jeatkinson – American Disasters

April 29, 2014December 16, 2020

Dust Bowl: Issues of the Gilded Age…Still Today?

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During the Great Depression, a devastating event occurred that included social, economic and natural forces to create a catastrophe known as the Dust Bowl. In Clayton Koppes’ evaluation of the two novels by Paul Bonnifield and Donald Worster and their discussion of the Dust Bowl during the 1930s, his bias is clear when he assesses the novels as a play on the trend of the Gilded Age’s capitalism.

Prices’ observation of Dusty Volumes review on the detailed books relating to the Dust Bowl is strong in evaluating how Koppes uses this review as a platform to voice his own argument. Worster described the Dust Bowl as “primarily the work of man, not nature” (536), and Koppes uses this as an underlying theme for his overall argument and to also defend Worster’s three beliefs of capitalist agriculture.

I found it interesting how Koppes includes the notion of the goal for the individual farmer to achieve profit maximization then, and even still today. The reliance on government cleanup has placed confidence in farmers that sustainability of the land will continue as long as technology proceeds to advance. Here is another parallel from the Gilded Age to today, the ongoing theme of trust in technology. In Paul Bonnifield’s argument (contrasting that of Worster) he claims, “He stresses that natural forces, not plowing, caused the Dust Bowl, although he concedes the farming practices made it worse. The problems could be solved, however, by technology technique, and (especially) larger farm size” (538). It is apparent here that Koppes’ displeased with Bonnifield’s book when he says that the book has a possibility of provoking debate with Worster’s argument, however fails under the pretense that the presentation is unsophisticated. Even in the video documentary, The Plow That Broke the Plains, proves the reliance on technology for economic benefits, and how that can ultimately lead to a disaster such as the Dust Bowl.

In the video and through photography, imagery played a large role into how historians were able to perceive the events of the Dust Bowl. With powerful images of farms, families and destruction people all around the nation reacted to the disaster and gave a plea for the government’s assistance. Relating to the plea of government intervention, Worster also brings up the distrust of the government and the policies within the New Deal and its theme of “normalcy”, however, Koppes finds that an expansion on reflected the needs of capitalism in crisis would make his argument even more effective.

Again, I concur with Price’s examination of Koppes’ argument on his views of Plains capitalism. The blunt nature by which Koppes presents his information, by blatantly disagreeing with Bonnifield’s views Koppes goes so far as to call it underdeveloped, even without rightfully proving support for his claim. As I have addressed quite a few topics including capitalism, technology and government intervention…the Dust Bowl is yet another example of the epitome of the Gilded Age disaster. Koppes’ infers in his support for Worster that these issues are apparent and dangerous still today, are there any examples or possible areas in the US today where this is evident?

April 16, 2014December 16, 2020

“She walked More Like a Man than a Woman”

“Is sickness or carrying disease one of the situations in which most Americans can accept depriving people of their liberty?” This question posed by Judith Walzer Leavitt in her introduction serves as a basis for her underlying argument throughout the book. For my chapter I’ve chosen to read, “She Walked More Like a Man than a Woman”, which reviews how Mary Mallon was categorized based on social stigmas. The prejudice of her race and the social expectations of a woman played a critical role in the ultimate decision of how to handle the case of Mary Mallon.

John Marsh brings up an interesting point when considering the isolation of Mary Mallon as a disaster and comparing that to the pitfalls of the Gilded Age. As John points to the infallibility of science, it can also be directed at the people who were involved in the Public Health Services, notably George Soper. As an upper level official he strongly believed in the dangers of carriers of typhoid (more specifically women) and was destine to search for the answer. His high status in society compared with Mary Mallon’s lower-class immigrant status provided a critical disconnect that made Soper unable to relate to Mary and vice versa. This disconnect served as a major contributor to the lack of sentiment Soper felt for Mary, and was a factor in her ultimate sentence.

It is true that women during the Gilded Age were stuck in a domestic role and their opportunities for jobs were limited. Mary Mallon epitomized this dilemma because she worked as a chef for higher class families. Soper targeted her as a carless woman and blamed working class women domestics for spreading the bacteria. The way that George Soper depicted Mary Mallon served as both an understanding as to why she was unjustly isolated in the first place in accordance with basic prejudices during this time.

As a single Irish female over the age of 40, these added up for the perfect combination to discard Mary Mallon from society. I want to briefly question the argument that Leavitt adds toward the end of this chapter. While Leavitt goes on to give more examples of Soper’s judgment of Mary, she concludes her argument by trying to compare German-born Frederick Moersch to Mary’s case. Leavitt loses some strength in her argument because she tries to overstretch a comparison that I feel is unnecessary to her initial arguments. Leavitt speculates many factors in the case of Moersch that she was unable to find factual backing for.

I look forward to discussing other thoughts on comparing Mary’s case to those of the opposite sex, and if others found her comparison helpful or hindrance on Leavitt’s objective to prove how gender, race and class lead to Mary’s ultimate isolation.

March 26, 2014December 16, 2020

Public Safety and Economic Success

The San Francisco earthquake and fire of 1906 erupted during a period of economic success for the West. As a hub of a new economy, after the earthquake struck, businessmen looked to suppress the damage as to not to dissuade investors in San Francisco’s economy. Ted Steinberg makes the argument that businessmen alike looked to pawn the disaster on the fire that followed the earthquake. If the earthquake was seen as the sole cause for the destruction, people would move out and stay out of the city. The battle over suppressing the event as Sherwood Callaway points out in his discussion of preserving San Francisco’s reputation as a center for economic activity. “And at nothing did they work harder than shaping the way the calamity would be understood” (105), the way disaster was interpreted was critical for big businessmen during the turn of the century.

However, in the discussion on economic growth in the wake of disaster, Steinberg claims that even though there was financial success and prosperity, because the disaster was interpreted as a cause of fire and not an earthquake the laws and regulations were unchanged which ultimately hurt the city of San Francisco. As seen in later earthquakes that hit the city, with the unregulated buildings that were constructed only created more devastation in isolated earthquakes. In the later part of his argument, Steinberg addresses an important issue that is essential to the discussion of relief/recovery efforts in the wake of earthquakes. The most recent idea of retrofitting San Francisco and how that effects the city. Within the retrofitting debate, Steinberg questions the role of class structure in society. He does so by addressing Kathleen Harrington (president of property-owners’ group) who argues balancing costs in lieu of safety measures. Steinberg openly disagrees with her statement and notices that the lives of those living in the areas of highest risk of destruction are those of the lower classes and of minority race. “…it seems almost certain that it will be the poor and people of color who will suffer the most in the coming earthquake” (121), these are the same people that were the most effected by the earthquake of 1906 and the ones who were not accounted for in the wake of the disaster. Steinberg brings up an interesting question and one that I too want to pose, has the legislation constructed in the wake of disaster been beneficial to all classes in society (outside of economic benefits )?

March 17, 2014December 16, 2020

Blame it on the Weatherman

At the turn of the century (1900), a detrimental hurricane hit Galveston, Texas. Galveston was experiencing a period of substantial growth and success, after hurricane hit, the city was devastated.

As we discussed in class last week about the effectiveness of a narrative history story, Isaac’s Storm can be categorized as such because the book its self is neither history or science but a combination of the two. Most of the book is an account given by Cline himself, as well as descriptions by survivors of the hurricane. The impact that not putting citations within in the text but at the end is effective because it keeps the flow of the novel. This novel allows the reader to envision what it would be like to live through a category 5 hurricane, Larson is able to show the reader the trust that the public placed in upper level officials, and weather technology and how we still do this today. After reading this novel it made me realize the truth how reliant I am on technology. At night I will check weather.com to see what the upcoming forecast looks like and plan accordingly. I know that I am one of millions who rely on today’s technology, be it on the phone or the computer. The irony of this, for example, in New York the amount of times the “weathermen” have predicted a snowstorm that will produce ten inches of snow, however, the next morning when you get up it has only snowed a few inches and the sun is shining (even though the night before people were in hysterics). But every time it seems to go the same. However, as my waryness of techonolgy holds the is the old saying, “better safe then sorry”.

This very idea goes along with what people could have been feeling in Gaveston, Texas. Peoples trust or distrust with the idea of a meteorologist has ultimately impacted their lives. Ignorance is something that caused hundreds and maybe even thousands their lives. The idea of religion and how it effected the preparedness and thoughts of people during this period. Similar to the mention in AJ’s post that meteorology as a science was still seen as controversial, most people still believed that the weather was God’s own will and therefore should not be forecasted. So how does one prepare for what they deem to be enviable?

Similar to the other posts and addressing the central question of how the Galveston hurricane shaped American ideas about disaster preparedness, I found that while reading this novel what came to mind was a quote originally said by John Wooden, “failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. This quote can be applied to most of the disasters we have studied thus far. It holds true in the essence that because of the lack of preparation whether in Galveston, Texas or Chicago, for a large scale natural disaster can cost the lives of many and the overall destruction of a city’s infrastructure.

February 26, 2014December 16, 2020

A Faulty Fire (1906 San Francisco Earthquake & Fire)

On April 18, 1906 around 5:15 am San Francisco was hit with a violent earthquake. Following the earthquake was a great fire, the fire continued to burn the city for four days. Hundreds of people trapped in buildings were unable to escape. The disaster was a rupture of the San Andreas Fault, which had an epicenter near San Francisco. The severity of the earthquake was measured as an 8.25 on the Richter scale. However, aside from the earthquake itself what added to the destruction of the city was the fire that the earthquake ignited. The destruction totaled over $350 million in damages, demolishing 25,000 buildings and killing hundreds and leaving 250,000 homeless. In the wake of this disaster much chaos ensued and crime became a large problem as a result. Crime and panic became such an issue that the Mayor gave a “Shoot-to-Kill” order for people who were found looting or involved in any unlawful acts.

When looking to analyze the San Francisco earthquake and fire, we must ask a few questions to gain a better understanding of the situation. Response and relief efforts are always an aspect of how we measure the destruction of the disaster, so how did people react to the effects of the earthquake end the fire? Upper level officials are looked upon as leaders in events such as this, how did these officials organize and lead the people after the earthquake and fire? Another important question that can be looked at when analyzing the disaster, is how often did earthquakes occur in this region prior to April of 1906? By understanding this we can see how engineering of the city was tailored to the threats of earthquakes and after the earthquake of 1906 we can then ask, what were the major faults of building planning that led to greater ruin? Finally, while both the earthquake and the fire were natural disasters, were there ways in which the effects of the disaster could have been prevented? If so can we place blame on any person or group?

The types of primary sources that would enable me to answer these questions include document statements released by political leaders such as the Mayor or Chief Police, as mentioned earlier I can further examine the Mayor’s “Shoot-to-Kill” order and what that meant to the city. Primary sources that can be looked at are any written personal eyewitness accounts of the event, a journal or a diary. Regarding the questions about crime, a primary source that could help to answer the questions would be any written police reports. On the Davidson College library account, there is a link that brings you to research guides and has access to newspapers of major cities dating back to the late 17^th century. These newspapers can provide information to the reactions of the people and response efforts.

February 19, 2014December 16, 2020

Clouding the Water

David McCullough sets the scene by introducing a range of characters from the wealthy to the middle class of Johnstown. Setting up the scene allows McCullough to give narratives that provide background information that sets up the reader for the disaster that is going to occur.

Location of Johnstown is important when understanding the flood and the severity of its impact on the town. As Sarah mentions in her post, Johnstown was an area that was exposed to and prone to unexpected rains and windstorms. The location in a valley makes Johnstown specifically susceptible to flooding. Comparing the Chicago Fire of 1871 and the Johnstown Flood of 1889 many similarities can be drawn. Both places had natural elements that made them vulnerable to hazardous elements whether it is fire or rain. Catherine points out that there are many parallels between the two disasters, in both the Fire and the Flood the often threats of damage, but no actual harm caused people to become immune to the actual threats of a serious fire or flooding. More specifically in Johnstown, there were many written accounts of the threats that were given to the South Fork dam. “In 1881, the dam threw a terrific scare into the people in the valley. On the morning of June 10, during a flash flood, a rumor spread through Johnstown that the damn was about to break.” (63) Throughout the years until 1889 there was not much cause for alarm because the threats of calamity only proved to be rumors. So, in the wake of a disaster people are disorganized and are not fully aware of the dangers.

Touching upon the aspect of blame, I disagree with Sarah post because in this instance there are people who can be held accountable. Ignorance and focus on capital, reputation and pride that a person holds often clouds the vision of doing what is right. There were many opportunities for the dam to be fixed, and as hindsight is always 20/20 there were telltale signs of a dam that needed amending. Thus far, McCullough has presented the information about Benjamin Ruff who was in charge of the restoration of the old dam. Ruff was put off by the findings of John Fulton, associate to Daniel Morrell (a man who held a high reputation), who sent Fulton to check the status of the South Fork dam. Fulton saw the faults of the dam, the erosion and lack of upkeep, gave great concerns to urgent correcting the issues. Ruff was put off by Fulton’s findings and disregarded his suggestions as he saw Fulton as less then competent. While the blame is not solely on Ruff, it was people with his attitude that accompanied to the devastation of the flood.

February 4, 2014December 16, 2020

Divisible Yet Indivisible

Coming from Long Island, New York I have been exposed to one of the largest and most prosperous cities in the world (unbiased of course). NYC shares many characteristics that Cronon describes Chicago to have that makes Chicago successful because both are located in central areas, surrounding bodies of water, and serve as central hubs that have easy access for transportation and natural resources. As many real estate moguls will tell you, location is key when choosing a place to live. The same goes for developing a successful city. Focusing on the history of Chicago and the arguments surrounding it, the city parallels with Turners understanding of the Western Frontier. By understanding the relationships of nature in Chicago, we can begin to understand the development of the west. In Eli’s post he accurately describes how Chicago served as a gateway to the west and through Cronon illustrates how Chicago came about as a result of the natural boundaries.

The most powerful part of the prologue of Cronon’s “Cloud over Chicago” was his focus both on the divisible and indivisible aspects of nature versus city. Beginning with a personal narrative of his first experiences of Chicago, he focuses on the grey smog, dense smell and awe that he felt as he passed through the city. Cronon emphasizes a lot on the descriptions of the city and he battles with the idea of natural versus unnatural. As an devoted environmentalist Cronon professes his initial dislike for the city of Chicago and how it was an unnatural place that clogged the rural west and deprived it of its natural beauty. However, Cronon comes to realize as he digs deeper into the history of Chicago and the surrounding area that his idea of natural farmlands and rural west had too been altered by the human hand. This brings me back to concentrating on Cronon’s dilemma with trying to separate farms and cities but realizing that there is greater interdependence then initially realized. A quote that portrayed Cronon’s struggle as an environmentalist and a realist is, “The boundary between natural and unnatural shades almost imperceptibly into the boundary between nonhuman and human, with wilderness and the city seeming to lie at opposite poles-the one pristine and unfilled, the other corrupt and unredeemed”(8). Many people and environmentalists believe this idea of the evils of the city in Cronon’s description, and analysis of Chicago he exposes an even greater relationship between humans and the world.

Closing the prologue Cronon faces the argument of city and nature. How we perceive Chicago in terms of nature is how we will be able to face the future of mankind, “whether we wish to ‘control’ nature or ‘preserve’ it- we unconsciously affirm our belief that we ourselves are unnatural. Nature is the place where we are not” (18). In saying this, It is undeniable that Chicago was able to succeed because of its natural elements that are particularly welcoming to the foundations of civilization. Chicago as a hub is important for the expansion of the west and our continuing development of understanding the Western Frontier.

January 24, 2014December 16, 2020

“Out of Sight Out of Mind”-The Power of Paper

After going to the State of Emergency exhibition I found myself entranced with the various works of art that were displayed. One in particular that struck me was the exhibit labeled Notepad. This piece created by Matt Kenyon was both eye opening and thought provoking. Initially when walking through the exhibition I glanced over this area thinking that it was mere station where you could jot down notes and receive information about the other pieces in the exhibition. After reproaching the table I began to read the information card that explained the piece and was immediately struck by the power behind the art. The table was filled with about 50 legal yellow notepads and a TV screen with a businessman at a table in a white background. The shocking part about this seemly plain exhibit was that the lines of each notepad were actually composed of the names, dates and locations of each Iraqi civilian who died (on record) between the first three years of the Iraq War (2003-2006).

The disaster that Matt Kenyon is reacting too is the tragedy of the deaths of innocent civilians as a result of the first years in the Iraq War. In March of 2003 under the Bush administration America invaded Iraq. Anticipating a quick execution both Bush and his administration underestimated the preparation of the Iraqi troops. General Tommy Franks was quoted laying the seven goals of the American invasion into Iraq,

“First, end the regime of Saddam Hussein. Second, to identify, isolate and eliminate Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction. Third, to search for, to capture and to drive out terrorists from that country. Fourth, to collect such intelligence as we can related to terrorist networks. Fifth, to collect such intelligence as we can related to the global network of illicit weapons of mass destruction. Sixth, to end sanctions and to immediately deliver humanitarian support to the displaced and to many needy Iraqi citizens. Seventh, to secure Iraq’s oil fields and resources, which belong to the Iraqi people. And last, to help the Iraqi people create conditions for a transition to a representative self-government.”

General Franks (lengthy) quote is a clear example of what the goals were in invading Iraq, while the result may have proven to be more detrimental. In a detailed account of deaths from 2003-2005 published by Iraq Body Count totaled 24,865. In Kenyon’s display he not only has the names but the location and date of where people were killed. This total number consisted of 20% women and children and almost half of the deaths were recorded to have been in Baghdad and occurred in the first two years of the initial invasion. The disaster (or tragedy) of this invasion was that 37% of civilian victims were a result of US forces. The other large percentage came about from post invasion criminal violence. (1)

This exhibit was very powerful and can be used to create a very convincing argument against the efforts of war. Not only were these notepads on display at Davidson College, but also were distributed at Capitol Hill. These legal pads were put within other supplies and given to those people who would impact the efforts of war. This piece reflected the tragedy of war and the innocent lives that were taken. War causalities can be hidden as something that is “out of sight out of mind”. The argument that Kenyon is making and can be applied to other similar arguments, that people in power must be careful of the choices that they make and question, do the benefits of going to war outweigh the costs of the thousands of lives lost as a result? The power of the notepad on Capitol Hill represents the jotting down of ideas and the plan and formulas created for events like invasions or bombings. While people at Capital Hill are writing down their agendas, they are also writing on the lines of the people that were affected by the decisions of some of their colleagues. Kenyon wants to create “Trojan horse” of thought in an attempt to save the disasters of war.

Any war can be considered a disaster, as there are the many tragedies of war that are involved. What made this particular piece of art thought provoking and an argument against modern warfare and the “accidental” deaths of innocent civilians as a result of war. Every life is holy and sacred; to take away a life is the largest form of a disaster. Disaster by war can be categorized as a manmade, one that is not natural and can be prevented. The purpose of Kenyon’s art is to put people in an uncomfortable position of realizing the magnitude of the civilian deaths in the Iraq war and to help prevent another war like this by alerting government officials who can make a difference.

(1). Sloboda, John. “A Dossier of Civilian Casualties in Iraq .” Iraq Body Count. IBC, 19 Jul 2005. Web. 24 Jan 2014. <http://www.iraqbodycount.org/analysis/reference/press-releases/12/>.

January 22, 2014December 16, 2020

“Melting Pot–Disintegration of Individualism”

The post Civil War period known of as the Gilded Age embodied many changes in the American society. In James Connolly’s article he looks at the notion of “new urban history”. This focuses on the broad social changes that occurred during the Gilded Age. As referenced in Catherine’s post, she address the advancement in technology and the growth of capital. These new advancements became important to society because they allowed for the expansion and growth of America (through rail roads), and increasing diversity (through steamboat technology) of the American population. A phrase used to describe the American population is as a “melting pot”, but this phrase can also be used to define the decreasing desire to identify with individual culture and the “melting” of all individuals into urban culture. In Richard Schneirov’s written work, he attempts to periodize the Gilded Age through looking at capital, society and politics. Focusing more specifically on the aspect of society Schneirov looks at urbanization and industrialization and the idea of individualism. Individualism is something that I find to be of high importance when discussing the Gilded Age. With the transition to increased industrialization augments can be made that show how in this upcoming capitalist society how people have become part of a system and lack the interdependence that is become less prominent. In a capitalist society people can become lost as a result of being tied to their commute or working schedule in citifies or suburbs. Or farmers, who rely on machines and mass scale production as opposed to being self sufficient and only providing for ones family. An argument can be made that capitalism drives peoples desires to make money and become wealthy.

Shcallaway’s post brings up an interesting point connecting the work of James Connolly and Charles Calhoun. Both authors look at defining the Gilded Age and the effectiveness of the terms industrialization and urbanization. Unplanned urban growth and increasing capital are aspects in proving how people became more focused on their social status then the importance of themselves (as individuals). The importance and meaning in individualism is imperative when looking back on cultural history and what drives society.