Today’s Document

Some of our documents capture landmark moments in U.S. history, such as this 1783 map showing the borders of the newly independent United States.

Map of the United States of America Laid Down from the Best Authorities Agreeable to the Peace of 1783, National Archives Identifier 31491106

Others show tantalizing glimpses of everyday life in a vanished world.  One series of photographs we find particularly interesting show the people displaced by the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1938.  Here is a family picture we recently shared, showing the Glandon family in their home:

“The Glandon family around the fireplace in their home at Bridges Chapel near Loydston[sic], Tennessee. Glandon’s wife plays both the guitar and the organ.” National Archives Identifier 532689

Recently, we shared this deposition of George Rheims, from an Admiralty case for limiting the liability of the White Star Line for the sinking of the Titanic.  Rheims describes seeing the iceberg through a window in the corridor and jumping off the ship before it went down.  You can read his whole account here.

Deposition of George Rheims, National Archives Identifier 6212861

Other records are a bit fun.  Here is the death certificate of Merian C. Cooper, a soldier in World War I.  He added a handwritten note informing the Army that he was not, in fact, dead.  Cooper went on to direct the movie King Kong about 15 years later.

Death Certificate for Merian C. Cooper, National Archives Identifier 7787194

We also shared this photograph of First Lady Nancy Reagan on the set of the 1980’s sitcom Diff’rent Strokes (called “Different Strokes” in the photo’s official title).

Nancy Reagan Holds a T-Shirt During Rehearsal and Taping of Television Show “Different Strokes” with Conrad Bain, Gary Coleman, Todd Bridges, Dana Plato, and Mary Jo Cattlett at Universal Studios in Los Angeles California, National Archives Identifier 75852697

Interested in seeing more?  You can follow the Today’s Document account on X (Twitter), Tumblr, and Facebook.

While the traditional role of so as a conjunction does not require using a comma after a sentence initial so, when so appears at the beginning of a sentence as an interjection or discourse marker in informal speech, it should be followed by a comma. 

If you struggle identifying whether a sentence-intial so should be followed by a comma, here is a simple explanation that might help you out!

Whenever you encounter a sentence-initial so, you have to ask yourself: 

a) Is so acting as a coordinating conjunction (see image below)?

In the example above, so HAS meaning. It establishes that “I had to eat Top Ramen for every meal” is the result of “I was broke all week”. If so has meaning and is acting as a coordinating conjunction that ties together one clause to the previous one, then you SHOULD NOT put a comma after it at the beginning of a sentence. Coordinating conjunctions DO NOT take a comma after them when they appear at the beginning of a sentence. Would you put a comma after but if the sentence begins with but? You wouldn’t! 

b) Or is it only an interjection without meaning? See this example:

Speaker 1:

Ah, I hated it. But yeah, you learn a lot. You don’t realize how much you’re learning as you—

Speaker 2:

That’s right, yeah.

Speaker 1:

So, you go overseas, and I know that when you were halfway through, Normandy was happening. 

Speaker 1 is changing the subject completely in this interview. There is no cause-result connection between a previous clause or sentence and what he says next! If that’s the case, you SHOULD put a comma after that sentence-initial so. 

In summary: 

CONJUNCTION –> ESTABLISHES CAUSE-RESULT RELATIONSHIP –> DOES NOT TAKE COMMA

INTERJECTION –> NO RELATIONSHIP –> TAKES COMMA

While the traditional role of so as a conjunction does not require using a comma after a sentence initial so, when so appears at the beginning of a sentence as an interjection or discourse marker in informal speech, it should be followed by a comma. 

If you struggle identifying whether a sentence-intial so should be followed by a comma, here is a simple explanation that might help you out!

Whenever you encounter a sentence-initial so, you have to ask yourself: 

a) Is so acting as a coordinating conjunction (see image below)?

In the example above, so HAS meaning. It establishes that “I had to eat Top Ramen for every meal” is the result of “I was broke all week”. If so has meaning and is acting as a coordinating conjunction that ties together one clause to the previous one, then you SHOULD NOT put a comma after it at the beginning of a sentence. Coordinating conjunctions DO NOT take a comma after them when they appear at the beginning of a sentence. Would you put a comma after but if the sentence begins with but? You wouldn’t! 

b) Or is it only an interjection without meaning? See this example:

Speaker 1:

Ah, I hated it. But yeah, you learn a lot. You don’t realize how much you’re learning as you—

Speaker 2:

That’s right, yeah.

Speaker 1:

So, you go overseas, and I know that when you were halfway through, Normandy was happening. 

Speaker 1 is changing the subject completely in this interview. There is no cause-result connection between a previous clause or sentence and what he says next! If that’s the case, you SHOULD put a comma after that sentence-initial so. 

In summary: 

CONJUNCTION –> ESTABLISHES CAUSE-RESULT RELATIONSHIP –> DOES NOT TAKE COMMA

INTERJECTION –> NO RELATIONSHIP –> TAKES COMMA

History is brought to life in oral history podcast

By Amy Wells

Oct 17, 2016

Tucked away on the third floor in the south side of the Pollak library are almost 6,000 oral histories waiting to be discovered.

The recordings reside in the Center for Oral and Public History (COPH). To highlight the center’s many collections, Benjamin Cawthra, Ph.D, associate director of the center, and Carie Rael, the office manager, put together a podcast that features new and ongoing projects and collections from students and faculty.

“We think of history as this sort of ‘long ago and far away’ type of thing, but I think oral history makes it very ‘here and now’ and very direct, and that’s what’s exciting about it,” Cawthra said.

“Outspoken: A COPH Podcast” began in May and has aired four episodes so far, which range in subject matter from covering an exhibit on Latino activism to a piece on women in politics.

“Hearing the words of some of these people is just so profound, and you don’t necessarily get that if you read the transcripts,” Rael said. “So it’s a way of getting their voices and stories out there.”

With the help of the COPH’s archivist, Natalie Navar, the team of three creates an hour long episode each month. Because so many of the oral histories in the archive are focused on the rich history of Southern California, much of the podcast is too. However, the podcast aims to highlight some of the pieces that are more related to current events or projects.

Cawthra, who is also an associate professor in the history department, hosts the podcast and co-writes with Rael, who also produces the show. At the start of the podcast, Rael was completely new to editing and has been teaching herself the necessary techniques along the way.

“I feel like I’m learning new skills and being a part of something that I think is really interesting and worth doing,” Rael said.

Rael fell in love with oral history after an emotional interview with Latinas in Orange County, who became activists against police brutality after losing their sons to police violence.

“Every person that I’ve interviewed, I feel a connection to after listening to them speak. The fact that someone felt comfortable enough to share their story makes me feel honored that I was able to share that experience with them,” Rael said.

Most of the center’s recordings were conducted by students for academic projects. The interviews provide an in-depth and personal look into the lives of people throughout some of history’s most memorable moments.

“It kind of brings that human element into it,” Rael said. “You get to just catch a glimpse of their experience by listening to them tell that story, and I don’t think anything really beats that,”

Oral histories bring attention to the voices of everyday people that are often overlooked or ignored.

“There’s no substitute for people telling their stories,” Cawthra said. “We can have a good conversation (on the podcast), but it’s really punctuated and brought to life by the voices of the people in the oral history.”

The archive segment put together by Navar brings each podcast to life. With 300 collections of oral histories, she finds recordings that directly relate to each story.

Navar, who has been at the center for three years, has noticed many students are unaware of the center and hopes the podcast brings attention to resources COPH has available for faculty and students.

“I hope it is going to reach out to more students and reach out to more faculty members who would want to use oral history,” Navar said. “Part of our mission is to collect these oral histories, but it’s also to get these public histories out to the public.”

To those who might not find reading history interesting, Navar thinks that oral histories make topics more fun to learn about because they can provide a different and more human perspective.

Navar works on several projects at a time to keep the center running and updated. With a team of student assistants and volunteers, Navar is currently working on digitizing the center’s oral histories, many of which are still in their original format on reel-to-reels and cassettes.

Cawthra, Rael and Navar would love to see a growth in the podcast’s audience and a growth of interest in the center.

“I think it’s maybe a growing trend in the oral history community, so I’m excited and looking forward to it hopefully getting bigger and catching on more,” Rael said.

The podcast is available on the COPH website, as well as on iTunes and SoundCloud.

“What we hope is that more and more people are able to click on us and listen and make it a part of their lives,” Cawthra said.

History is brought to life in oral history podcast

By Amy Wells

Oct 17, 2016

Tucked away on the third floor in the south side of the Pollak library are almost 6,000 oral histories waiting to be discovered.

The recordings reside in the Center for Oral and Public History (COPH). To highlight the center’s many collections, Benjamin Cawthra, Ph.D, associate director of the center, and Carie Rael, the office manager, put together a podcast that features new and ongoing projects and collections from students and faculty.

“We think of history as this sort of ‘long ago and far away’ type of thing, but I think oral history makes it very ‘here and now’ and very direct, and that’s what’s exciting about it,” Cawthra said.

“Outspoken: A COPH Podcast” began in May and has aired four episodes so far, which range in subject matter from covering an exhibit on Latino activism to a piece on women in politics.

“Hearing the words of some of these people is just so profound, and you don’t necessarily get that if you read the transcripts,” Rael said. “So it’s a way of getting their voices and stories out there.”

With the help of the COPH’s archivist, Natalie Navar, the team of three creates an hour long episode each month. Because so many of the oral histories in the archive are focused on the rich history of Southern California, much of the podcast is too. However, the podcast aims to highlight some of the pieces that are more related to current events or projects.

Cawthra, who is also an associate professor in the history department, hosts the podcast and co-writes with Rael, who also produces the show. At the start of the podcast, Rael was completely new to editing and has been teaching herself the necessary techniques along the way.

“I feel like I’m learning new skills and being a part of something that I think is really interesting and worth doing,” Rael said.

Rael fell in love with oral history after an emotional interview with Latinas in Orange County, who became activists against police brutality after losing their sons to police violence.

“Every person that I’ve interviewed, I feel a connection to after listening to them speak. The fact that someone felt comfortable enough to share their story makes me feel honored that I was able to share that experience with them,” Rael said.

Most of the center’s recordings were conducted by students for academic projects. The interviews provide an in-depth and personal look into the lives of people throughout some of history’s most memorable moments.

“It kind of brings that human element into it,” Rael said. “You get to just catch a glimpse of their experience by listening to them tell that story, and I don’t think anything really beats that,”

Oral histories bring attention to the voices of everyday people that are often overlooked or ignored.

“There’s no substitute for people telling their stories,” Cawthra said. “We can have a good conversation (on the podcast), but it’s really punctuated and brought to life by the voices of the people in the oral history.”

The archive segment put together by Navar brings each podcast to life. With 300 collections of oral histories, she finds recordings that directly relate to each story.

Navar, who has been at the center for three years, has noticed many students are unaware of the center and hopes the podcast brings attention to resources COPH has available for faculty and students.

“I hope it is going to reach out to more students and reach out to more faculty members who would want to use oral history,” Navar said. “Part of our mission is to collect these oral histories, but it’s also to get these public histories out to the public.”

To those who might not find reading history interesting, Navar thinks that oral histories make topics more fun to learn about because they can provide a different and more human perspective.

Navar works on several projects at a time to keep the center running and updated. With a team of student assistants and volunteers, Navar is currently working on digitizing the center’s oral histories, many of which are still in their original format on reel-to-reels and cassettes.

Cawthra, Rael and Navar would love to see a growth in the podcast’s audience and a growth of interest in the center.

“I think it’s maybe a growing trend in the oral history community, so I’m excited and looking forward to it hopefully getting bigger and catching on more,” Rael said.

The podcast is available on the COPH website, as well as on iTunes and SoundCloud.

“What we hope is that more and more people are able to click on us and listen and make it a part of their lives,” Cawthra said.

A veteran was talking about how his military training had helped him after the war. He belonged to a church and they needed to raise some money. So he called the congregation together and said If you had a hard job to give somebody, who would you give it to? The congregation was pretty unanimous about who they’d choose.

But in telling the story, the gentleman said

“And I did it by having all the people come in and the congregation. And I said, Who is the man he—if you looked for someone to give a hard job. Oh, that’s Joe Blow. Hey, Joe Blow, stand up. You’re now the head of our campaign. Oh, no, not me. Yeah, it’s gonna be two weeks, that’s all. And we did that all down—the captains, the majors, and all the way through till we organized our whole campaign in an hour’s half time.”

But Joe Blow is strictly an American-ism! It doesn’t even make sense to people who aren’t steeped in American culture.

Merriam Webster cites an example of its use from 2020, but I really don’t hear it much any more.

Recent Examples on the Web

Under secret balloting, someone might say, hey, here is $5 to vote for Joe Blow, but the voter could take the money and go into the curtained voting booth and vote for Bill Smith.—Jay Ambrose, Star Tribune, 10 Aug. 2020