History MA student, Luke Gaines, awarded Martha Ellen Ward Scholarship

The History Department is pleased to announce that The Society of Mayflower Descendents awarded the Martha Ellen Ward Scholarship in the amount of $4000 to History MA student, Luke Gaines. “The General Society of Mayflower Descendants is committed to research on the lineal descent of the Mayflower Pilgrims and education about the Pilgrims who traveled aboard the Mayflower in 1620. The Society provides education and understanding of why the Mayflower Pilgrims were important, how they shaped western civilization, and what their 1620 voyage means today and its impact on the world.”

Gaines was invited to the 99th annual meeting for the North Carolina chapter of the Society of Mayflower Descendents where he attended a dinner and was awarded the scholarship. He gave a speech on the history of voting in which he discussed the connection between Puritan congregationalism and the electoral systems of early colonial Massachusetts. He plans to use his scholarship money to do research abroad for his thesis.

Luke’s research focuses on British politics in the years following the Glorious Revolution. His thesis is on the partisan influences on the founding of Georgia. He plans to graduate next semester and continue on to a PhD program.