*** Diversifying Tallahassee’s Bicentennial

theater, reenactment, Florida history, Tallahassee

Research Mentor: Dr. Benjamin Gunter, he, his, him
Department, College, Affiliation: Theater with a Mission, 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: 7.5, Flexible schedule (Combination of business and outside of business. TBD between student and research mentor.)
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link: Tuesday, September 5, 1-1:30 p.m. https://fsu.zoom.us/j/95487611987
Wednesday, September 6, 12 noon till 12:30 p.m. https://fsu.zoom.us/j/97416456369
Thursday, September 7, 4-4:30 p.m. https://fsu.zoom.us/j/96513843468

You can view a recording of our Zoom presentation here:
https://fsu.zoom.us/rec/share/8obk8wRAMkMEirmzDCPdnct0aJdyXYgByf3uiad-MP8LjengYY8FX_8v-N-oo3Rv.ajDqEZCv0qpM0NVo

Project Description

Step inside Tallahassee’s Bicentennial and discover Florida’s multicultural roots. Join a diverse investigative team with two mentors to research what happened when Florida Territory decided it needed a new capital. Investigate the backstory of the two commissioners who were appointed to select the new capital city’s site in 1823. Explore the culture of Natives who had already homesteaded New Tallahassee, the Blacks who had already established villages in Apalachee country, and the crackers who were already farming Florida between the Apalachicola and the Suwannee. Document the proclamation that made Tallahassee into Florida’s lawmaking center in 1824. Examine the laws that early Territorial Councils passed and connect them to culture wars today. See your research turn into theatrical time-travel and hands-on activities at public events that explore Tallahassee’s Bicentennial in 2024.

Research Tasks: We’ll start with orientation. You’ll get a crash course in how Tallahassee became Florida Territory’s capital through assigned readings – selected passages from histories like "Red, White and Bluebloods in Frontier Florida" and "Antebellum Tallahassee," plus deep dives into primary documents like the journals of Williams and Simmons (the two commissioners appointed to select the new capital’s site). You’ll get to see what you’re reading about, first person, in targeted group excursions to authentic Territorial sites (e.g., Lake Jackson Mounds, Mission San Luis, Goodwood Museum & Gardens, and the Tallahassee Museum).

We’ll proceed to specialization. You’ll select one facet of Tallahassee’s origin story that speaks to you, and become our resident expert on that particular aspect of the Bicentennial. You’ll build an annotated bibliography of sources about that person/place/cultural activity – sources that flesh out how Floridians can connect with that character/law/duel/structure/recipe/portrait/food today. With the help of two mentors and five fellow UROP members, you’ll dig up primary sources that document your chosen family/focus/financial shenanigan and produce research-based suggestions for how to reenact a high point from your point of view during Tallahassee’s Two Hundredth.


Skills that research assistant(s) may need: Five essential skills are required for succeeding in “Diversifying Tallahassee’s Bicentennial”:
1. Curiosity, since the past does not reveal itself unless you look for it.
2. Collaboration, since reconstructing context makes history come to life, for you, your teammates, and your audiences.
3. Commitment to learning, since every research project demands diligence, hits snags, and profits by calling others in to help.
4. Time management, since UROP calls for averaging 7.5 hours of work per week over 2 semesters of research, and a project this large calls for breaking big goals into manageable bites.
5. Technological know-how, since your research will involve strategic use of digital libraries, our team meetings will include Zoom, and your research progress will be posted on a Google Drive.