Welcome to the Watson—we're glad you're here! This year the History DSC is starting a new initiative to foster a greater sense of community between students in the Queen's History department and the professors and community institutions involved in preserving and sharing history with us.
WHY A BLOG?
What better way to do this, than to create a neighbourhood blog where all those who have a passion and inclination towards history, both in the Queen's and the greater Kingston community, can come together. With this in mind the Watson is our way of connecting students with new and interesting opportunities to share their interests and to learn more about the interests of their peers and the dedicated community and heritage institutions all around us. A blog is also a great opportunity for students to share and develop their ideas in an academic setting that can be included on your CV.
WHAT'S IN A NAME?
You may be curious about why we've called our blog the Watson or perhaps you have a few guesses? Well, here's the scoop: we've chosen to name our blog after John Watson. However, there is more to the name than this. Watson Hall, the building named after John Watson himself is the home of the Queen's history department, but also to departments like Classics, Philosophy and English, which are strongly connected to the study of history. Furthermore, Watson seemed like an appropriate figure to emulate as during his time at Queen's he was the catalyst behind a significant amount of academic innovations and was well-loved by his students. Watson was buried in the Cataraqui Cemetery and his papers are located in the Queen's University Archives.
HOW CAN YOU CONTRIBUTE?
This blog is meant to be an easy and accessible platform for people to share what they're currently researching or a project they're developing in a course. Contributions can take the form of Throwback Thursday submissions, exhibit reviews, original comic strips, analyses of current events from historical perspectives, inquiries into Queen's or world history and even personal reflections on your research, USSRF or internship experience. If you have an idea you'd like to develop and share, we're happy to hear about it!