Date of Award
5-2011
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
History
Department
History
Major Professor
Mizell-Nelson, Michael
Second Advisor
Mitchell, Mary N.
Third Advisor
Powers, Madelon
Abstract
This thesis examines the diary of Ellen Wallace, a woman who lived in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, during the American Civil War. A diligent diarist, Ellen recorded not only the workings of her farm and household, but also her interactions with slaves, her worries about secession, and her shifting views on President Lincoln, emancipation and the war itself. At the start of the war, Ellen was a staunch Unionist. By war's end, she was a Confederate. This thesis will examine the factors that contributed to Ellen's changing political ideals and how she sought to reconcile her opposing beliefs. Ellen occupied a role rarely discussed in Civil War scholarship: not a member of the southern paternalist society, or a northern abolitionist. Ellen was a slaveâ€owning woman who supported the Union cause.
Recommended Citation
Nicholson, Amber C., "Border State, Divided Loyalties: The Politics of Ellen Wallace, Kentucky Slave owner, During the Civil War" (2011). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 1335.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1335
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.