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St. Olaf senior presents at history conference

By Peter Hill '08
May 9, 2008

Adam Lozeau '08 recently traveled to Florence, Ala., to present his original research on the Ku Klux Klan at the Alabama Historical Association's annual meeting. The project, titled "The Reconstruction Ku Klux Klan: A Social Profile," catalogued the wealth, age, and other social characteristics of Klan members in an attempt to develop demographic profiles.

Lozeau's work was part of a new research program in the history department called the Summer Independent Research Experience. Professor of History Michael Fitzgerald, who has authored three books on the Reconstruction, advised him on the project.

"Adam is the first undergraduate that I know of to present before the group," Fitzgerald says. "He did a great job, and his research was well received."

In conducting the research, Lozeau scoured the incoming correspondence of Reconstruction Governor William Hugh Smith from 1868-1870 for evidence of Klan violence. He then ran the perpetrators' names through online census databases to ascertain demographic and socioeconomic information. In all, Lozeau reviewed more than 7,000 pieces of mail and studied about 130 names.

"We discovered that economic and social situations during the Reconstruction helped create an atmosphere where violence could thrive," Lozeau explains.

Lozeau's research will fit in with Fitzgerald's upcoming book, which will consider in depth the emancipation and Reconstruction in Alabama following the Civil War.

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.