Research Guides: National History Day 2018-2019: Triumph and Tragedy: Home

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Start your archival research for National History Day 2018-2019: Triumph and Tragedy with this guide.

History is full of triumphs and tragedies, be they political, military, social, or personal. In some cases, a triumph for one person or group has been a tragedy for another, meaning that these terms are often subjective. The collections listed in this guide in some cases provide windows into both sides of a conflict, and in other cases tell the stories of the tragedies and the eventual triumphs of a particular movement.

Use the menu on the left to discover the Schlesinger Library's archival collections related to this topic. This guide is organized by social and political movements within the United States that are relevant to the 2018-2019 National History Day theme.

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Many of our collections are stored offsite and/or have access restrictions. Be sure to contact us in advance of your visit.

Personal Stories

While most of the other collections in this guide deal with larger social and political events, the collections on this page tell of more personal triumphs and tragedies.

Phebe Beach (b. 1837)
Beach was adopted by her aunt and uncle and lived with them in Bridgton, Maine. In 1858 she taught school in New Gloucester, Maine. In August 1860 she married a man named Arthur [Jordan?]; a child was born in January 1862 and died two months later. Her husband enlisted in April and was killed at Cedar Mountain, Virginia, in August 1862. This collection consists of a diary concerning Beach's social life, teaching, and her relationships with her aunt and uncle. She writes about her 20th birthday (July 31, 1857), the prospect of marriage, the death of her uncle, her depression following the birth of her child, and the early days of her marriage.
Amelia Earhart (1897-1937)
Amelia Mary Earhart, who disappeared during a flight around the world, was the first woman to fly, and to fly solo, across the Atlantic Ocean, in 1928 and 1932 respectively. This collection includes extensive correspondence of Earhart's sister, Muriel (Earhart) Morrissey, concerning investigations of Earhart's disappearance; numerous photos of Earhart, her family, and her husband George Palmer Putnam; and genealogies of the families of her parents Edwin S. and Amy (Otis) Earhart. See also the Papers of Amy Otis Earhart. Both of these collections are digitized and available through the finding aids.
John L. Hannon
John L. Hannon was a member of an Irish-American family who lived in the Seattle, Washington, area. This collection includes family correspondence describing sickness and deaths (especially of children), service during both world wars, work and joblessness during the Great Depression, religious practices, and news from relatives in Ireland and England.
Helen Keller
Helen Keller was a writer and advocate for people with disabilities. At the age of nineteen months, due to an attack of scarlet fever, Helen Keller lost her senses of sight and hearing. She entered Radcliffe in 1900; with the aid of Anne Sullivan and other tutors, she took a full program and graduated cum laude in 1904. After college she worked extensively on behalf of the blind, and for refugees and the disabled after World War II. Keller was a prolific writer and among her works were two autobiographies: The Story of My Life (1902) and Midstream--My Later Life (1929). See the Helen Keller subject guide for more information on her collections.
Mitchell family
Nathaniel and Elizabeth Tabb Mitchell were married in 1823. They lived in Springfield, Ohio, and had nine children: John (b. 1823), Charles (b. 1827), Edward (b. 1829), Virginia (b. 1831), Elizabeth (b. 1834), William (b. 1836), Ellen (b. 1839), Anna (b. 1841), and James (b. 1845). Shortly after their move to Dubuque, Iowa, in 1863, Elizabeth died. This collection consists of sixteen manuscript letters, mostly to "Jennie" (Virginia) from her mother and father. They detail births (including the use of chloroform for pain management) and deaths (of a grandchild from scarlet fever and of Elizabeth Mitchell).