Annual Catalog Of The Western University Of Pennsylvania Year Ending

University Coeducation in the Victorian Era chronicles the inclusion of women in state-supported male universities during the nineteenth century. Based on primary sources produced by the administrators, faculty, and students, or other contemporary Victorian writers, this book provides insight from multiple perspectives of an important step in the progress of gender relations in higher education and society at large. By studying twelve institutions in the United States, and another twelve in the United Kingdom, the comparative scope of the work is substantial and brings local, regional, national, and international questions together, while not losing sight of individual university student experiences.

The biography of James E. Keeler (1857-1900), the leading astronomical spectroscopist of his generation.

In From the Steel City to the White City, Zachary Brodt explores Western Pennsylvania’s representation at Chicago’s Columbian Exposition, the first major step in demonstrating that Pittsburgh was more than simply America’s crucible—it was also a region of developing culture and innovation. The 1893 Columbian Exposition presented a chance for the United States to prove to the world that it was an industrial giant ready to become a global superpower. At the same time, Pittsburgh, a commercial center that formerly served as a starting point for western expansion, found itself serving as a major transportation, and increasingly industrial, hub during this period of extensive growth. Natural resources like petroleum and coal allowed Western Pennsylvania to become one of the largest iron- and steel-producing regions in the world. The Chicago fairgrounds provided a lucrative opportunity for area companies not only to provide construction materials but to display the region’s many products. While Pittsburgh’s most famous contributions to the 1893 World’s Fair—alternating current electricity and the Ferris wheel—had a lasting impact on the United States and the world, other exhibits provided a snapshot of the area’s industries, natural resources, and inventions. The success of these exhibits, Brodt reveals, launched local companies into the twentieth century, ensuring a steady flow of work, money, and prestige.