Richland students present programs to Stoddard County Historical Society

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Richland freshman Riley Thorton gives her dramatization of the life of Anna Mae Hayes, the first Brigidier General in the U.S. Army. Thorton was one of 11 Richland high school students to go to the state history competition.

Members of the Stoddard County Historical Society received a rare treat at their Monday, April 27, 2015 meeting, when three Richland students presented their prize-winning history projects.

Emily Blunt, an eighth student at Richland, showed her video about the share-croppers' strike of 1939, entitled "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize," which won first place in the documentary division in the state competition. Emily will go to Washington, D.C. in June for the national competition.

Blunt was inspired by her great-grandfather and great-grandmother, Clifton and Ruth Jordan, who were share-croppers.

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Emily Blunt, an eighth grader at Richland, won first place at the state competition with her video presentation about the sharecroppers' Strike of 1939. She will compete at Nationals in June.

Blunt's video followed the efforts of Owen Whitfield, a black share-cropper who organized the first inter-racial demonstration in the U.S., years before Dr. Martin Luther King's achievement.

Blunt interviewed Whitfield's daughter Shirley Farmer and Dr. Joel Rhodes, as well as including clips from the documentaries of the time.

The presentation showed the hard times faced by share-croppers like the Rev. Whitfield, who received a moth-eaten coat as payment for his first crop, while the landlords pocketed the profits from the crops. Like many other farm workers at the time, Whitfield received no money to buy food for his starving family.

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Mike Williams, Richland eighth grader, presents his website creation at the Stoddard County Historical Society meeting Monday, April 27, 2015. His topic was on William Clark.

As a result of Whitfield's efforts, 2,000 protesters camped alongside highway 60 and 61 in 1939, following Whitfield's call: "If we're going to starve, let's starve together. If we're going to starve, let's starve where everyone can see us!"

Photographer Arthur Rothstein documented the event in pictures, and Whitfield finally gained the attention of Eleanor Roosevelt and President Roosevelt, who helped established housing projects in six counties for the farm workers.

Blunt's teacher was Stephanie DePew.

Riley Thorton, a Richland freshman, reinacted the role of Anna Mae Hays, the first woman to become a brigadier general in the U.S. Army. Thorton dressed for the presentation in a uniform from the Stars and Stripes Museum.

Thorton's dramatization showed the conditions under which nurses had to work, during the 2 ½ years Hayes was stationed in India. In Korea, Hayes had access to the use of antibiotics and whole blood, a great improvement in her previous assignment.

Hayes worked her way up to a full colonel in 1967, going to Vietnam three times. She became a brigadier general on June 11, 1970. Her contribution caused a change in the laws governing women in the armed services.

William Smith, another Richland eighth grade student, created a website that outlined the historical legacy of explorer William Clark, of Lewis and Clark fame. His website can be accessed at 55828343.nhd.weebly.com.

Also on hand for the program was teacher Kayleen Vance, a Bloomfield resident who teaches at Richland. Vance helped the students with the bibliography information for their projects.

Richland students, grades 7-10 are required to enter the history fair every year. This year, Richland took 17 students to the district competition and 11 to state.