UROP Project

Florida, history, reenactment, Romeo & Juliet

Research Mentor: Dr. Benjamin Gunter, he, his, him
Department, College, Affiliation: Department of Dance, Fine Arts
Contact Email: bgunter@fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor): Ms. Idy Codington she, hers, her
Research Assistant Supervisor Email: idycodington@gmail.com
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:

Looking for Research Assistants: Yes
Number of Research Assistants: 6
Relevant Majors: Open to all majors
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required:
Remote or In-person: In-person
Approximate Weekly Hours: 7,
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Roundtable #1: Tuesday, September 3, 1-1:30 PM, https://fsu.zoom.us/j/93364681952
Roundtable #2: Wednesday, September 4, 4-4:30 PM, https://fsu.zoom.us/j/98876139380
Roundtable #3: Thursday, September 5, 3:30-4:00 PM, https://fsu.zoom.us/j/98417732230
Roundtable #4: Friday, September 6, 12 noon to 12:30 PM, https://fsu.zoom.us/j/92678298159

Zoom recording: https://fsu.zoom.us/rec/share/xCAl86lQtmKQBx2cn287RPlt0XxpVxQJZpfbYc6Y6_l0zvJYRk3Xlsy6CLRINTA-.t7Ku3t3vV_WdkAyO

Project Description

Revisit the American Revolution from a Loyalist perspective, just in time for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Collaborate with a cross-disciplinary research team to build a research basis for reenacting Florida’s pivotal but little-known role in the American Revolution, complete with authentic foods, games, animals, characters, and speeches.

Learn how to make history come to life, by digging into letters, diaries, pictures, play scripts, newspaper stories, recipes, fashion plates, architectural plats, archaeological finds, music, dances, toasts, government documents, speeches, and tall tales from 250 years ago.


Research Tasks: We’ll start with orientation. You’ll get a crash course in British Florida’s loyalist past through assigned readings – selected passages from “Florida in the American Revolution” and “Florida Historical Quarterly.” You’ll get to see what you’re reading about, first person, in targeted group excursions to historical sites (like Mission San Luis and the Museum of Florida History).

We’ll proceed to specialization. Each member of the team will select one aspect of St. Augustine in 1776 and become our resident expert on that particular side of “America’s Oldest City.” You’ll build an annotated bibliography of sources about that facet of the city where Loyalists took refuge and Patriots were imprisoned – sources that make the city’s personality come to life. With the help of two mentors and five fellow UROP members, you’ll dig up primary documents from Florida’s revolutionary history (letters, diary entries, speeches, newspaper stories) and produce research-based suggestions for how to put 1776 St. Augustine onstage.


Skills that research assistant(s) may need: You need 5 essential skills for succeeding in “Florida and the American Revolution”:

1) Curiosity, since the past does not reveal itself unless you look for it. (Required.)

2) Collaboration, since understanding context from many points of view makes history come to life, for you and for your teammates. (Required.)

3) Commitment to learning, since every research project demands diligence, hits snags, and profits by calling others in to help. (Required.)

4) Time management, since “Florida and the American Revolution” calls for averaging 7 hours of work per week over 2 semesters of research, and a project this large calls for breaking big goals into manageable bites. (Required.)

5) Technological know-how, since your research will involve strategic use of digital libraries, our team meetings may include Zoom, and your research progress will be posted on a Google Drive. (Required.)