Publications by Robert Humphries
Ninnau, 2021
A brief overview of the life and works of Ellen D. Roberts (1837-1905), a native of Waukesha Coun... more A brief overview of the life and works of Ellen D. Roberts (1837-1905), a native of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, who contributed numerous articles and poems to Welsh-language publications under the pseudonym "Eos Columbia." Her writing ranged from abolitionist poetry and political commentary to essays on education and domestic subjects.
Kansas Kin, 2020
A history of the Welsh immigrant community of Bala, Kansas, founded in 1870 by the Welsh Land and... more A history of the Welsh immigrant community of Bala, Kansas, founded in 1870 by the Welsh Land and Emigration Society, which purchased land from the Kansas Pacific Railroad for the purpose of establishing a Welsh colony. While Bala was a thriving Welsh-American community in the late 19th century, it fell into decline in the 20th century. The article discusses some of the prominent members of the community and their migration trajectories from Wales to Kansas.
Ninnau, 2020
After the US Civil War, James D. Williams, a former slave, took refuge with the 11th Wisconsin In... more After the US Civil War, James D. Williams, a former slave, took refuge with the 11th Wisconsin Infantry and migrated north with a Welsh immigrant veteran, settling in the Welsh Settlement near Rewey, Wisconsin. This article discusses both how the antislavery cause made the Welsh receptive to Williams's presence, and also recognizes the racism he likely experienced. Also considered is Williams's place in the wider context of Black history in Southwestern Wisconsin and the relationship between Wales, Welsh Americans and the African diaspora.
Wisconsin Magazine of History, Winter 2016, Vol. 100 No. 2, 2016
From 1897 to 1903, the Lamp, a bilingual religious magazine for the Welsh “youth of America,” was... more From 1897 to 1903, the Lamp, a bilingual religious magazine for the Welsh “youth of America,” was published by the Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Church of Wisconsin. The magazine reflected the Americanization of the Welsh ethnic community, in particular during the Spanish American War and the beginning of American overseas expansion. The ideals reinforced in the pages of the Lamp indicate the extent to which many first- and second-generation Welsh immigrants in Wisconsin at the turn of the century found themselves embodying multiple identities: seeing themselves as enthusiastic American citizens, devout Christians, and proud Welsh speakers.
North American Journal of Welsh Studies, Vol. 8 (2013) 14-29, 2013
In the second half of the nineteenth century, Welsh immigrants comprised a small but significant ... more In the second half of the nineteenth century, Welsh immigrants comprised a small but significant ethnic minority in the Midwestern state of Wisconsin. Economically successful, the Wisconsin Welsh were active participants in the political life of their adopted country, and like their counterparts elsewhere in the United States, overwhelmingly supported the Republican Party. Their identification of the Republicans with the abolition of slavery and victory in the Civil War made the Welsh a loyal constituency, but also one with particular concerns that reflected Calvinistic conceptions of morality. Furthermore, having internalized the view that their native language was unsuitable for public life, the Welsh cultivated a public image of themselves as exceptionally patriotic and eager to assimilate, defining themselves negatively against other immigrant groups. Drawing from correspondence, public records and the local English-language press, as well as reports in Welsh-language publications such as Y Drych and Y Cenhadwr Americanaidd, this paper traces the development of political identity among Welsh immigrants in Wisconsin. It concludes that, as much as economic and demographic changes, Welsh-American political attitudes diminished the status and already-limited role of their native language in the ethnic community.
Conference Presentations by Robert Humphries
A Son of the Rhondda’s “Entrepreneurial Society” in the Deep South:
the life and career of Willi... more A Son of the Rhondda’s “Entrepreneurial Society” in the Deep South:
the life and career of William Herbert (1850-1933).
Presented at the NAASWCH International Conference on Welsh Studies
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 20-22 July 2016
At the turn of the 20th century, William Herbert was celebrated in Y Drych as “the most successful coal manager” in Alabama, and was considered one of the pillars of a small but influential group of Welsh-born industrial leaders in the American South. Beginning his career as a miner in the Rhondda Valley, Herbert worked in the Ohio coal country before taking advantage of new opportunities amid the South’s post-Reconstruction industrialization. Herbert settled near Birmingham, Alabama and spent the remainder of his life as a respected member of the managerial class. Although at first glance the life of William Herbert represents the archetypal immigrant success story of a self-made man achieving the American dream through hard work and initiative, this paper examines that proposition in greater detail and seeks to discern other factors that may have contributed to his success. Herbert’s diary from his 1886 return trip to Wales reveals he was acquainted with leaders of what Richard Griffiths has called the “entrepreneurial society” of the Rhondda Valleys, including Idris Williams “Bryn Glas” and William Abraham (Mabon). Even more compelling is his close friendship with Azariah Thomas, a relative by marriage and the nephew of James “Siamps” Thomas, Porth’s wealthy, “self-made” industrialist. In the United States, Herbert embraced both his native Welsh and adopted American identities with enthusiasm, and lauded as a Welshman “pure of heart and language,” helped organize an eisteddfod in Alabama. His pilgrimage to the site of Samuel Roberts’ homestead in Tennessee was reported in Y Drych. Ultimately, his decision to advance his career in the South indicates Herbert had achieved considerable prestige among Welsh Americans before his arrival in the Alabama coalfield; as Ronald Lewis has pointed out, the controversial use of convict labor and the region’s racial politics deterred Welsh industrial migrants from the South with the exception of managers and executives. This presentation summarizes William Herbert’s career and migration trajectories, and suggests he benefited from a transatlantic network of friends, relatives and influential figures rooted in the “entrepreneurial society” of South Wales.
Talks by Robert Humphries
Digital Projects by Robert Humphries
Translations by Robert Humphries
Papers by Robert Humphries
Attracted by opportunities in lead mining and agriculture, the Welsh established a small but infl... more Attracted by opportunities in lead mining and agriculture, the Welsh established a small but influential ethnic community in Iowa County, Wisconsin, in the mid-nineteenth century. However, it is a community that has so far escaped detailed historical study. This dissertation examines the settlement and assimilation of the Welsh between their arrival in the 1840s and the ethnic community’s effective dissipation in the early twentieth century. As Calvinistic Protestants from Britain, they were culturally similar to native-born Americans and other British immigrants. More than any other factor, it was the Welsh language that distinguished them from their neighbours and compelled them to settle close to each other and worship in their own congregations. Therefore this dissertation not only traces the development of the Welsh ethnic community, but also examines the role of language in shaping this process as well as how the immigrants’ perception of their native tongue changed. Although ...
the development of the Vortigern tradition in early medieval Wales.
Video by Robert Humphries
Pobl y Paith / People of the Prairie: The Welsh in Nebraska celebrates Nebraska’s 150 years by te... more Pobl y Paith / People of the Prairie: The Welsh in Nebraska celebrates Nebraska’s 150 years by telling the story of the state's Welsh immigrants.
Welsh immigrants arrived in Nebraska in the mid-nineteenth century, among the many settlers and homesteaders who sought a new life on the Great Plains. Like other immigrants, they brought their own, Celtic language, deeply rooted faith and cultural traditions. Our 20-minute mini documentary, Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie, tells the story of Nebraska’s Welsh settlers through historical photographs and interviews with their descendants who keep the memory of their ancestors, and America’s Welsh heritage, alive today.
Also available on DVD and Blu-Ray for museums, libraries and Welsh-American cultural events and societies.
Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie: The Welsh in Nebraska
Produced for the Great Plains Welsh Heritage Project by Martha Davies and Robert Humphries.
Writer and Narrator: Robert Humphries
Additional Voices: Bruce Bradley
Videographer/Editor: Grant Rogers
Funding provided by the Cooper Foundation, Lincoln, NE and Nebraska Humanities, as well as many other donors.
Teaching Documents by Robert Humphries
Slide show to accompany discussion of Welsh immigration and settlement in the American Midwest. T... more Slide show to accompany discussion of Welsh immigration and settlement in the American Midwest. Topics include: Overview of Welsh immigration to North America, 1600s-1900; reasons for emigration in the 19th century; agricultural and industrial immigrants; migration to the Midwest; Welsh churches and religious organizations; the Welsh language and eisteddfodau; prominent Welsh-Americans from the region.
Uploads
Publications by Robert Humphries
Conference Presentations by Robert Humphries
the life and career of William Herbert (1850-1933).
Presented at the NAASWCH International Conference on Welsh Studies
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 20-22 July 2016
At the turn of the 20th century, William Herbert was celebrated in Y Drych as “the most successful coal manager” in Alabama, and was considered one of the pillars of a small but influential group of Welsh-born industrial leaders in the American South. Beginning his career as a miner in the Rhondda Valley, Herbert worked in the Ohio coal country before taking advantage of new opportunities amid the South’s post-Reconstruction industrialization. Herbert settled near Birmingham, Alabama and spent the remainder of his life as a respected member of the managerial class. Although at first glance the life of William Herbert represents the archetypal immigrant success story of a self-made man achieving the American dream through hard work and initiative, this paper examines that proposition in greater detail and seeks to discern other factors that may have contributed to his success. Herbert’s diary from his 1886 return trip to Wales reveals he was acquainted with leaders of what Richard Griffiths has called the “entrepreneurial society” of the Rhondda Valleys, including Idris Williams “Bryn Glas” and William Abraham (Mabon). Even more compelling is his close friendship with Azariah Thomas, a relative by marriage and the nephew of James “Siamps” Thomas, Porth’s wealthy, “self-made” industrialist. In the United States, Herbert embraced both his native Welsh and adopted American identities with enthusiasm, and lauded as a Welshman “pure of heart and language,” helped organize an eisteddfod in Alabama. His pilgrimage to the site of Samuel Roberts’ homestead in Tennessee was reported in Y Drych. Ultimately, his decision to advance his career in the South indicates Herbert had achieved considerable prestige among Welsh Americans before his arrival in the Alabama coalfield; as Ronald Lewis has pointed out, the controversial use of convict labor and the region’s racial politics deterred Welsh industrial migrants from the South with the exception of managers and executives. This presentation summarizes William Herbert’s career and migration trajectories, and suggests he benefited from a transatlantic network of friends, relatives and influential figures rooted in the “entrepreneurial society” of South Wales.
Talks by Robert Humphries
Digital Projects by Robert Humphries
Translations by Robert Humphries
Papers by Robert Humphries
Video by Robert Humphries
Welsh immigrants arrived in Nebraska in the mid-nineteenth century, among the many settlers and homesteaders who sought a new life on the Great Plains. Like other immigrants, they brought their own, Celtic language, deeply rooted faith and cultural traditions. Our 20-minute mini documentary, Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie, tells the story of Nebraska’s Welsh settlers through historical photographs and interviews with their descendants who keep the memory of their ancestors, and America’s Welsh heritage, alive today.
Also available on DVD and Blu-Ray for museums, libraries and Welsh-American cultural events and societies.
Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie: The Welsh in Nebraska
Produced for the Great Plains Welsh Heritage Project by Martha Davies and Robert Humphries.
Writer and Narrator: Robert Humphries
Additional Voices: Bruce Bradley
Videographer/Editor: Grant Rogers
Funding provided by the Cooper Foundation, Lincoln, NE and Nebraska Humanities, as well as many other donors.
Teaching Documents by Robert Humphries
the life and career of William Herbert (1850-1933).
Presented at the NAASWCH International Conference on Welsh Studies
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 20-22 July 2016
At the turn of the 20th century, William Herbert was celebrated in Y Drych as “the most successful coal manager” in Alabama, and was considered one of the pillars of a small but influential group of Welsh-born industrial leaders in the American South. Beginning his career as a miner in the Rhondda Valley, Herbert worked in the Ohio coal country before taking advantage of new opportunities amid the South’s post-Reconstruction industrialization. Herbert settled near Birmingham, Alabama and spent the remainder of his life as a respected member of the managerial class. Although at first glance the life of William Herbert represents the archetypal immigrant success story of a self-made man achieving the American dream through hard work and initiative, this paper examines that proposition in greater detail and seeks to discern other factors that may have contributed to his success. Herbert’s diary from his 1886 return trip to Wales reveals he was acquainted with leaders of what Richard Griffiths has called the “entrepreneurial society” of the Rhondda Valleys, including Idris Williams “Bryn Glas” and William Abraham (Mabon). Even more compelling is his close friendship with Azariah Thomas, a relative by marriage and the nephew of James “Siamps” Thomas, Porth’s wealthy, “self-made” industrialist. In the United States, Herbert embraced both his native Welsh and adopted American identities with enthusiasm, and lauded as a Welshman “pure of heart and language,” helped organize an eisteddfod in Alabama. His pilgrimage to the site of Samuel Roberts’ homestead in Tennessee was reported in Y Drych. Ultimately, his decision to advance his career in the South indicates Herbert had achieved considerable prestige among Welsh Americans before his arrival in the Alabama coalfield; as Ronald Lewis has pointed out, the controversial use of convict labor and the region’s racial politics deterred Welsh industrial migrants from the South with the exception of managers and executives. This presentation summarizes William Herbert’s career and migration trajectories, and suggests he benefited from a transatlantic network of friends, relatives and influential figures rooted in the “entrepreneurial society” of South Wales.
Welsh immigrants arrived in Nebraska in the mid-nineteenth century, among the many settlers and homesteaders who sought a new life on the Great Plains. Like other immigrants, they brought their own, Celtic language, deeply rooted faith and cultural traditions. Our 20-minute mini documentary, Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie, tells the story of Nebraska’s Welsh settlers through historical photographs and interviews with their descendants who keep the memory of their ancestors, and America’s Welsh heritage, alive today.
Also available on DVD and Blu-Ray for museums, libraries and Welsh-American cultural events and societies.
Pobl y Paith/People of the Prairie: The Welsh in Nebraska
Produced for the Great Plains Welsh Heritage Project by Martha Davies and Robert Humphries.
Writer and Narrator: Robert Humphries
Additional Voices: Bruce Bradley
Videographer/Editor: Grant Rogers
Funding provided by the Cooper Foundation, Lincoln, NE and Nebraska Humanities, as well as many other donors.