The Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives welcome applications for the Carrie Johnson Fellowship, which is gifted to graduate students, faculty, and/or independent scholars pursuing research on Butte, Montana or Silver Bow County history.

Fellowship awards of $1,000 – $3,000 will be made on an annual basis. Award funds are to be used for research support, including travel and lodging expenses, but not as salary. Awards are to be used for scholarly projects including preparation of seminar papers, theses, dissertations, monographs, and book-length projects.

Each recipient is expected to be in residence conducting research for the equivalent of three weeks between May 1 and October 31. Fellows are expected to make use of the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives collections and to submit a written report upon completion of the research. Recipients will acknowledge the Friends of the Butte Archives in the publications and projects produced from their residency and provide a copy of any projects created from their research.

Applications are due March 1.

For more information on the fellowship and how to apply, click here: https://bit.ly/33V9F6c

The National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers (NCSHPO) is seeking a Historic Preservation Specialist for a term-limited position. This position will assist the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) as a liaison to partners submitting grant applications for battlefield preservation and land acquisition projects. Send a resume and cover letter to Sharon Smith (smith@ncshpo.org) by February 4.

The Historic Preservation Specialist will assist with developing tools and aids for potential applicants, many of whom are not preservation professionals, and to develop sustainable preservation strategies for the acquired properties. The liaison will also assist applicants and program staff in developing easement templates and fulfilling NPS’s Section 106 compliance requirements, as outlined in the NPS ABPP’s Programmatic Agreement. 

For more information about the position and how to apply, click here: https://bit.ly/3H9hV0y

The Charles Redd Center for Western Studies welcomes applications from students, faculty, and organizations, as well as non-academics and the general public, for a number of awards and funding opportunities related to Western history. The Redd Center places particular emphasis on the histories of the "Intermountain" West regions of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Montana, Utah, or Wyoming. 

Applications for 2022 are due by 11:59pm MST on March 15, and awardees will be notified by May 1. 

For the Redd Center website and in-depth description of awards offered, click here: https://reddcenter.byu.edu/Blogs/redd-center-blog/Post/2022-awards-and-funding-from-the-byu-charles-

We regretfully inform you that Dr. Frederick C. Luebke died on November 27, 2021, in Eugene, Oregon. He was 94 years old. You can access his obituary here to learn more about Dr. Luebke's life.

You can also read more about Dr. Luebke's significant contributions to the field of western history and the WHA in a message written by WHA member and Past President John Wunder. 

Sincerely,

Elaine Nelson, WHA Executive Director

Our Colleague, FRED LUEBKE

Sadly, we here in Lincoln have learned from afar that Fred Luebke has died. Once Fred had retired from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, he and his wife Norma moved to Eugene, Oregon, to live near several of their children and grandchildren who resided on the West Coast.

Fred left UNL and us a rich and significant legacy.  He was professor of history and served as the third director of the Center for Great Plains Studies.  He also was the first editor of the Great Plains Quarterly. Fred was one of the founders of the Center and contributed greatly to its success. When Fred decided to step down from his directorship, I was chosen to come to UNL and direct the Center; so I am intimately familiar with all of his accomplishments.

There are at least three major gifts from Fred. First, he helped author and was the primary mover and shaker both creating the bylaws of the Center but also implementing them. They are strong bylaws that provide for the Center’s structure. Above all, the bylaws involve the Fellows significantly in the operation of the Center. 

Second, during the early years of the Center, Fred raised lots of money for the Center’s endowment. Fred wrote the grants and raised matching funds for two $500,000 NEH grants. That may have been the first time two half-million dollar grants were achieved at NEH for one university. These grants form the primary funding for the Center’s endowment. In essence, Fred stabilized the Center’s finances. I liked to joke with him that he raised all of this money so that I could spend it. Seriously though, the reason why the Center functions so well is that strong financial basis upon which it was built; and credit for that is a part of Fred Luebke’s legacy.

Third, Fred was the founder of the first of several publications of the Center, and the most important was the humanities journal, Great Plains Quarterly. He served as the founding editor, and then he recruited the excellent editor Fran Kaye of the Department of English to take over. The Quarterly set the tone for the building of knowledge about our region. It published the first academic papers delivered at the annual symposia developed around the Great Plains. These symposia and articles defined our region, the Great Plains.  Another accomplishment of Fred’s related to the Quarterly was his development of courses about the Great Plains and Nebraska history. Hundreds of undergraduate students learned about the uniqueness of our place. Fred wrote the definition of the area for a brochure that again defined the region. The Great Plains, he said, was a place of distinctive environmental features and a region where diversity defined its history and culture. 

Now if these fundamental accomplishments of the Center were not enough, Fred also wrote a number of profound articles and books about Nebraska and Great Plains history. He directed a number of graduate students who added to our knowledge of our region by writing Master’s theses and PhD dissertations under Fred’s direction.

It seems that I have only scratched the surface of Fred Luebke’s legacy.  But there is one abiding trait of his that I shall forever remember. When I arrived from South Carolina to become the director of the Center, Fred said to me, “I will not be very active with you and the Center this first year. You should have the ability to develop the Center in new ways to increase its academic presence and its contributions.” And Fred was true to his words. He also said, “You know where to find me on the sixth floor of Oldfather Hall. If you need information or advice, come by any time, but I promise I will not intervene.” And there were a few times that I needed his help which he always willingly gave to me. 

Fred loved the Center for Great Plains Studies, and he passed along that love to me and to many of its devoted Fellows. His legacy is profound.  It was formative. He made the best academic, financially stable, and most significant regional inter-disciplinary center in North America possible and successful here at Nebraska.

A tenure-track position in Native American Studies has opened at Humboldt State University! The position starts in August 2022. Don't wait, get those apps in! The deadline is Jan. 7, 2022.

For more info on the position, application requirements, etc., check out the following link to the job post. Early applications are encouraged! https://bit.ly/3ycyiG6

The WHA is saddened to learn of the recent passing of the longtime University of Washington Professor and environmental historian, Dr. Linda Nash. The University of Washington is holding a memorial service for Dr. Nash via Zoom on December 11th at 3pm. 

For Dr. Nash's obituary: https://history.washington.edu/news/2021/11/01/memoriam-linda-nash

To access Dr. Nash's memorial service: 

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The deadline for the call for submission for the Railroads in Native American Gathering / Symposium (Ogden Union Station, Ogden Utah, May 19-21, 2022) is coming up in a little over two weeks. 

Please e-mail your submission to RRNativeAmerica@gmail.com by December 15, 2021. 

Designed to be inclusive, intergovernmental and interdisciplinary, the gathering is hosted by the Utah Division of Indian Affairs in cooperation with the Intermountain tribal nations of the Goshute, Paiute, Dine ́, Shoshone, and Ute peoples. The gathering’s geographical reach includes the United States and Canada. The symposium intends to bring together Native and non-Native scholars, students, artists, musicians, tribal citizens, tribal government representatives and the general public. 

To take part in this event submit: (1) a short proposal (no more than 400 words) describing how you wish to participate; (2) indicate if you will need any special equipment or set up, including whether you will require audio and visual for a presentation; (3) if any of the five stated topics below match your submission, please mention this; and (4) Include a C.V., resume, a description, or portfolio of previous work.

This gathering and symposium invites conversation about the fraught and dynamic relationships between Native peoples and railroads. The program committee encourages submissions across a wide range of mediums and diverse formats including: roundtable presentations, research paper sessions, oral histories and storytelling, dance, artwork, multimedia offerings including film, and small poster exhibits.

Contacts:  Dr. Alessandra La Rocca Link / alessandra.n.link@gmail.com and James Toledo / Utah Division of Indian Affairs / jtoledo@utah.gov

Guiding questions for conversation, scholarship, art, and performance include:

• How or why did Native communities resist and/or participate in railroad expansion (1830s to the present)?
• In what ways have Native peoples—past and present—used the mobility, marketplace access, or employment provided by railroads to survive or to protect kin and community?
• How did railroads, their corporate backers, and the government contribute to the dispossession of Indigenous peoples?
• How have Indigenous homelands and cultures evolved in response to railroad expansion?
• What are the lasting impacts from railroad expansion among Indigenous communities, worldviews, life ways, and ecosystems? 

Keep an eye out for information regarding affordable hotel accommodations, keynote speakers, vendors, field trips and a preliminary program.  To connect with the Railroads in Native America website click here. 

Regarding the 1^st RR in Native America (held in 2019):

The first “Railroads in Native America'' Symposium (Omaha, NE: Sept. 12-15, 2019) was prompted by the 150th anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad. This inaugural event was hosted by the National Park Service, Lewis and Clark Historic Trail, the Union Pacific Museum (Council Bluffs, IA), the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and citizens of numerous Federally Recognized Sovereign Tribal Nations. These nations include (as self-described): Campo Kumeyaay Nation, Cochiti / Kiowa, Pomo / Paiute, Minnicoujou Lakota, Rosebud Sioux, Navajo Nation, Pueblo of Laguna, Hidatsa, Sièáŋǧu Lakota, Umonhon / Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Shawnee, and Potawatomi. The symposium was considered such a success that attendees suggested a second symposium be offered elsewhere in the country.

If you have questions concerning the submission guidelines, or to answer any other questions concerning this gathering and symposium, please reach out to any of the above contacts.

RNA Program Subcommittee Members:

• Dr. Alessandra La Rocca Link (co-chair), historian, Indiana University-Southeast, Louisville, Kentucky
• Dr. Farina King (Diné, co-chair), Assistant Professor of History, NE State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma
• Dr. Andrew Curley (Diné), School of Geography, University of Arizona (Tucson, Arizona)
• Patricia LaBounty, Curator, Union Pacific Railroad Museum (Council Bluff, Iowa)
• Jenna Valadez, past RNA board member, past officer in Union Pacific’s CONAH (Council on Native American Heritage)

The South Dakota Historical Society is accepting applications for its Emerging Scholars Research Grant.

Fellows will receive funds to access the extensive museum and archival collections of the South Dakota State Historical Society. Funds may be used for travel and lodging expenses and research-related fees. The society will distribute $3,000 among one to three individuals. Within a year of the award date, fellows must submit an article manuscript to the quarterly journal, South Dakota History, or a book proposal to the press.

Application should include:

• A resume or C.V. (no more than two pages)
• A proposal (no more than three pages, double-spaced) that answers the following questions:
• • What collections from the state archives and/or museum collections do you plan to consult? How long do you plan to be in Pierre?
  • What is the purpose/goal of your research? What historical topic or question are you investigating?
  • What contribution does your work make to the field?
  • What is the timeline of the project? What work have you accomplished, and what work do you have left to complete?
  • How will the resulting project be suitable for publication in either South Dakota History or as a Press book?

Interested applicants should send their applications to mary.andino@state.sd.us by January 15, 2022.

For more information, see here: https://www.sdhspress.com/news-and-events/news

The Organization of American Historians (OAH) is currently offering two awards that may be of interest. 

First, the Stanton-Horton Award for Excellence in National Park Service History recognizes excellence in National Park Service historical efforts and welcomes projects that encourage civic dialogue in all areas of public history. Eligible submissions include park-based interpretive work (museum exhibits, waysides, digital and print media, public programming, etc.); regionally-oriented educational and preservation programs; National Register or NHL nominations, historic resource and special resource studies which have public outreach components, and national programs and projects designed to encourage public appreciation for the complexity and richness of the American past. 

The application deadline for the Stanton-Horton Award is December 15, 2021. For more info on this award, see here: https://www.oah.org/awards/uncategorized-awards/stanton-horton-award/

Second, the Huggins-Quarles Award is given annually by the OAH to one or two graduate students of color to assist them with expenses related to travel to research collections for the completion of the Ph.D. dissertation. 

The application deadline for the Huggins-Quarles Award is January 1, 2021. For more info on this award, see here: https://www.oah.org/awards/dissertation-awards/huggins-quarles-award/

PBS aired "Imagined Wests" on Wednesday, November 10th. The hour-long documentary, which is part of the "Artbound" series, focuses on the Autry's "Spirits of the West" mural and their efforts to recontextualize it (and the museum) in light of changing interpretations of the American West. The program also places the Autry's challenges within broader discussions of monuments and civic memory. The documentary is archived on the PBS website and can be viewed here: https://www.pbs.org/video/imagined-wests-tnaggs/