Aerial view of campus with Williamsport, the Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Mountain as a backdrop

Research by Lycoming College student and professor published in local historical journal

Research by Lycoming College student and professor published in local historical journal

Dr. Christopher Pearl and Maggie Slawson display the journal with their publication.

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Maggie Slawson, a senior history student from Armagh, Pa., and Christopher Pearl, Ph.D., assistant professor of history, published stories about the American Revolution that occurred on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.

Pearl and Slawson initially learned about the stories through research at the Taber Museum. They then studied family notes, census data and war documents to round out the stories of the three skirmishes and their influence on the war.

“Having the opportunity to research about Revolutionary times and share that with others who love history has been very rewarding,” said Slawson. “Dr. Pearl has mentored me through learning how to prioritize, do advanced research and write more clearly. I appreciate all of his help.

“This article set the ground work for many other projects I completed including papers for two conferences, my senior thesis and my honors thesis. My fascination with ordinary soldiers during the Revolutionary War continued to grow as I advanced as a student,” she said.

Their stories, titled “No Sunshine Patriots: Three Stories of Revolution on the West Branch,” was published in The Journal of the Lycoming County Historical Society Vol. LII (2016), 2-10. The Lycoming County Historical Society is a not-for-profit educational organization that discovers, collects, preserves and interprets the prehistorical, historical and cultural heritage of Northcentral Pennsylvania.

Slawson plans to pursue a master’s degree in library and information science at Clarion University.

The research was made possible by the Mellon Foundation as part of its commitment to liberal arts education, and is given to colleges that make substantial economic, cultural and intellectual contributions to their communities. The Mellon Grant to Lycoming College supports, among other initiatives, high-impact educational opportunities like faculty-student research projects within the arts, humanities and humanities-focused social sciences.

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