The major component of the AAS American Studies Seminar is a research paper. Throughout the semester we have been learning about a variety of topics and I am glad to say that this past week I have finalized my paper topic and have begun doing research. For my paper I am going to analyze our first three presidents: George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson and will compare their religious views and backgrounds and see the similarities and differences amongst some of our founding fathers. I am looking forward to writing this paper and to be able to do research at such a prestigious institution.

It’s been a few weeks into the 2012 American Antiquarian Society Seminar, and as we delve into the actual collection of texts on “Reason, Revival, and Revolution”, a simple question has lead to a continually developing answer. Early in the semester, the question of why some texts contain two different styles of the letter “s” arose, such as the image below:

While usually, a re-printing of these famous texts would no longer include the letter variation, the opportunity to work with the collection at the Antiquarian Society allows us to ask questions we may not have even considered thinking about before.

The thing I’ve found most interesting is the different answers I’ve received. The first answer was that it was a matter of the printing press, that it was convenient and a commonly done thing. This answer then provided the next answer, from another professor; that the long “s” was even included in American printing because it was based off of British printing, which soon brought on the question of how this “s” made its way into the British printing process. It seems to have been influenced by German printing when the British throne was taken over again by a German bloodline. Later, this  led to the topic of the original different writing styles from the middle ages, which were then transferred over to printing machines.

I think the point I’m trying to make here is that being able to examine these primary sources, courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society, allows students to ask interesting questions. These questions then aren’t limited to our seminar topic, but expand beyond the course and continue to rattle around until larger connections are made.

I hardly think I understand everything about the literal printing process, or even the stylistic variations of the letter “s” yet, but I’m eager to see where this question will continue to lead and what other small questions or observations made in the seminar will pop up and spiral into interesting areas.

This week our readings were on the sectarian movements of the Great Awakening. I find it very interesting to read about such radical religous movements, especially when this is my first experience with such movements. Our readings are on the Shakers, Deists and Methodists. The Deists, for example, emphasize the use of human reason in their reflection on God, their only source being nature. They reject the traditional authority. I think our discussion in class today will be lively, since most of us have not studied such sects. It will be interesting to see the other students’ take on the radical sectarian movement of the Great Awakening.

This semester I am fortunate enough to participate in the American Antiquarian Society Seminar! So far we have covered vast and interesting topics such as the role of religion in the Revolution, the Reformation, and are currently in the midst of discussing The Great Awakening. This past week, learning about the different revivals and reactions American colonists experienced through the readings of Jonathan Edwards and Charles Chauncy was an eye opener and led to an excellent discussion amongst the class. We each brought different view points and had a very lively discussion. My favorite part of the seminar so far is after discussing these incredible pieces by Chauncy, Edwards, Whitefield, etc. in a class discussion we head over to the American Antiquarian Society and are able to look at and flip through the actual documents from the time period. It truly is a remarkable experience and I consider myself very lucky to have this opportunity as an undergraduate. I am not sure what I will select as my research topic, but I am looking forward to figuring it out and am excited to be able to do research in a prestigious environment.

Reason, Revival and Revolution: Religion in America, 1726-1792 is the topic for the American Antiquarian Seminar this fall. The course is taught by Professor Marini, a visiting Professor from Wellesley College. The course includes students from Holy Cross, Assumption, WPI and Clark. We read various articles and books that pertain to the topic of the week. Two students write commentaries in which we have class discussions on. This week being the most heated discussion yet. Then we travel across the street to the Antiquarian Society and work with the primary documents of the authors we just read.

It has been a couple of weeks since the American Studies Seminar has finished.  The class ended with two weeks of presentations.  Everyone detailed their research and presented their arguments to their peers; the seminar leader, Hannah Carlson; some of the staff of the AAS; and other teachers from the area colleges.  Everyone was genuinely interested in our papers and it was a good public speaking experience.

In thinking back on the semester, I am very happy that I decided to apply and participate in the seminar.  It is a truly unique and rewarding opportunity.  While the prospect of a major research paper may seem daunting, especially to those who have never undertaken a research project of that size, the seminar leader and the staff at the AAS do a great job of orienting students with the collections, as well as aiding them with their research.  And while the seminar topics are specific, there is enough room for students in many different majors to find a project that interests them.  I would encourage students to think about applying next fall and even if they do not partake, to remember that the AAS welcomes undergraduates to conduct research in its library!

Right now I am sitting in the AAS library working on the final draft of my paper. It is actually going very smoothly thanks to the wonderful, constructive comments of our professor, Hannah Carlson. As I work on my paper I am waiting for some of the images I address in my paper to be scanned so that I can place them in my paper and create a powerpoint for my presentation on Wednesday. The staff here are very helpful!

It was a privilege to listen to my colleagues’ paper presentations last Wednesday. They all came well prepared and spoke quite eloquently about their subjects. I am excited to hear the rest of the class deliver an overview of their papers this coming Wednesday!

A rough draft of our papers is due Wednesday, so its time to put everything together.

Rereading all the articles I’ve gathered and working them into the paper renews my appreciation for the Lowell factory girls.  It seems a number of people, some unidentified, others quite famous, like Charles Dickens, visited Lowell around the 1840s and the Lowell mill girls were often the main attraction.  Not only were they observed and judged but these judgments were published in the newspapers!

Dickens account was published in a number of papers, which indicates to me that his opinion was valued.  Of the factory girls, he writes, “They were all well dressed, but not to my thinking above their condition: for I like to see the humbler classes of society careful of their dress and appearance, and even, if they please, decorate with such little trickets as come within the compass of their means.  Supposing it confined within reasonable limits, I would always encourage this kind of pride, as a worthy element of self-respect, in any person I employed; and should no more be deterred from doing so, because some wretched female referred her full to a love of dress.”   He believed the girls should dress to reflect their lesser status, and yet permits them to demonstrate through their clothing some element of pride.  Yet this was a thin line that the factory girls were careful not to overstep.

Balance was the key for the mill girls, and the more I examine the articles they wrote the more I see this balancing act, even in the pieces that seem very idealized.  In “Abby’s Year in Lowell” Abby is lured to Lowell by the prospect of fine clothing, exhibited by her neighbors upon their return from the city: Abby’s ”head had been filled with visions of fine clothes; and she thought if she could only go where she could dress like them, she should be completely happy.”

And yet she wants to prove to her father that she can save her earnings and learn the value of money.  Her father allows her to go to Lowell thinking  she will “return home and become a little more steady, and be willing to devote her active energies (for she is a very capable girl) to household duties .” He wants her to become a better daughter, not an independent woman.

At the end of Abby’s year in Lowell, it seems that she has returned as the good, obedient daughter.  She has saved her money but the story ends with her asking to go back: “I should like to add a little to the sum in the bank, and I should be glad of one silk gown!”  So while she has saved her money, she still desires fine clothing, even if it is only one silk gown.  She has managed to be both responsible and yet has not given up her passion for dress.  She has found balance between the two.

It is unclear exactly  how writing for the Lowell Offering influenced the mill girls’ later lives, but I think the ideas they played with in their writing helped them develop into women.  Writing allowed them to experiment with their ideas of themselves so that when they finished their work in the factories, they were empowered individuals.  Many remained in Lowell.  Some went on to work in the women’s rights movement, others wrote for newspapers or wrote their own books.  Many married, but they married men who were very similar in age to them.  Most women in New England at the time married men that were typically a couple years older then themselves, so the factory girls were unique, and this equality in age signaled more equality in the marriage.  Their time in Lowell had changed them, and writing for the Lowell Offering was part of that.

For most people, incessant babbling about trivia is the bane of their existence. However, I’m the kind of person who thinks facts about things are interesting and cool and I will ALWAYS look up facts about things just for the fun of it. Because of this strange character trait, researching the art and customs of mourning jewelry has been just so much fun to me. I know, I know, research/work/etc is supposed to be boring, but I’ve found some gems.

My favorite:
Hair Memorium (unknown date, unknown author).
It’s literally a book of hair, braided much like that of mourning jewelry. This book is a rarity because much of  the actual pieces that were created in memory of someone have been lost. In fact, in another one of the books I found which was published in the early 1900s, the author claimed that only approximately 200 or so hair pieces exist at that time.

Here are some pictures of the Hair Memorium:

And my personal favorite, or the best and most intricate hair braid I’ve seen:

Now that I’ve read through all of the Lowell Offering articles that I’ve collected, I am trying to put them in context.

The Lowell factory girls were like no others.  Other mills employed families and didn’t pay their workers monthly, in cash, like the Lowell factories did.  The Lowell girls were  young, single, leaving their families’ farms for the first time, arriving in the city, earning money that was theirs to do with as they pleased.

The ability to purchase fine clothing and fabric was a natural symbol of their new economic and overall independence.  And yet the ability to be fashionable was reserved for the middle class as a means of demonstrating their higher social status.

In one essay, “Gold Watches,” which was published twice in the Lowell Offering, the Lowell factory girl addresses Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of the prominent Godey’s Lady’s Book.  The author quotes Hale as saying, “How stands the difference now?  Many of the factory girls wear gold watches, and an imitation, at least, of all the ornaments which grace the daughter’s of our most opulent citizens.”  Hale clearly signals fashion as a status marker, and is upset that this symbolism no longer exists.  But she does so by picking on the factory girls, distinguishing them as less than  “the daughter’s of our most opulent citizens,” unworthy of fashion.

The factory girl’s response balances the general principles of Hale’ s article with her specific referencing of the factory girls: “why is the idea so prevalent that dress appears more objectionable in the factory girl than in any other female?  Extravagance should be objected to in any one; but the exercise of taste in dress, should not be denied to them, more than to any other young females.”  This is the sort of middle ground the Lowell factory girls are navigating throughout their writings in the Lowell Offering.  Because they were of the working class, society thought they should dress as such, modestly, reserving fashion for the middle and upper classes.  But they had another factor working against them; many people believed their work to be degrading.  And in reading the Lowell Offering, the reader can see the girls address this, stressing that  the factory is an excellent place to think, and that they use their free time in the boardinghouses to read.  And yet they are young girls with money, clothing and fashion is both a source of interest and pride.

It is not surprising then that their articles are not decisive concerning their opinions of fashion.  Rather, when looked at together, their writings are filled with tensions.  They are trying to figure out how they feel about their new economic independence, as symbolized through clothing.  They know that they have a natural passion for clothing.  One girl, Mary Paul, even writes to her father saying, “I am in need of clothes which I cannot get here [working as a domestic servant] and for that reason I want to go to Lowell.”  And they know that society judges this passion harshly, and has high expectations concerning how they act.  They are unsure of the self they want to  put forth in the world but they know they must balance societal expectations and their own desires.  So the Lowell Offering becomes a means of exploration of their ideas and opinions.  The women used pseudonyms and wrote many fictional pieces, all of which allowed them a means of safe experimentation with their ideas and those of society.  It also allowed them to voice these ideas to the public which judged them, thus empowering them to find their own ideas and voice, a voice strong enough to be made public.

With this understanding, I hope to see how the factory girls used this experimentation to come to some decision about fashion in their lives.  Unfortunately, there are very few such personal accounts  so it is hard to make any sort of sweeping statement about their views, and there is no real way of knowing how their writing inspired their ideas and decisions.  Nonetheless, the articles of the  Lowell Offering provide me with more than enough material for my paper.  And I hope in writing it that I can give voice to an aspect of these girl’s lives that has gone unnoticed, and give them credit for creatively and bravely navigating a world that was both new and daunting to them.