49th ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE WESTERN HISTORY ASSOCIATION
DENVER, COLORADO, OCTOBER 7-10, 2009

WIRED WEST

Submission Deadline: September 1, 2008
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

The program committee for the WHA 2009 annual meeting invites papers on the theme of Wired West.

Wire conducts and symbolizes western history. We seek papers that explore the development and interconnection of the North American West, a region divided by  barbed wire and border wire and yet  one of the first whose sub-regions were united by telegraph, telephone, electric line,  and fiber optic cable.

We are interested in the wiring of the world to the West metaphorically and materially.  No country in any part of the world is untouched by what happens in the western provinces of North America.  Western industries in mine, ranch, farm, and forest, Hollywood and dude ranch, Silicon Valley, Denver, and elsewhere, have drawn immigrants, generated exports, and reconfigured the world’s economies, cultures, and politics.  So the world has been wired west, constantly rebuilt, retooled, and rejiggered to accommodate the realities of the rapidly growing and changing region.

Our interests encompass the changing relations of western peoples with the earth, from which wire itself is made, and over which western peoples have fought to determine how best to live.  We are equally compelled by the social and cultural wiring of the West— the struggles of  natives and immigrants for justice, equity, and autonomy, of women and men to understand sexual, racial, ethnic, and class identity and connections from the most intimate human bonds to the most formal relations,  and the constant effort to make and re-make the good society. 

We encourage innovative presentations, including performances, workshops or moderated discussions.  Submissions may be for an entire session, a panel discussion, or an individual paper. When submitting an entire session, include an abstract that outlines the purpose of the session, if any, and designate one panelist or participant as the contact person.  Each paper proposal, whether individual or part of a session, should include a one-page abstract and a one page c.v., including the address, phone, and email address for each participant.  Indicate equipment needs, if any. The committee will assume that all listed individuals have agreed to participate. Send all program submission materials to Colleen O’Neill either electronically: colleen.oneill@usu.edu or by mail service: Colleen O’Neill, History Department, Utah State University, 0710 Old Main Hill, Logan, Utah 84322-0710.  Submissions should be postmarked by September 1, 2008.