Class Spring 2020
Kristin O’Lear, originally from Michigan, received her B.A. in International Relations and German from Michigan State University in 2011. She is currently a second-year graduate student pursing a Master’s in American History, with a concentration in Public History. She is interested in facilitating history outside of academia and increasing the accessibility of history to the public. Her current research focuses on German American immigrants in the antebellum South and their role in Southern society throughout the Civil War era. She has spent most of the last seven years moving and traveling with her husband, who is an active-duty Marine. In her free time, she volunteers regularly at Tryon Palace, enjoys reading, running, and seeks any opportunity to travel.
Mackenzie Mirre is a first-year student in the maritime studies program. She received her BA in Anthropology with minors in history and religion from Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. During undergraduate, Mackenzie volunteered at a Camp Nelson, a Civil War Heritage park, as a terrestrial archaeologist. In addition, she contributed to two university-funded maritime archaeology projects in El Salvador and the Florida Keys, testing both sonar capabilities and under-water imaging. Mackenzie’s research interests include the colonial Americas and the Caribbean with a focus in Public Archaeology
Christopher W. Jackson is a living historian at Jamestown Settlement Museum and a first year Master’s candidate in the History program at East Carolina University. A graduate of The College of William and Mary, his research concentration is on the early Atlantic world and its connections to the Medieval World, particularly in trade and maritime advancements. Fascinated by a historically-based cartoon when he was 10, he has been studying the Middle Ages and Early Modern period ever since. He has a passion for educating the public about history and making it exciting and relevant for them, especially through the use of material culture. His passions include Renaissance and Baroque music, maritime architecture, European domestic architecture from 1000-1700, leather-crafting, and woodworking.
Amelia Sherrill graduated from the University of New Mexico in 2017, with a BA in Anthropology and History. During her time at UNM, she volunteered at the Human Osteology Laboratory in the Anthropology Department. After graduation, she worked as the Assistant to the Forensic Anthropologist at the Office of the Medical Investigator in Albuquerque. She had hoped to translate her skills in identifying, handling, and recording human remains to the practice of underwater archaeology through DPAA related projects. However, she is leaving the Maritime Studies program at the end of the semester to return to Albuquerque to pursue her interest in forensic anthropology.
Bethany Earley is a first-year student in the Maritime Studies Program. Originally from Ohio, she graduated from Kent State University Stark in May 2018 where she double majored in History and English. Her interest in maritime history was further confirmed while working on her undergraduate honors thesis, “To Earn One’s Salt,” a nautical novel set in the early eighteenth century. Her current research is focused on the personal watercraft built by the Barbour Boat Works Company and the surrounding circumstances that led to their popularity and ultimate decline.
Jacquelyn Hewett is a first year graduate student in the Maritime Studies program. She grew up in Michigan and earned a BA in Anthropology and Art History from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. Focusing initially on terrestrial archaeology, she worked on a variety of sites including a Pleistocene in Laetoli, Middle Woodland in Illinois, and Colonial American in Williamsburg, Virginia. Jacquelyn reconnected with her love of the water during her time in service in the U.S. Navy, and decided to pursue it further at ECU. In her spare time, she loves reading, knitting, watching movies, and spending time with her husband and daughters.
Molly Trivelpiece is a second year Maritime Studies student from Virginia and received her undergraduate degree in Anthropology from Longwood University. For the past few years Molly has participated in and supervised an underwater archaeology field school in Florida and has worked on-site in North Carolina as well. After dabbling in terrestrial cultural resource management work, she decided to continue with her love of maritime-themed projects and further her education at ECU. Her research interests include submerged prehistoric history and public archaeology.