Cross-border commemorations : celebrating Swedish settlement in America /

The histories of colonial settlement in America are generally presented as uniquely national stories. Yet because these histories involved settlers who crossed oceans, they are inherently transnational and have been important for different groups throughout the world. To understand how settlement hi...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Hjorthen, Adam, 1984- (Author)
Format: Book
Language:English
Published: Amherst : University of Massachusetts Press, [2018]
Series:Public history in historical perspective.
Subjects:
Description
Summary:The histories of colonial settlement in America are generally presented as uniquely national stories. Yet because these histories involved settlers who crossed oceans, they are inherently transnational and have been important for different groups throughout the world. To understand how settlement histories are used to promote social, political and commercial relations across national borders, Adam Hjorthén explores the little-known phenomenon of cross-border commemorations. Focusing on two celebrations of Swedish settlement in America, the 1938 New Sweden Tercentenary and the 1948 Swedish Pioneer Centennial, Hjorthén examines a wide variety of sources to demonstrate how cultural leaders, politicians and businessmen used these events to promote international relations between the United States and Sweden during times of great geopolitical transformation. Cross-Border Commemorations argues that scholarship on public commemoration should expand beyond national borders and engage the shared and contested meanings of history across local, national and transnational contexts.
Physical Description:xiv, 255 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:9781625343857
162534385X
9781625343840
1625343841