Category Archives: Georgia History

Georgia and the Federal Constitution, Part I (In Pursuit of Dead Georgian, 10)

[Note: Part I of a talk delivered during the celebration of the Bicentennial of the Federal Constitution, at the quarterly meeting of Historic Jonesboro/Clayton County (Ga.). I did not think that, as a high school teacher, I would ever be … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Constitution of 1787, Georgia History, History, Philadelphia Convention (1787), Research, Southern History, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Race–and History–Matter

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past” (William Faulkner) [NOTE:  Perhaps it’s because I live in the South; or maybe it’s because February was Black History Month; or I suppose it could be because the Republican Party is … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Constitution of 1787, Current Events, Georgia History, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Nullification, Philadelphia Convention (1787), Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Denying the Holocaust (Adventures in Interdisciplinary Land, 3)

[Note: In the late 1990s, a number of seniors at my school received, through the mail, “information” from a group denying the reality of the Holocaust. (For an earlier instance, go here)  One of their English teachers asked me to talk to … Continue reading

Posted in Current Events, Georgia History, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Southern History, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

The News from Indian Country: The Cherokee Phoenix, 1828-1834, Part II (In Pursuit of Dead Georgians, 9)

[Note: We conclude the story of the Cherokee Phoenix begun in a previous post. Both the passage by Congress of the Indian Removal Act (1830) and President Jackson’s refusal to enforce the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of Worcester v. … Continue reading

Posted in "Cherokee Phoenix" (newspaper), American History, Cherokee Indians, Chief John Ross (Cherokees), Elias Boudinot, Georgia History, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Nullification, Research, Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Uncategorized, Wilson Lumpkin | 4 Comments

The News from Indian Country–The Cherokee Phoenix, 1828-1834, Part I (In Pursuit of Dead Georgians, 8)

[Note:  This began as my contribution to my school’s interdisciplinary examination of Native American culture, but I had another reason for offering to present something on the Cherokee tribal newspaper:   the removal of the Cherokees from Georgia was a significant part of my ongoing research project, … Continue reading

Posted in "Cherokee Phoenix" (newspaper), American History, Cherokee Indians, Chief John Ross (Cherokees), Elias Boudinot, George R. Gilmer, Georgia History, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Nullification, Research, Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Teaching, Wilson Lumpkin | Leave a comment

Assault and Battery on the Mother Tongue–“Business-Speak”

Once upon a time, I wanted to teach English, and, though things didn’t work out that way, I’ve maintained a love affair with the language.  Nothing gets me hotter under the collar faster than writing that is sloppy, imprecise, deceptive, … Continue reading

Posted in "Business-Speak", American History, Current Events, Georgia History, History, Murdering the English Language, Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Unflattering Glimpses of the Georgia Legislature, 2012 and 1817

[Note:A huge sigh of relief can be heard all round the greater Atlanta area; wives and daughters are once again permitted to leave their homes unaccompanied by a heavily armed escort; the family silver has been retrieved from its hiding place and … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Current Events, Georgia History, History, Research, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History | 4 Comments

Thoughts on a First Draft

Recently, I completed a first draft of the “Project,” after about eight months of effort (which, of course, followed fifteen years of research, most of it over long school vacations, but who’s counting!).  The text (including notes, which at this point are embedded in the body … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Georgia History, History, Research, Retirement, Southern History | 2 Comments

A “Fourth Dimension” in Antebellum Georgia Politics (In Pursuit of Dead Georgians, 7)

 [Note:  John Adams predicted that the colonial declaration of independence in the summer of 1776 “would be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. . . .It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parades, with Shews [sic], … Continue reading

Posted in 4th of July, Current Events, George M. Troup, Georgia History, History, James Gunn, John Clark, John Cuthbert, Nullification, Research, Retirement, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Teaching | 1 Comment

Antebellum Georgia’s Dueling Memoirists, Wilson Lumpkin and George R. Gilmer (In Pursuit of Dead Georgians, 6)

[NOTE:  Two previous posts (here and here) have looked separately at memoirs by antebellum Georgia governors George R. Gilmer and Wilson Lumpkin, focusing on each man’s role in the removal of the Cherokees.  This time, I want to consider other aspects of their careers … Continue reading

Posted in Cherokee Indians, George R. Gilmer, Georgia History, History, Research, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Wilson Lumpkin | 2 Comments