Pathway to Alaskan statehood: the historical narratives of Jack Coghill, Vic Fischer, Katie Hurley, and D.A. Bartlett, and their presence at the Alaska Constitutional Convention Item Type Thesis Authors Drumhiller, Leslie Download date 07/10/2021 15:49:32 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/11122/6605 PATHWAY TO ALASKAN STATEHOOD: THE HISTORIC NARRATIVES OF JACK COGHILL, VIC FISCHER, KATIE HURLEY, AND D.A. BARTLETT, AND THEIR PRESENCE AT THE ALASKA CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION By Leslie Drumhiller g -a _____ Ray Barrmardt, PhD Advisory Committee Chair Beth Leonard, PhD Chair, Center for Cross-Cultural Studies APPROVED: Date PATHWAY TO ALASKAN STATEHOOD: THE HISTORICAL NARRATIVES OF JACK COGHILL, VIC FISCHER, KATIE HURLEY, AND D.A. BARTLETT, AND THEIR PRESENCE AT THE ALASKA CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION A THESIS Presented to the Faculty of the University of Alaska Fairbanks in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS By Leslie Drumhiller, B.A. Fairbanks, AK M ay 2016 Abstract The aim of this thesis is to compare the commonalities and differences in the oral narratives of four participants of the Alaska Constitutional Convention, John B. “Jack” Coghill, Victor “Vic” Fischer, Katherine “Katie” Hurley, and Doris Ann “D.A.” Bartlett. Applying thematic analysis to the interviews, themes, or codes were extracted from the interviews and unified into code families: “family,” “work,” “Alaska Constitutional Convention,” and “Alaska Constitution,” with other code families supporting these four. The “Alaska Constitutional Convention” becomes the super code, or main theme of this thesis. The research explores three themes: non-partisan politics at the Alaska Constitutional Convention, the camaraderie among the delegates and staff at the Alaska Constitutional Convention, and gender differences among Coghill, Fischer, Hurley, and Bartlett. v vi Dedication I would like to dedicate this thesis to my mother Lee Rothman who gave me life, to my husband David Drumhiller who gave me wings, and to my mentor Cindy Hardy who taught me to fly. vii viii Table of Contents Signature Page .............................................................................................................................................i Title Page .................................................................................................................................................... ii Abstract....................................................................................................................................................... v Dedication.................................................................................................................................................vii Table of Contents...................................................................................................................................... ix List of Tables............................................................................................................................................xv Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... xvii Chapter 1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................................1 Chapter 2 Literature Review .....................................................................................................................5 2.1 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................5 2.2 Place..........................................................................................................................................5 2.3 Economic Resources .............................................................................................................. 9 2.4 Individualism ........................................................................................................................ 11 2.5 Community............................................................................................................................14 2.6 Alaska Constitutional Convention ......................................................................................15 2.7 Alaska Constitution .............................................................................................................. 21 2.8 Consequences of Statehood ................................................................................................ 26 Chapter 3 Methodology-The Living History and the Human Perspective of the Construction of the Alaska Constitution ...............................................................33 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 33 3.2 Methods ..................................................................................................................................33 3.3 The Oral Narrative Process ................................................................................................. 36 ix 3.3.1 How the Interviews of Coghill, Fischer, Hurley, and Bartlett Contribute to the Oral History of Alaskan Statehood ............................................................. 36 3.3.2 Written Accounts ................................................................................................. 37 3.3.3 The Strengths and Limitations of the Oral Narrative Process ....................... 38 3.3.4 Connection to Place .............................................................................................39 3.3.5 Interviews .............................................................................................................. 40 3.3.6 Reasons for Each Interview ................................................................................41 3.3.7 Interview Place Set-up .........................................................................................43 3.3.8 Recording Device ................................................................................................. 44 3.3.9 Interview Questions .............................................................................................45 3.4 Thematic Analysis............................................................................................................. 47 Chapter 4 John B. “Jack” Coghill ..........................................................................................................49 4.1 The Codes and Code Families of Jack Coghill .................................................................49 4.2 Introduction ............................................................................................................................51 4.3 Freemason..............................................................................................................................51 4.4 Principles and Philosophy ....................................................................................................51 4.5 Fam ily.................................................................................................................................... 52 4.6 W ork ...................................................................................................................................... 53 4.7 Politics .................................................................................................................................... 55 4.8 Alaska Constitutional Convention ..................................................................................... 61 4.9 Alaska Constitution .............................................................................................................. 61 4.10 Structure ...............................................................................................................................62 x 4.11 Coghill’s Reflections ....................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 5 Victor “Vic” Fischer .............................................................................................................. 69 5.1 The Codes and Code Families of Vic Fischer ..................................................................69 5.2 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 71 5.3 Fam ily.................................................................................................................................... 71 5.4 W ork ...................................................................................................................................... 73 5.5 A laska.................................................................................................................................... 74 5.6 People ..................................................................................................................................... 75 5.7 Alaska Constitutional Convention ..................................................................................... 76 5.8 Alaska Constitution .............................................................................................................. 79 5.9 U nity...................................................................................................................................... 82 5.10 Fischer’s Recollections ......................................................................................................85