#hendrixcollege

One tradition in my family is that the first born son is either Nicholas Andrew or Andrew Nicholas, flip-flopping with every generation. I always assumed that that tradition lasted for... well ever. If for... well ever is since 1861, then I would be correct. The name switcheroo is on its fourth generation currently (skipping my grandmother who was an only child). 

The first Nicholas Andrew was Nicolaus Andreas, born to a Mr. Johann Nicolaus Dreier and Magdalena Finke Dreier on March 9, 1861 in Meldorf, Germany. On today's adventure throughout his hometown, I was able to look through old microfilms in a stereotypically dusty basement and found quite a few records about him and his family. 

Here is Nicolaus Andreas' official baptismal record: 

Above is Sankt-Johannis Kirche, where Nicolaus was baptized. 

From my research, I found that Johann and Magdalena also had three other children: Christian, Magdalena, and August. Unfortunately, when Nicolaus was only 4 years old, his mother passed away. She was only 34 at the time. About a year later, Nicolaus' father married again. Johann and his new wife, Anna Margaretha Bremmer, had two children together: Margaretha and Marie. 

Out the six children Johann had, four of them immigrated to the United States in the 1880's. (August and Marie remained in Meldorf.) The siblings arrived in Chicago where they would live for the rest of their lives, as their children did. 

Hendrix College’s motto is “Unto the Whole Person.” That motto can be seen in the classroom, but maybe even more so, outside of the classroom. As a part of that commitment, the college created the Odyssey Program. Students must complete at least three different Odyssey projects during their tenure at Hendrix in different categories (Artistic Creativity, Global Awareness, Professional & Leadership Development, Service to the World, Undergraduate Research, and Special Projects). With a good justification, the Odyssey can be anything the student wants. Students can get credit by volunteering at a local animal shelter for a year or taking an art class or even going to Germany and Ireland to explore and research the areas where one’s ancestors are from. 

That last one is what I am doing, “Who Do I Think I Am?.” It is a Special Project, the catch-all category, as it combines elements from Artistic Creativity, Global Awareness, and Undergraduate Research. Thanks to a very generous grant from the Odyssey Program, I have been researching my ancestry for the past month or so, got my DNA analysed, and I am about to cross the pond on over to Germany and Ireland. I will go to four different cities in two different countries on a quest to find more about where my family came from and to fill in the some gaps in my family tree. In this project, the four ancestors I am specifically looking at are: 

Nicholas Andrew Dreier (1861-1932), my great-great grandfather,  was born in Meldorf, Germany and died in Chicago, Illinois.

Bernardena “Dena” Kronlage (1851-1914), my great-great-great grandmother,  was born in Oldenburg, Germany and died in Hamilton, Ohio. 

Bernard “Barney” Niehoff (1845-1933), my great-great-great grandfather and Dena’s husband, was born in Hanover, Germany and died in Hamilton, Ohio. 

Thomas Dwyer (1830-1897), another great-great-great grandfather, was born in Kilkenny, Ireland and died in Piqua, Ohio. 

My ultimate goal is to hopefully find out why Nicholas, Dena, Barney, and Thomas left their home countries for the unknown in America. After my travels, I will compile my findings in an “academic scrapbook” of sorts and into a powerpoint, which I will later use in my presentation back at Hendrix in the Fall.

My name is Ethan McGee, and I'm an Art Major/Marketing Minor At Hendrix College (a small liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas). I have an extensive history with Adobe Photoshop, which I will use to create the bulk of my digital content on this page. My degree's focus is on sculpture, and I will display some of those works as well.

I produce my art under the name "KilliDuhScope", which I will often abbreviate as "Killi". Some of my shit will be abstract, some of my shit will be funny, and some of my shit won't make sense. Regardless of the genre of content I post, this profile is in the interest of building on my creative abilities and growing my reputation as an artist. Every re-blog, every share, and every like increases the impact of my work, so if you truly do enjoy what I create please feel free to show the world.

So thats what the art is about, but here is a bit about me as a person. I'm an idealist of no particular faith. My Attention Deficit Disorder is borderline debilitating, and often leaves me lost in abstract thought. I've had a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde thing going on with Vyvanse since Kindergarten, so my emotions have grown unintelligible and my working patterns are sporadic (I'm working on it). Thanks to the power of music, I've been able to avoid going completely insane. I also have a passion for writing stories and discussing the ethics of pretty much anything. To sum things up, I'm the guy that plays devils advocate to piss people off, I'm the guy that laughs when he's completely fucked, and I'm the guy who has no idea whats going on.