by Becca Risley | Sep 5, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Set during the Civil War, the Nashville Shakespeare Festival’s production of “Henry V” spins the classic historical drama in a new way. At the top of the show, the stage is set with a burned down farmhouse occupied by soldiers, nurses and owners of the farm. One returning Union soldier joins his Confederate brother on stage while the owner of the house and a slave woman sit to the side with a copy of “Henry V.” “The owner of the house and the slave begin to read from the book and those of us in the camp have to decide when we play along and why,” senior acting major Brooke Ferguson said. “It’s such a cool idea.” The director of the show, Nat McIntyre, felt that the state of Tennessee during the Civil War was split down the middle between the Confederate soldiers and the Union. His artistic decision to tell this story as part of the Civil War era was his way of bringing a divided family, and thus a divided state, together. “I love the direction that Nat took the play by setting it in the Civil War, while not having the actual events of the play happen during the War,” senior acting/directing major Jonah Jackson said. “I think it is a great way to frame this story that is ultimately about the hope for peace and reconciliation.” Lipscomb students involved with the show include Ferguson, Jackson and senior acting major Scout Pittman. Jackson plays John Bates, an English soldier and The French Duke of Bourbon. Pittman portrays Katherine, the French princess and Ferguson plays Bishop No....
by Cory Woodroof | Nov 17, 2014 | News Slider
The struggles, sacrifices and successes of African Americans during one of the nation’s most turbulent times were at the forefront of conversation in Shamblin Theatre Saturday morning. In conjunction with Lipscomb’s remembrance of the Battle of Nashville’s 150th anniversary, the Department of History, Politics & Philosophy hosted a Civil War symposium that detailed various aspects of African-American life during the war. “The African-American Experience in the Civil War Era” brought three noted historians to share their takes on three different-yet-synergetic topics. James M. McPherson, a Pulitzer-winning author and historian, John F. Baker, a genealogy expert and Joseph Glatthaar, an author and historian, all spoke about different sections of what African Americans endured during that time. Tim Johnson, a professor in the department and the driving force in Lipscomb’s reflection of the battle’s sesquicentennial, said when planning the event, this particular topic came to mind. “We wanted to focus on the African-American experience,” Johnson said. “We wanted to help tell the Nashville community about a story that is often overlooked. That seemed an appropriate theme, given the number of African-American Union soldiers who fought in Nashville in December 1864.” In his talk titled “The Washingtons of Wessyngton Plantation: Stories of My Family’s Journey to Freedom,” Baker shed light on the story behind the plantation where his ancestors worked. Baker said he conducted genealogical and historical research on the local plantation called Wessyngton, located in Robertson County. “My research at Wessyngton started sort of accidentally,” Baker said. “When I was in the seventh grade, we used a social studies textbook called ‘Your Tennessee,’ and I came across this photograph entitled ‘Black...
by Brianne Welch | Sep 29, 2014 | News Slider
This December marks the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Nashville, and to commemorate the battle, Lipscomb is hosting a variety of events. Much of the battle took place around Lipscomb, and the school sits on a large portion of the battlefield. Tim Johnson, professor of history at Lipscomb and a nationally recognized expert in the Civil and Mexican Wars, has organized different events to mark the occasion, and the events take a look at one of the more unique aspects of the battle. “Something else that most people don’t know about, that is really important, is that more African American Union soldiers fought in the Battle of Nashville than any other Civil War battle,” Johnson said. The battle took place Dec. 15-16, so there will be events through the middle of November. The first event was a kickoff symposium at Historic Travellers Rest on Sept. 18. The next event will be Tuesday Sept. 30 at 7 p.m. in Ward Lecture Hall where a showing of the movie “Glory” will take place followed by a post-movie discussion on heroes. “We have three movies,” Johnson said. “We’re calling it the Civil War on the Silver Screen.” The other two movie dates are Oct. 14 that will show “Lincoln”, and Oct. 28 featuring “Copperhead”. The final day of events is Nov. 15. Professor Johnson said it will be the “really big culminating symposium” that will involve several guest speakers including Pulitzer Prize winning Civil War historian James McPherson from Princeton, Joesph Glatthaar of the University of North Carolina and John Baker, a local historian and genealogist. That event will take place in...
by Stewart Williams | Dec 15, 2011 | News Slider, Opinion
Students looking for something different to do can find tangible connections to history within a short drive of the Lipscomb campus. One such opportunity for hands-on learning is just 30 minutes away in Franklin, Tenn. Many of the historical sites in and around Franklin are related to the Battle of Franklin, which occurred within the present-day city limits on Nov. 30, 1864. This was one of the American Civil War’s most bloody conflicts, costing the lives of more than 9,500 men. The Carter House, where some of the most heated fighting took place, is a must for any history-seeker. Walking around the grounds of the brick house, you can touch Civil War cannons and see bullet holes from the battle in the sides of outbuildings. There also is a museum on site which brings the story of the battle home. Just outside the city is the Carnton Plantation. This family home served as a field hospital for Confederate wounded during and after the battle. The floors of the home are still heavily stained with blood from these soldiers. This is history on a very personal level. “What we specialize in here at the Franklin battlefield are tangible hands-on experiences,” said Rob Cross, associate historian for both the Carter House and the Carnton Plantation. These sites make history more than a list of facts to memorize. You can really get a sense of what the people involved in this story were going through. Not only are the sites themselves engaging, but the people involved in the preservation process are passionate about the project. Many of the people involved in the preservation effort, like Cross, have ancestors who fought...
by Emily Snell | Sep 20, 2011 | News Slider
The latest episode of Tokens, a theological variety show created by Lipscomb’s Dr. Lee Camp, is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22 at the Downtown Presbyterian Church. Lipscomb SGA announced Monday that it would sell tickets for a discounted price of $5. The show, “Singing Down the Pain: The Civil War,” includes special guests Odessa Settles, The Whites, Buddy Greene, a combined male chorus from The Nashville Choir and The Greater Nashville Community Gospel Choir, along with the Most Outstanding Horeb Mountain Boys comprising celebrated Nashville musicians Jeff Taylor, Aubrey Haynie, Pete Huttlinger, Byron House and Chris Brown. Kenneth Coca, a senior biochemistry major and cello performance minor, performed in last year’s show and is a musician again this year. “I’m not one of the big wigs,” Coca said. “I’m just doing this for my own fun and to help out a good cause.” Coca is playing cello in a quartet Thursday night with Joel Campbell, a junior music major, and two students from Belmont. He said he thinks Tokens is a good way to share the gospel message in a non-church setting. “I really believe in the message,” he said. “They’re spreading the gospel of Christ through music. I think that’s something that a community needs.” Thursday’s production serves as a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Civil War and will feature themes from that era including “the longing for justice and peace, the slaves’ longing for freedom and the triumph over the auction block and the parents’ grief that their sons will no longer return from war.” The show will take place at Downtown Presbyterian...
