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Allison Herrmann '07 Heads South to Study Civil War Herrmann, a History major and Political Science minor, will complete a non-credit internship over the summer through the National Park Service and the Student Conservation Association at Petersburg National Battlefield in Virginia before participating in the Gettysburg Semester at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania during the fall of 2006. From June through August, Herrmann will provide historical interpretation and lead tours at Petersburg National Battlefield, located just south of Richmond, VA. This battlefield is the famous location of the ten-month siege that transpired in the final year of the Civil War. The site includes an antebellum plantation used by the Union, the siege lines known as the Eastern Front where the Battle of the Crater took place, the Poplar Grove National Cemetery, the Five Forks Battlefield, and the Union siege lines where the Confederate defense of the southern capital ultimately fell apart. Herrmann will continue her immersion in the Civil War era when she takes part in the prestigious Gettysburg Semester during the fall. The Gettysburg Semester is a program at Gettysburg College that gives students an opportunity to study the Civil War in-depth. The academic program is structured around two core courses that are complemented by other Civil War classes offered within the Gettysburg College Civil War Studies minor. At the center of the program is the Field Experiences class, an in-depth military history of the American Civil War. In this course, the Gettysburg Battlefield and the Gettysburg National Military Park become the classrooms. In addition to Field Experiences, students are required to take a core seminar that provides a detailed examination of the Civil War from the antebellum period through the end of the war. Herrmann will also complete an internship for credit at the National Military Park where through the National Park Service she will be involved with historical interpretation, historic preservation, archival research and cataloging, and public history. Eight students including Herrmann will participate in the Gettysburg Semester during the fall of 2006. Students come to the program from all over the United States and are housed in the Appleford, a ninteenth-century Victorian mansion. The Appleford is also the College’s Civil War Theme House, and Gettysburg Semester students are with members of the Civil War Club and the Gettysburg Re-enactor club. Alumni of the Gettysburg Semester include students from Bowdoin College, Hartwick College, Siena College, Notre Dame, Penn State, University of Chicago, University of Virginia, Hamilton College, University of Wisconsin, State University of New York, and Furman. “I was quite excited to learn I had been accepted,” said Herrmann. “It’s the only program of its kind.” Herrmann, a native of Vernon, CT, first became interested in history due to her love of horses. As an avid rider since age seven, she was exposed to different parts of the country while traveling for various shows with her horse Springlette. She recalls one certain trip to Pennsylvania where her father “dragged” her to see Gettysburg for its “educational value.” Her family took a tour of the battlefields and she was instantly hooked on history. She started reading everything she could about U.S. history, which eventually led her to volunteer at Minuteman National Historic Park in Concord, MA last year. At Assumption, Herrmann started an equestrian club along with Britny Norbutus ’08 this past fall. The club, composed of 17 Assumption student riders, takes lessons once a week at East Hill Farm Riding Academy in Holden. Through various fundraising efforts the group hopes to compete against other teams in the future. |
April, 2006 -Internships for college students often involve getting an opportunity to travel to another city or even a foreign country. Allison Herrmann ’07 will also get to travel for two upcoming internships but not in the conventional manner. Herrmann’s journey will take her to a very unique place—back in time to another historical era.