The Birmingham Center of the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America recognized outstanding student scholarship at its annual American Independence Awards luncheon in March.
Seven students from across Samford University were honored for their exceptional papers on early American history, including five history majors, one Cumberland School of Law student and one student from the School of Health Professions. Together, they received more than $4,200 in cash prizes through an essay competition sponsored by the Colonial Dames in partnership with the Department of History.
“I am grateful for another year successfully collaborating with the Colonial Dames in this outstanding program,” said department chair Jonathan Den Hartog. “This year I was particularly impressed with the way our student presenters communicated their ideas in clear and effective ways.”
Den Hartog presented the following awards during the program.
First place was awarded to Victoria Campbell, a history major, for her essay, “Jefferson, Madison and the Conservative Origins of the American Revolution and Founding.” Ella Ford, also a history major, received second place for “Pacificus and Helvidius: Active Constitutional Interpretation in the Early American Republic.”
Third place was awarded in a tie to history major Ethan Crossan for “Blackstone vs. Colonial America: Where Did America Diverge from Classical English Law,” and history major Noah Powell for “Structural Failures on the Frontier: The Massacres of Oswego and Fort William Henry.”
Honorable mentions were awarded to Natalie Claire Murray, a history major, for “Liberty in Theory, Dependence in Law: Women and the Limits of Revolutionary Freedom”; Ezra-Marie Paraison, a communication sciences and disorders major, for “The American Revolution and the French”; and Jordan J. Smith, a Cumberland School of Law student, for “Freedom Was Litigated Before It Was Legislated.”
A longstanding tradition since 1952, the Colonial Dames annually present a bound volume of winning student essays to Samford’s Special Collection and University Archives. This year’s essays will be compiled as Volume LXX, dedicated to Julia Rowe, outgoing Birmingham Center chair.
During the program, Volume LXIX, containing last year’s essays, was formally presented to Davis Library by Jennifer Taylor, chair of Samford’s Special Collection and University Archives.
The Birmingham Center of the National Society of Colonial Dames in the State of Alabama continues to support undergraduate historical research at Samford, promoting appreciation for the people, places and ideas that shaped the United States through historic preservation, scholarship and public engagement.
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