Journal of Undergraduate Research

Joseph Wood and Dr. Kendal Brown, History The pilgrimage to the tomb of St. James in Santiago de Compostela was proclaimed the first European Cultural itinerary by the Council of Europe in 1987. Six years later, UNESCO designated the pilgrimage route a World Heritage Site for its cultural significance during the Middle Ages. In addition […]

Ardis Smith and Dr. Amy Harris, History Department In eighteenth-century England, kin relationships were an integral part of life for men and women of all classes. Primary sources from the period show that contrary to the postulations of some historians, kinship had a significant societal impact on men, women, and children of the period, and […]

Jennifer Campbell Matthews and Dr. Rebecca de Schweinitz, BYU Department of History In the United States around the early to mid-19th century a debate about the best method to teach the deaf arose which only intensified into the 20th century. The debate consisted of pure oralists who believed that the deaf should be taught speech […]

Verlan Lewis and Dr. Brian Cannon, History The Mountain West is the fastest-growing region in the country, and it is becoming increasingly important to national politics. For only the third time in history of the U.S. Congress, the Senate Majority Leader is currently from the Mountain West. In the 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush […]

Laura Judd and Professor Paul Kerry, Department of History Archives function as a sacred space of the scholar. They preserve the fragile remains of the past, offering access only to the most respectful readers. Perhaps this is why, for the undergraduate history student, the relationship between historian and archive often remains veiled. A typical history student […]

K. Jane Hughes and Dr. Glen Cooper, Department of History I originally applied for an ORCA grant in order to further my research toward my Honors thesis — a cultural study of Anglo-Saxon medicine. I realized that I would not be able to create a viable paper on the subject with the limited sources available […]

Clifford David Gravett and Dr. Aaron Skabelund, History The purpose of this research was to establish the role of General Douglas MacArthur in the process of rearming Japan following World War II. My question was how MacArthur’s opinions regarding Japanese military evolved during his tenure as Supreme Commander for Allied Forces in the Pacific (SCAP) […]

Bryan S. Bendall and Dr. Jeffrey M. Shumway, History On January 1, 1959, armored tanks of Fidel Castro’s rebel army paraded down the streets of Havana, Cuba promising reforms and change in the island nation. For many of Cuba’s religious adherents this came in the form of repression and persecution. Castro began his attack on […]

Ryan Tobler and Professor Paul Kerry, History It is usually literary historians, not religious ones, who address the American Transcendental movement of the early 19th century. Best known for the literary works and figures it produced, Transcendentalism is remembered as loose coalition of forceful thinkers that challenged and enhanced American conceptions of nature, ideal society, and […]

Emily Willis and Dr. Rebecca de Schweinitz, History On June 5, 1976, the almost-completed Teton Dam, a Bureau of Reclamation project, broke, sending millions of gallons of water thundering through the Upper Snake River Valley in Southeastern Idaho. The flood destroyed hundreds of houses and left thousands of people homeless. As soon as the waters […]