by Ronald Oswald, NMHS Chairman magine you are sailing, far off in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, when yo ur ship is suddenly attacked and sinks. You are thousands of miles from anyo ne ... anyone human, that is. Unbelievably, your ship has been sunk by a whale. And this was no accident, this whale rammed your hull-not once, but twice! It's 1820. There is no such thing as a cell phone or a satellite radio. There is no way to call for .... _,._,_ Jt-,tl{.. 4 .;-<¥, ·- -A-·I -"'-- < ...... '"' " , _./., __,_,.. .... ft.).. - ~ ... -'flf-- ft.. J>/ .. - .r.. !I ,.. l/,- . help. This is the beginning of the true story of 21 men stranded in their ship's whaleboats. Only a few survived, and their tale is a thrilling story of life-and-death struggles, cannibalism, and maybe even murder. The story of the sinking of rhe whaleship Essex might be hard to believe if it were a Hollywood movie, bur it's true. Ir's history. Some of the best sto ries yo u can read abo ut, listen to, or watch in a movie are rhe ones char are rrue. There are battles and love stories, heroes and bad guys, high-tech gadgets and si mple ingenuity. History is exciting. Why, then, as a subj ect in school, does it sometimes seem boring? It doesn't have to be char way, and the National History Day Competition is making history exciting for both students and teachers across the country. Pick any topic chat ~ ,, ~ c,wJ'I'- t'n ..l'M '"..4'C interests yo u, and the National History Day program will help you learn how to do your own research and guide you on how to present what you've learned in both scare The Essex being rammed by a whale, 1820. Sketch by and national contests. Essex's Cabin Boy, 14-year old Thomas Nickerson. Each year, the National History Day program picks a theme, and student projects related to the theme are judged on rhe historical quality of their work and on rhe clarity of their presentation. Students compete within each stare for the chance to participate in rhe national competition at rhe University of Maryland in June. Projects might be a research paper, a performance, a documentary, a website, or a display. With the excep tion of research papers, projects may be worked on individually or by a gro up of up to five students. There are prize categories for middle- and high school students, and individual and group projects. This year, the National Maritime Historical Society awarded special prizes for maritime-related projects ar the NJ National History Day competition in May, and next year, NMHS will offer prizes in other states as well. The 20 11 national event is on 12-16 June, with the theme "Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, and Consequences." Winners of state competitions will be eligible to compete at the national level. Ask yo ur teachers if they want to participate and find out all the details at www.nhd.org. The Maritime History Prize winners and their teachers get a free membership in the National Maritime Historical Society for one year, including a year of Sea History magazine, and a Certificate of Achievement. First-place NMHS President Burchenal Green (far right) and NMHS Chairwinners also receive a scholarship award of $ 150. The names of the man Ron Oswald (4th from left) congratulate the 2010 NMHS winning students and their teachers will be listed on the NMHS New jersey National History Day Prize winners. website www.seahistory.org and in Sea History magazine.
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The New Jersey National History Day NMHS Special Prize winners for 2010: FIRST PRIZE-Junior, Individual, Documentary: George Li from Grover Middle School for "Silent Hunters: An Unprecedented
Capab ili ty for Attack Incites Innovations in Naval Technology & Tactics." Instructor: Joan Ruddiman FIRST PRIZE-Senior, Group, Website: Farrah Liu, Manoj Muthukumaran, David Sherwood, Jerry Zhang, and Eric Zilber from Montville Township High School for"Innovation in Naval Warfare." Instructor: Peter A. Porter, Jr.
SECOND PRIZE-Junior, Individual, Exh ibit: Nicole Wroblewski, from Manalapan-Englishtown Middle School for "The Morris Canal." Instructors: Jacqueline Colon & Lisa Robinson SECOND PRIZE-Junior, Group, Exhibit: Julia Hansen, Alex Hutcherson, and Jade Pace from Valley Middle School for "Submarines: Weapons of War and Peace." Instructor: Judith Vihonski