5c: Rewriting Search Strings

Search Engine Math:
1. Ku Klux Klan + colorado + "political power"

2. Ku Klux Klan + politics + denver -Canyon City -Grand Junction + authority

3. Invisible Empire + influence + business + economic -religion + Denver

4. Hooded Empire + tactics + intimidation + coercion + violence + Denver - "Colorado Springs"


Boolean:
1. Ku Klux Klan AND (power OR influence OR sway OR authority OR clout) NEAR (Colorado OR Denver)

2. John Galen Locke AND Ku Klux Klan NEAR ("Colorado politics" OR "Denver politics")

3. Ku Klux Klan AND (assume OR gain OR acquire) AND (power OR supremacy OR authority) NEAR (Colorado OR Denver)

5b: Finding More Reference Articles and Books

More books obtained from a reference (bibliography of Hooded Empire: The Ku Klux Klan in Colorado):

Chalmers, David M.
Hooded Americanism: the First Century of the Ku Klux Klan, 1865-1965
Garden City, N.Y.
DoubleDay
1965

Hafen, LeRoy R.
Colorado: The Story of a Western Commonwealth
New York
The Peerless Pub. Co
1970

Rice, Arnold S.
The Ku Klux Klan in American Politics
Washington, D.C.
Haskell House Pub Ltd
1962

5a: Finding Periodical Articles

Author:Lynn Bartels
Title: Era of Klan-destine bigotry
Periodical: Rocky Mountain News
Volume/issue: N/A
Date: January 3, 2009
Pages: N/A (digital)
Web address: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2009/jan/03/era-klan-destine-bigotry/
Resource searched: Google
Keywords used: Colorado, Ku Klux Klan
Search strategies: search math (colorado + ku klux klan)
Date of search: 2-3-09
Number of hits: Unkown
Relevance: 5

Author: Manny Gonzales
Title: Racist group dominated politics in early 1920s
Periodical: Rocky Mountain News
Volume: N/A
Date: November 23, 1999
Pages: N/A (digital)
Web address: http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/millennium/1123mile.shtml
Resource searched: Google
Keywords used: Colorado, Ku Klux Klan
Search strategies: search math (colorado + ku klux klan)
Date of search: 2-3-09
Number of hits: Unknown
Relevance: 5

Author: Cara Degette
Title: When Colorado was Klan country
Periodical: The Colorado Independent
Volume: N/A
Date: January 9, 2009
Pages: N/A
Web address: http://coloradoindependent.com/19045/when-colorado-was-klan- country
Resource searched: Google
Keywords used: Ku Klux Klan
Search strategies: search math (colorado + ku klux klan)
Date of search: 1-29-09
Number of hits: Unknown
Relevance: 4

Author: Ed Quillen
Title: Welcome to Kolorado, Klan Kountry
Periodical: Colorado Springs Independent
Volume: N/A
Date: May 22, 2003
Pages: N/A
Web address: http://www.csindy.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A8563
Resource searched: Google
Keywords used: Ku Klux Klan
Search strategies: search math (colorado + ku klux klan)
Date of search: 9-29-09
Number of hits: Unkown
Relevance: 4


*****My searches may seem very simple, but all I had to do was type in 'Colorado + Ku Klux Klan' and I was directed to many great resources.

4c: Checking Search Strings

I posted on:

http://thisblogs83.blogspot.com/

and

http://creeder87.blogspot.com/

4b: Finding Books

Hooded Empire: The Ku Klux Klan in Colorado
By Robert Alan Goldberg
Published in Chicago, Illinois
Published by University of Illinois Press
Copyright 1981
Resource used: Prospector
Keywords used: Ku Klux Klan, Colorado
Search strategies: None needed for prospector
Date of search: 2-17
Number of hits: 61
Relevance of hits: 5


In the Shadow of the Klan: When the KKK Ruled Denver (1920-1926)
By Phil Goodstein
Volume 3 of 4 in Denver From the Bottom Up
Published in Denver, CO
Published by New Social Publications
Copyright 2006
Resource used: Prospector
Keywords used: Denver, history, KKK
Search strategies: None needed for Prospector
Date of search: 2-17
Number of hits:19
Relevance of hits: 4


Rediscovering Northwest Denver: Its History, Its People, Its Landmarks
By Ruth Eloise Wiberg
Published in Niwot, CO
Published by University Press of Colorado
Copyright 1994
Resource used: Jefferson County Public Library
Keywords used: Denver, Wiberg, history
Search strategies: search engine math (Denver + Wiberg + history)
Date of search: 2-17
Number of hits: 5
Relevance of hits: 5

4a: Finding Reference Articles

I searched many of the listed reference sites, including Infoplease, Scholarpedia, ArticleDestination, Britanica, OpenLibrary, and Encarta. I found a great deal of information on the KKK, but little on the KKK specifically in Colorado. I did bookmark several sites, however, that may prove useful if I decide to throw in some background history of the KKK (i.e. the establishment of the KKK, its rise, etc). I believe my best bet for this project is going to be books, as reference works are rarely specific enough as to addressing a single group's actions in a single location in a specific time. Hopefully, though, more will come up as I continue to search the reference works.

3c: Brainstorming Field Research Options

Field Research Options:

1. Interview with Dr. Stephen Leonard -- chair of the department of history at MSCD, and contributor to several books on the KKK in Colorado

2. Interview with Kevin Rucker -- professor of Colorado history, and Denver history expert

3. Interview with Phil Goodstein -- Denver historian and author of "In the Shadow of the Klan: When the KKK Ruled Denver"

4. Visit to the Colorado History Museum

5. Interview with Joe Kunovic -- Denver citizen under the rule of the Klan

3b: Writing Search Strings

Search Engine Math:
1. Ku Klux Klan + colorado + power

2. Ku Klux Klan + government + politics + denver -Canyon City -Grand Junction

3. Invisible Empire + influence + business -religion + Colorado

4. Ku Klux Klan + tactics + intimidation + coercion + violence + Colorado - "Colorado Springs"


Boolean:
1. Ku Klux Klan AND (power OR influence OR sway OR authority OR clout) NEAR (Colorado OR Denver)

2. John Galen Locke AND Ku Klux Klan NEAR (Colorado politics OR Denver politics)

3. Ku Klux Klan AND (assume OR gain OR acquire) AND (power OR supremacy) NEAR Colorado

3a: Generating Keywords

RESEARCH QUESTION: How was the Ku Klux Klan able to assume and exert so much power in Colorado?

Ku Klux Klan:
Hooded Empire
Invisible Empire
Hooded Knights
Silent Brotherhood
White Knights
Heroes of America
Constitutional Union Guards

Assume:
Acquire
Adopt
Take on
Obtain
Garner
Claim
Seize
Take
Usurp
Commandeer

Exert:
Exercise
Maintain
Wield
Impose
Apply

Power:
Authority
Command
Control
Grip
Hold
Sway
Influence
Pull
Supremacy
Privilege
Jurisdiction
Predominance
Sovereignty

Colorado:
Denver
Centennial State
Rocky Mountain region


Ladder of generalization:
American terrorist organizations
Racist American terrorist groups
The Ku Klux Klan
The second era of the KKK
The second era of the KKK west of the Mississippi
The second era of the KKK in Colorado
The power of the KKK in Colorado
The power of the KKK in Colorado in the 1920s

2c: Developing My Research Question

Research questions:

1. What influence/power did the KKK have over every day life (politics, business, etc) in Colorado?
2. Why was the KKK met with so little opposition in its rise to power in Colorado?
3. When did the KKK exert the most power in Colorado politics?
4. Where was the KKK's influence felt most acutely?
5. Who is responsible for the KKK's rise to power in Colorado?
- The Grand Dragon? The KKK as a whole? The voters who put KKK members in office? The citizens who did nothing to resist the Klan?
6. How was the KKK able to assume and exert so much power in Colorado?
7. Would citizen resistance have been able to prevent the Klan's ascension?
8. Could Coloradans have prevented the KKK's rise to power?
9. Should Colorado citizens have taken a more active role in resisting the Klan?
10. What effect did the KKK have on Colorado, both at its height (the '20s) and in the long run?

2b: Narrowing My Topic

I think I am going to slightly broaden my topic, as was suggested by professor Clark. Initially, I was planning to focus on how the KKK came to power in Colorado (i.e. methods of recruiting members, tactics used to intimidate citizens into submission, infiltration of CO politics, etc). Professor Clark thought it might be a good idea to expand my topic (and I agree) to cover the extent to which the KKK exerted the power it assumed - that is, once it had a place in politics, what policies the KKK implemented; how the KKK used its influence to affect local business; etc. Thus, my topic will now cover the means by which the KKK ascended, as well as how it utilized its power.

2a: Exploring My Topic

I began my initial exploration by using the simplest tool I know of: Google. I used an advanced search and typed in such key words as 'KKK,' 'Colorado,' 'Clarence Morley,' 'Denver,' and 'John Locke.' As was expected, Google yielded thousands of results; to my surprise, though, it pointed me to some very useful resources without forcing me to dig very deep. I was careful to discriminate against particular types of sources (i.e. blogs, YouTube videos, etc), and I focused primarily on the sites with .edu or .gov suffixes, as well as ones from reputable sources such as the Rocky Mountain News. I explored my topic for less than half an hour, and I found 7 good sources (that is, I believe they are reliable and will provide me with useful information); these include books, periodicals from the time I will be focusing on (the 1920s), recent periodicals looking back on my topic, and official documents of the KKK (records, letters, etc). Also, I briefly checked out Prospector over the Auraria library website, and I have requested several books that deal specifically with my topic, the KKK in Colorado. This initial exploration has been very encouraging, and I don't foresee any trouble locating enough informaiton.