 NEH Landmarks: Women's Suffrage on the Western FrontierTravel to Laramie Dear Colleague: Imagine living in South Pass City in 1869, a gold mining town with a half-mile main street, five hotels, three meat markets, two bakeries, four law firms, thirteen saloons and other businesses that served 460 citizens. This was the residence for both the legislator who introduced the new Wyoming Territory's women's suffrage bill and for the first woman justice of the peace in the U.S., Esther Hobart Morris. Morris and her involvement in Wyoming's women's suffrage effort hold a central place in our historical inquiry about Women's Suffrage on the Western Frontier. By 1880 the community of South Pass City was a ghost town, but today it is preserved as a state historic site with 30 historic buildings remaining on 39 acres. The remote location appears much the same today as it was in 1869, near South Pass National Historic Landmark, the primary route on the Oregon Trail, where almost 500,000 people passed through a 150-mile break in the Rocky Mountains, following dreams of success in the West. Why did the West embrace political equality for women long before the East? What considerations of sense of place are there? Did the myths and the realities of the West contribute to early suffrage? How has the issue of equality played out for Wyoming women over time? Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities' We the People initiative, our Landmarks of American History Workshop, Women's Suffrage on the Western Frontier, will examine these challenging historical questions from the nineteenth century to the present, with multiple interpretations and open dialogue with peers in authentic historical inquiry. The workshop is offered for up to 40 teachers at each of two different times during the summer of 2009; July 19-24, and July 26-31. Each of the programs begins on Sunday at 4 p.m. with an introductory orientation followed by a welcome reception at the Laramie Foundation's Wyoming House for Historic Women. The workshop offers:
Why did the West embrace political equality for women long before the East? This central question will be posed at the opening reception and introductory session on Sunday afternoon at Washakie Center on the campus of the University of Wyoming, from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m., followed by a welcome reception at the Laramie Foundation's Wyoming House for Historic Women. Monday begins with lecture presentations by women's studies scholar Kathy Jensen. The broader influences that led to Wyoming becoming the first state to grant women the right to vote will be discussed. Jensen will present contemporary Wyoming and American West perspectives about women's equality. For instance, she will discuss Wyoming's response to the Equal Rights Amendment in 1977. Jensen will compare and discuss historical and contemporary women's issues in the Equality State of Wyoming, exploring additional examples of how Wyoming's embrace of equality is or is not manifested in Wyoming today. Monday afternoon, participants will divide into small groups to work at the American Heritage Center in Laramie Director Mark Greene, Associate Director and Archivist Rick Ewig, and Carol Bowers of the center. Working in groups, participants will explore the historical manuscripts at the American Heritage Center, including the Nellie Tayloe Ross Papers, 1920-1972, papers of the first woman governor in the U.S; and the Grace Raymond Hebard Papers, 1889-1934, papers of a noted Wyoming historian and early researcher on Wyoming suffrage. These sources will relate to the overarching question for the workshopwhy the West embraced political equality for women long before the Eastand provide participants an information base for proposing possible explanations. Participants will experience firsthand the work of sorting through various and sometimes conflicting evidence and recognize that history is not a set story, but rather an array of stories, each of which has its own merit and its own limitations. At this point, participants will also be given specific contact information for finding and using similar primary sources in their own states. Master Teacher Dave Peterson will also provide leadership throughout the workshop regarding lesson plans. On Tuesday morning participants will learn about historical themes of the American West and discuss the role of boosterism in the settlement of the West with David Wroebel, Chair, History Department, University of Nevada Las Vegas. David Wrobel's research on boosterism will contrast the vision of western promoters' with actual pioneer accounts to frame a discussion of the still present myths of the West and the relationship of those myths to women's suffrage. In the late morning on Tuesday participants will board the bus for South Pass National Historic Landmark and South Pass City State Historic Site, located near Lander, about four hours from Laramie. Along the way, participants will experience Wyoming's remote often isolated and awe inspiring landscape. History professor Phil Roberts and American Studies professor Frieda Knobloch will travel with participants to divulge historical narrative and encourage interaction. The long bus ride illustrates the influence of landscape on western economic, social, cultural, and political issues and facilitates contextual understanding. The bus route parallels and intersects the overland trails, railways and modern highways that carried settlers to South Pass City and across the continental United States. On Wednesday morning participants will break into smaller groups to explore South Pass City State Historic Site and related gold mining facilities and to participate in activities, and lectures provided by Curator Jon Lane and Superintendent Joe Ellis. Participants will also visit South Pass National Historic Landmark where they will have an opportunity to walk along a segment of the Oregon Trail. The experiences will encourage participants to explore why South Pass Cityand Wyomingset the pace for suffrage in the U.S. Roundtable discussions with faculty will consider the reality and legend of Esther Morris, demonstrating not only the multiplicity of historical interpretations, but the extent to which history is consciously built and rebuilt. Required readings for include Promised Lands, articles in the required reading list, and selected materials such as facsimiles from South Pass City newspapers, facsimiles from the 1869 Wyoming Territorial Census, and the 1869 Wyoming Suffrage Act facsimile. Participants will experience regional culture during meals at local food establishments and during evening free time in Lander where the group will stay. Thursday morning participants will head back to Laramie with a brief stop at Independence Rock, National Historic Landmark on the Oregon Trail and Lunch at the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel. On returning to Laramie participants will have time to complete their individual poster or power point workshop project that they will share with the group at the final banquet Thursday Evening. Friday morning participants will travel to the Wyoming State Capitol building for a continental breakfast reception with Wyoming's State Auditor Rita Meyer. Following the reception a "fish bowl" activity will include participants and visiting scholars in a concluding discussion of the central workshop question. Participants will demonstrate in dialogue how they tied scholar lectures, historic sites, readings, and primary source material together. Group or individual lesson plans, modeled on National Register of Historic Places lesson plans, will be due one week after the conclusion of the workshop, and may be submitted to the National Historic Places and NEH EDSITEment Web sites (EDSITEment.neh.gov Approaches, Assignments, and Requirements Reading packets will include all of the following with the exception of books, which will be provided to participants on or before the first day of the workshop. Required Readings Lynne Cheney, "It All Began in Wyoming," American Heritage 24, no. 3 (1973): 62-66, 97. Selection of Primary Sources Selected facsimiles from the Grace Raymond Hebard Papers, 1889-1934. Noted Wyoming historian and early researcher on Wyoming suffrage. American Heritage Center. Suggested Readings Works by previous visiting faculty that you may wish to read include: One formal assignment and one informal assignment are required: Informal assignment--
Formal required assignment--
We look forward to working with featured visiting faculty, Paula Petrik, and David Wrobel.
University of Wyoming faculty also will bring strong interest and background to the central workshop questions.
Full-time and part-time classroom teachers (grades K-12) in public, private, parochial, and charter schools, as well as home-schooling parents, are eligible to participate and are invited to apply. Other grades K-12 school personnel, including administrators, substitute teachers, classroom paraprofessionals, and librarians, are also eligible to participate, subject to available space. Applicants must complete the NEH application cover sheet and provide all of the information requested below to be considered. An individual may apply to and participate in no more than two Landmarks workshops. Preference will be given to those participants interested in attending a NEH Landmarks workshop for the first time. Application Process and Selection Criteria Applicants will submit an application form, essay, resume, and one letter of recommendation. The letter should be from the principal or department head of their teaching institution or head of a home schooling association and be written in support of the applicant's application. Letters of recommendation should be sent in a sealed envelope with the signature of the recommender signed across the seal. The application cover sheet must be filled out online at this address: http://www.neh.gov/online/education/participants/. Please complete the form on line as directed by the prompts. When you have finished, print it out. At that point you will be asked if you would like to apply to another workshop. If you would, follow the prompts and select another workshop. Then print out the cover sheet for that workshop. Perhaps the most important part of the completed application is an essay of up to one double-spaced page. This essay should include information about your professional background and interest in the subject of the workshop; your special perspectives, skills, or experiences that would contribute to the workshop; and how the experience would enhance your teaching or school service. Completed applications should be collated, packaged, and postmarked no later than March 17, 2009, and sent to the following address: Sheila Bricher-Wade The following items constitute a completed application:
Please collate and staple your application in the following order: For NEH:
A selection committee will read and evaluate all properly completed applications. Special consideration is given to the likelihood that an applicant will not only benefit professionally and personally from the experience but will insure that colleagues will benefit as well. Successful applicants will be notified of their selection by April 16, 2009, and they will have until April 23, 2009 to accept or decline the offer. Applicants who will not be home during the notification period should provide an email address where they can be contacted. No information concerning the status of an application will be available prior to the notification period. Teachers selected to participate will receive a stipend of $750, from which workshop provided costs for housing, food, books, and on-site transportation will be deducted. Additional travel supplements for those traveling long distances may be available based on the most cost effective alternatives. Additional travel stipends will be determined after the workshop, on a case-by-case basis. Stipends and travel supplements are taxable. Workshop participants are required to attend all scheduled meetings and to engage in project activities. Participants who, for any reason, do not complete the full tenure of the project must refund a pro-rata portion of their stipend. Participants will provide NEH with an assessment of their workshop experience, especially in terms of value to their personal and professional development. You will be asked to complete a confidential evaluation at the close of the workshop. Equal Opportunity Statement All participants will receive a certificate of participation and statements of participation suitable for requesting continuing education units. Graduate credit is available from the University of Wyoming for those requesting it. Three graduate credits from the UW College of Education are available at the cost of $189 per credit; additional work will be required. Three continuing education credits are also available for $40 per credit. Continuing education credit may be useful for salary increases and recertification. Dormitory housing is available for participants at reasonable cost on the University of Wyoming campus. Family, friends and pets are not allowed. PLEASE NOTE A variety of local motels are available at an increased cost over the dorm rate. Prior to the workshop, organizers will provide participants with a list of any hotels that have agreed to provide a special rate. Participants will be responsible for providing their own transportation from local hotels to workshop activities on campus. Dormitory and workshop space is limited to participants, organizers and faculty. Friends and family members of participants may not participate in any workshop activities or make use of any workshop transportation provided. Participants bringing family members will be responsible for making all arrangements for friends or family. Academic Resources Primary source materials at the University of Wyoming's American Heritage Center are close at hand on the University of Wyoming campus. The American Heritage Center is one of the largest manuscript repositories in the United States, attracting more than 7,000 researchers annually from approximately 11 foreign countries and 45 states. University of Wyoming library resources will be available to participants in addition to access to the Internet and e-mail. The American Heritage Center is a WiFi hot spot, and limited access to desktop PCs will be available on the University of Wyoming campus. Recreational and Cultural Resources Recognized as a cultural and recreational hub in Wyoming, Laramie sits at an elevation of 7200 feet on the high plains between the Laramie and Medicine Bow Mountains in southeastern Wyoming, approximately two hours north of Denver. The small community of 26,000 is home to the state's only provider of baccalaureate and graduate education, research, and outreach services, combining major university benefits and small school advantages. In addition to the American Heritage Center exhibitions, the University of Wyoming Art Museum offers outstanding art exhibitions and is also located in the Centennial Complex, a building designed by renowned architect Antoine Predock. Participants will stay two nights in the picturesque community of Lander, located 15 miles from the Wind River Reservation, home to the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone American Indian people. Wyoming is a beautiful place where you may have time to explore such areas as national parks before or after the workshop. Participants are reminded that elevation is 7200 feet in Laramie, and some people may experience discomfort as they accommodate to the mountain elevation. Thank you for your interest. If you have additional questions, you may contact Sheila at sbricher@uwyo.edu or 307-721-9246. We encourage you to apply for Women's Suffrage on the Western Frontier! Sincerely, Sheila Bricher-Wade Marcia Wolter Britton Carol Bryant Last Updated on 7/23/2009 3:06:50 PM |
Quick Links
Wyoming Humanities Council
www.uwyo.edu/humanities
1315 E Lewis St.
Laramie WY 82072
307-721-9243
Fax: 307-742-4914
Email: wych@uwyo.edu
