Days” image of the 1950s?

I remember watching happy days. Life seemed so easy and family so “normal”. Sure they had issues, but nothing that couldn’t be solved in the 30 minute TV time. I searched the net and ran across a brief synopsis of the show: “Happy Days” was set in the 1950s in Milwaukee, the heart of middle-class America, and told the story of the Cunningham family. Mr. Cunningham (Tom Bosley) ran the local hardware store and Mrs. Cunningham (Marion Ross), like all good TV Moms, spent her time in the kitchen. Their son, Richie (Ron Howard), hung out at Arnold’s Drive-In with his pals Ralph Malph (Donny Most) and Potsie (Anson Williams), trying to be as cool as the coolest greaser in town, the Fonz (Henry Winkler). Richie’s sister, Joanie (Erin Moran), tagged along whenever she wasn’t at her friend Jenny Piccolo’s house. The Cunninghams also had an older son, Chuck, but he mysteriously disappeared after the first season. When the series started, Richie and his pals were using fake ID’s to sneak into bars and struggling to find dates. By the time the show ended, their teenage problems had given way to decidedly adult topics like marriage and children. (credit to whoever created the geocities site).

The background documents for this section paint a very different life of the 1950s. First discussing the teenage market, Life magazine (1959 article) describes it as a developing industry bringing in big bucks. The article paints a picture of indulgent parents and spoiled kids. It is actually very similar to arguments heard in the 21st century. A Newsweek article form 1955 details delinquency of the 50s and the growth of teenage gangs. Again, very similar to stories of today. Senseless killing and fights over territorial disputes, or for merely the sake of fighting. The 1955 article included from US News and World Report address television and the evils deteriorating the minds of society. What if those same writers looked at television today! Same arguments, some say it broadens the world view of the watcher and expands their lives into world’s they might never see in reality. Those in protest determine it weakens the ability of society to think and deteriorates the health of its youth. A House of Representatives discussion on homosexuality is included. Cold war fears are used to support this argument stating that in the closet homosexuals are easy prey for communists seeking weak links to blackmail. Statistics of homosexual government employees are included. I question the validity of the statistics stating “75% of the 4000 pervers in the District of Columbia are employed by the Government”. Lastly this section includes graphic illustrations of how to respond to a nuclear attack. Honestly, I find this section amusing. In the event that you are close enough to see the flash kiss your butt goodbye because there is little chance you will survive the fall out. Here’s a quote, “Fashion tips for the apocalypse. Men should wear wide-brimmed hats, women stockings and long-sleeved dresses.” Stockings? OUCH! I can’t imagine getting those things off in the event of a burn. It’s really not amusing, it is scary that this was an actual fear and arguably still is, just in a different scenario.

My stance?

My stance? I don’t know, so I’m going to think it out. I know, I’ve been thinking for days. I was a little distracted this week by sick child and nice weather. The stated reason for dropping the A-bombs on Japan are plausible. Even after the bombing of Hiroshima Japan did not show signs of surrender, only mobilizing for the expected invasion. There were some advising the Emperor that refused to back down, and those that suggested surrender negotiation were having little pull. Some suggest the threat of Soviet involvement would have caused Japan to negotiate. Indications were that after the successful testing that the US did not stress Soviet involvement and wanted to keep the Soviets out so they had no claims to make in the surrender. Which leads to the possibility of showing the USSR the power we had. A demo. Certainly relations with the Soviets were strained as the Cold War was getting under way. There is a moral dilemma in dropping the bomb. Innocent life was taken. Yet, Japan was forced to surrender, therefore saving American soldiers. Would it have been effective to demo the destructive power to encourage surrender? I do not think so. Even experiencing destruction did not lead to surrender negotiations, it took a second devastating bomb.

It is not my assignment to determine the morality of dropping the bombs. I do not think it was right. I think the US could have used other destructive means and achieved the same goal. However, I am not certain about the casualty figures. My purpose is to determine the why.

The United States bombed Japan for several reasons. First, to bring an end to the war. Second, to demonstrate force and power to the Soviets. Third, I really think they wanted to see what it would really do. That is horrible I know. But I think for some it was an issue. I believe there is merit to the argument that those who argue against the bombing argue with evidence written after the fact, using hindsight judgments.

Now the goal is to put this into an intelligent essay…