Author Archives: georgelamplugh

About georgelamplugh

I retired in 2010 after nearly four decades of teaching History at the "prep school" level with a PhD. My new "job" was to finish the book manuscript I'd been working on, in summers only, since 1996. As things turned out, not only did I complete that book, but I also put together a collection of my essays--published and unpublished--on Georgia history. Both volumes were published in the summer of 2015. I continue to work on other writing projects, including a collection of essays on the Blues and, of course, my blog.

The South on the Nation’s Psychiatric Couch, Again

Posted on July 12, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of Tracy Thompson, The New Mind of the South. New York and London: The Free Press, 2013. [NOTE: I became a historian of the South not by birth, but because a southern grad school to which I’d applied … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Jim Crow, American History, Books, Civil Rights Movement, Civil War, Current Events, Georgia History, Historical Reflection, History, History graduate school, Popular Culture, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Uncategorized | Tagged Age of Jim Crow, Atlanta History, Civil Rights Movement, Southern Culture, Southern Identity, The New Mind of the South, Tracy Thompson | 2 Comments

Georgia and the American Revolution, I: Colonial Background, 1732-1763 (In Pursuit of Dead Georgians, 12)

Posted on July 1, 2014 by georgelamplugh

[NOTE: In the winter of 1976, I offered an eight-week course (meeting one evening a week) on “Georgia and the American Revolution, 1763-1783,” to interested members of our parent body. A new book on the subject, combining narrative with primary … Continue reading →

Posted in American History, American Revolution, Colonial Georgia, Georgia History, Historical Reflection, History, History Curriculum, Prep School, prep school teaching with a PhD, Research, Retirement, Southern History, Teaching, Uncategorized, WP Long Form | Tagged American History, American Revolution, American Revolution in Georgia, Colonial Georgia, Georgia History, Southern History | Leave a comment

Growing Up in Colonial New England (Adventures in Interdisciplinary Land, 6)

Posted on June 15, 2014 by georgelamplugh

[Note: One of the “joys” of teaching in a prep school with a PhD., at least in the state of Georgia, was the state’s assumption, “back in the day,” that folks like me were deficient in “professional education” courses and … Continue reading →

Posted in "Education Courses", American History, Historical Reflection, History, History Curriculum, Interdisciplinary Work, Research, Retirement, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged American History, Education courses, Historical Reflection, history, History Curriculum, Interdisciplinary Work, Research, Retirement, Teaching | 1 Comment

Early Blues–Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Everything (Blues Stories, 17)

Posted on June 1, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of R.A. Lawson, Jim Crow’s Counterculture: The Blues and Black Southerners, 1890-1945. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2010. [NOTE: As I’ve explained elsewhere, my initial interest in the Blues developed because my older son and I were … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Jim Crow, Alan Lomax, American History, Big Bill Broonzy, Chicago Blues, Civil Rights Movement, Delta Blues, Historical Reflection, History, History Curriculum, History of Rock and Roll, Interdisciplinary Work, Leadbelly, Popular Culture, Robert Johnson, Southern History, Teaching, The Blues, Uncategorized, Urban Blues | Tagged Big Bill Broonzy, Blues Music as "Countercultural, Great Depression, Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927, Leadbelly, Modern Civil Rights Movement, Peetie Wheatstraw, Robert Johnson, The Blues, The Great Migration | 5 Comments

“That’s Why They Paid Me the Big Bucks” (Be True to Your School, I)

Posted on May 15, 2014 by georgelamplugh

[NOTE: What follows is a revised version of an editorial from the final issue I edited of Atlanta’s Finest Prep School’s (AFPS) History Department newsletter, upon the occasion of my retirement. The title phrase was one I used regularly with … Continue reading →

Posted in Historical Reflection, History, Prep School, prep school teaching with a PhD, Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged History Teaching, History Teaching Career Retrospective, Prep, Prep school teaching, Retirement | 12 Comments

Blues Theology, Part 2: “Me and the Devil” (Blues Stories, 16)

Posted on May 9, 2014 by georgelamplugh

[NOTE: Thus far, we’ve looked at the birth of the Blues in the Mississippi Delta and reviewed in rather broad terms the charge that, for many African Americans, the Blues was the “Devil’s Music.” In this post, we’ll look at … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, Delta Blues, History, John Lee Hooker, Research, Southern History, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged Blues, Blues Theology, John Lee Hooker, Lonnie Johnson, Peetie Wheatstraw, Robert Johnson, Theology, Tommy Johnson | Leave a comment

“Famous for Being Famous”: A Kardashian for the Gilded Age

Posted on April 15, 2014 by georgelamplugh

Let’s admit it up front: for a lot of us, there is a definite “cringe factor” when we make our way through the supermarket checkout aisle and glance at magazine covers, or sign in to msn.com or yahoo.com. Whether or … Continue reading →

Posted in American History, Books, Current Events, Historical Reflection, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Mark Twain, Popular Culture, Retirement, Uncategorized | Tagged " "Celebrity", "Fame, American Popular Culture, Cult of Celebrity, Frank Bruni, Kim Kardashian, Mark Twain's Autobiography, Olive Logan | Comments Off

Blues Theology, Part 1: The “Devil’s Music” (Blues Stories, 15)

Posted on April 1, 2014 by georgelamplugh

[Note: In previous posts [here and here], we have looked at the origins of the Blues in the Mississippi Delta and seen that life for Delta blacks involved hard physical labor, rigid segregation, and shocking violence. Among the few places … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, B.B. King, Big Bill Broonzy, Delta Blues, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Research, Son House, Southern History, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged Blues, Ishmon Bracey, Lonnie Johnson, Robert Johnson, Sonny Boy Williamson, Theology, Willie Dixon | 7 Comments

“He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother,” The Writer

Posted on March 15, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of Rick Lamplugh, In the Temple of Wolves: A Winter’s Immersion in Wild Yellowstone. (2014) (available at amazon.com in both paperback and e-book formats) [Full Disclosure: I’m about to violate the book reviewer’s code of conduct here, which … Continue reading →

Posted in "In The Temple of Wolves", Books, Retirement, Rick Lamplugh, Wolves, Yellowstone National Park | Tagged In The Temple of Wolves, Lamar Buffalo Ranch "Wolf Week", Rick Lamplugh, Yellowstone National Park | 6 Comments

The Chitlin’ Circuit: Life, Death, and a Musical Revolution (Blues Stories, 14)

Posted on March 1, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of Preston Lauterbach, The Chitlin’ Circuit and the Road to Rock ‘n’ Roll. New York and London: W.W. Norton & Company, 2011. [NOTE: As Blues fans know, the “chitlin’ circuit” kept the Blues alive after World War II … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Jim Crow, American History, B.B. King, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Delta Blues, History, Muddy Waters, Research, Southern History, TBone Walker, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged Chitlin' Circuit, Peacock Records, Preston Lauterbach, Rock 'n' Roll, The Blues | Leave a comment