Mission Canyon Chapter in Santa Barbara is extremely pleased to announce a Special Projects Grant has been awarded by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution to Dr. Sara Schwebel, Associate Professor of English at the University of South Carolina for her project, The Lone Woman and Last Indians.

This project centers around the children’s story Island of the Blue Dolphins, which tells of a Native American woman who was stranded on San Nicholas Island off the coast of Santa Barbara, CA, for 18 years in the mid-1800’s.  The story is based on a real-life figure, dubbed Juana Maria by those who eventually found her.

Dr. Schwebel’s project consists of three inter-related publications:
1.) The first scholarly critical edition of Island of the Blue Dolphins
2.) An annotated digital archive of more than 400 narratives of the Lone Woman, and,
3.) A multi-media website which provides chapter summaries of Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Research for the project is being conducted in conjunction with the Channel Islands National Park.

Island of the Blue Dolphins is widely used in school curriculum and Dr. Schwebel’s project seeks to further NSDAR’s mission of “securing America’s future through better education for children” by creating teacher resources which will bring the study of this novel in-line with contemporary scholarship and public sensibilities about the history of indigenous peoples within the United States.

Mission Canyon Chapter is thrilled to be the sponsor of this project!