Goodbye Bench

Some times ago (idk a few weeks??? who cares) the bench the overlooks St. Mary's River, right next to St. Mary's Hall, was removed.

One of the best benches on campus. Gone.

I think we all have a memory of sitting here relaxing/making out/watching stars/watching sailors/high/drunk/mixed/depressed/incredibly happy/about to graduate/content.

Really sad to see it go, but according to Chip Jackson (congrats on the new job btw bb, always believed in u) the bench will be replaced, along with another bench next to it (why 2 benches? was this move inspired by 2 chainz???).  Interesting that he did not specify why it was removed...

SURPRISE TWIST!

According to some "student" on Facebook the bench was removed because someone proposed to his wife there, and wanted the bench.

IDK how i feel about this. On the one hand that is really cute, and he probably donated a fair amount of money to have that happen.

On the other hand, we all have some good memory of that bench, and shouldn't it be preserved for everyone to experience, and continue to experience? Granted it is just a goddam bench, but I know that I will miss it.

But hey, random alumni, I sincerely hope you enjoy your bench that I and probably others have had sex on.

Lecture: Imagining Slaves as Loyal Confederates

Myself and some history bros (Stephen and Sarah!) attended the lecture at St. Mary's Hall given by Dr. Peter Carmichael (dude is director of the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College, he is somewhat 'knowledgeable' about these things) titled Imagining Slaves as Loyal Confederates:  A Dangerous and Enduring Fantasy.  It was great!

Chuck Holden Introducing the speaker.  They were BFFs in grad school and spent spring break in the Duke archives

The lecture was about a persistent myth that exists in much of the South, and other areas, that there were a lot of slaves that were loyal to the Confederate cause, that these slaves supported the Confederacy even though it was working to keep them enslaved.

Dr. Carmichael argues that the slaves were doing whatever it took to survive, and any 'loyalty' was mostly an attempt to not get lynched.  Additionally, the myth is still perpetuated today because it helps to establish the notion that slaves wanted slavery, that they were better off being slaves, that they 'owe' something to the white slaveholders.  One interesting anecdote was a Confederate officer whose slave 'got lost' while in Maryland.  Obviously the slave ran away, but the officer was not able to really understand why a slave would want to run away and could only mentally justify it to himself that the slave merely got  lost.  It's a really interesting topic that I can't do justice to fully explain, but if you have any questions I can probably answer them.

Dr. Carmichael lecturing #swag

I think in a lot of ways it is just another example of why slavery in the United States is often referred to as a "The Peculiar Institution," because there are so many strange facets of the system of slavery that occurred here compared to slavery in most any other society (the primary difference being that slavery was associated with skin color, which has rarely been the case throughout history).

Anyways, be sure to check out lectures that interest you!  Years from now you probably won't have the opportunity to attend lectures like this, at least not as easily, so take advantage of that while you can.

Animal House

So I was looking over the agenda for the Buildings and Grounds Committee meeting and I noticed that one of the buildings was called 'Animal House'

It's the small bathroom behind St. Mary's Hall.  Who named this, ahahah, glorious.