Mid-America Conference Call for Papers
The Thirty-Fourth Annual Mid-America Conference on History will be held September 20-22, 2012 in Springfield, Missouri. Paper and session proposals on all fields and phases of history, including overview sessions and graduate student papers, will be considered. Proposals should include a paragraph about the content of each paper. The deadline for proposals is May 15, 2012. Contact Worth Robert Miller, Department of History, Missouri State University, Springfield, MO 65897 or BobMiller@MissouriState.edu. For more information go to http://history.missouristate.edu/.

Conference Announcement: Home Economics: Classroom, Corporate, and Cultural Interpretations Revisited
The conference explores the origins of the field, its cultural context and changes throughout the 20th century, and its re- emergence as a field prepared to address the crises facing today's families. Scholars from history, women's studies, and family and consumer sciences will address gender and racial issues, academic programs, career paths, and how the core concepts in the history of home economics provide imperatives for the future. New scholarship presented at this multi-disciplinary conference will explore the cultural influences that shaped the field of study and the profession. Through the lens of historians, family and consumer sciences, and women’s studies scholars past challenges and future imperatives related to family and personal well-being will be addressed. Sessions on conducting historical research are included. WHEN: February 27-28, 2012 WHERE: The University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel 1197 South Lumpkin Street Athens, Georgia 30602 COST: Registration on/before 1/25/12 - $105 Registration after 1/25/12 - $125 Student Registration - $45 Register here: www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/home-economics

Southern FARE Call for Papers
The fifth annual Southern Forum on Agricultural, Rural, and Environmental History is pleased to announce a call for papers for the April 13-14 meeting in Jackson, Mississippi, hosted by Millsaps College. The Forum’s goal is to provide a welcoming and collegial environment for graduate students, junior faculty, and established scholars to present new material that pushes the boundaries of agricultural, rural, and environmental history. The organizers intend for this event to be a place for scholars to try out innovative ideas in an informal, supportive, and constructive setting. Work on all geographic locations and time periods is welcome. Dr. Stephen Brain, Assistant Professor of History at Mississippi State University and author of Song of the Forest: Russian Forestry and Stalinist Environmentalism, 1905-1953 (Pittsburgh, 2011), will deliver this year’s keynote address. Faculty and graduate students are invited to submit session, roundtable, or single-paper paper proposals on any topic dealing with rural, agricultural, or environmental history. Please submit a 100-word paper proposal, or a 250-work session/roundtable proposal, and brief biographical sketch electronically to Drew Swanson at swansda@millsaps.edu by February 29, 2012.

AHS Call for Awards Nominations
The Agricultural History Society will be taking nominations for each of its six awards through December 31, 2011. To nominate a book, article, or dissertation with a 2011 publication date, please follow the directions below. If you have a question, please email executive secretary Jim Giesen (JGiesen@history.msstate.edu). Theodore Saloutos Memorial Award for the best book on agricultural history published in 2011. To nominate a book, please send five copies to the Society office (address below) with a letter of nomination. (You may email the nomination letter to Jim Giesen.) Henry A. Wallace Award for the best book on any aspect (broadly interpreted) of agricultural history outside the United States, published in 2011. To nominate a book, please send five copies to the Society office (address below) with a letter of nomination. (You may email the nomination letter to Jim Giesen.) Wayne D. Rasmussen Award for the best article on agricultural history (broadly defined) not published in Agricultural History. To nominate an article, please e-mail a .pdf copy to Jim Giesen with a letter of nomination. If you must send a hard copy, please send one to Jim Giesen at the Society office (address below). Gilbert C. Fite Dissertation Award for the best dissertation on agricultural history defended in 2011. To nominate a dissertation, please e-mail a .pdf copy to Jim Giesen with a letter of nomination. If you must send a hard copy, please send four copies to Jim Giesen at the Society office (address below). Everett E. Edwards Award for the best article submitted to Agricultural History by a graduate student during 2011. All articles submitted to the journal by graduate students are considered by the committee. Vernon Carstensen Memorial Award for the best article published in Agricultural History in 2011. All articles published in Volume 85 will be considered by the committee. For information on past winners, please see: http://www.aghistorysociety.org/society/awards/ Jim Giesen Agricultural History Society MSU History Department PO Box H / Allen Hall 231 Mississippi State, MS 39762 Join or renew your membership online at: http://www.aghistorysociety.org/join/

Call for Papers: Life Sciences, Agriculture, and the Environment
We solicit proposals for a volume of essays that will explore the relationship between the life sciences, agriculture, and the environment from 1750 to the end of the 20th century. Of special interest is the reciprocal interaction between biological sciences and agriculture, including how agricultural problems inform the theory and practice of biology, and how biological research affects the development of scientific agriculture and agricultural practices. Biological sciences are broadly conceived to include experimental and field sciences, natural history, and biogeography. Agriculture is also broadly conceived to include any domestic or industrial uses of animals and plants. Environment here refers to interest in such problems as climate, soil type and topography as they affect distribution of species. Continuities between 19th and 20th century research will be explored, as well as the development of new disciplines (such as genetics) that emerge in agricultural contexts. We especially seek essays that explore these questions in different national contexts, in order to develop a comparative perspective on the relationship between life sciences and agriculture. Proposals of 250 words should be sent to Profs. Denise Phillips aphill@utk.edu and Sharon Kingsland Sharon@jhu.edu by March 1, 2012. For selected papers, drafts of essays (25 pages) will be due by January 15, 2013. A workshop will be held either in spring or early summer of 2013 for discussion of papers among the contributors, but participation in the workshop is not mandatory for inclusion in the volume. The workshop will be held at the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, and all travel and accommodation expenses of participants will be fully covered. In addition we offer an honorarium of $500 for accepted papers. Final drafts will be due on August 1, 2013.

Reception at the Southern Historical Meeting
The AHS, along with the Filson Historical Society, invites our members and friends who are attending the Southern Historical Association meeting in Baltimore to join us for a reception Friday, October 28, from 4:30 to 6:30 in the Hall of Fame Lounge, Lobby Level, of the Sheraton Baltimore City Center Hotel.

Call for Proposals to Host the 2014 Conference
The Future Sites Committee of the Agricultural History Society invites proposals to host the annual meeting of the organization in 2014. The host of the 2014 conference will have the opportunity to build on the successes of meetings held in Boston, Massachusetts; Ames, Iowa; Reno, Nevada; Little Rock, Arkansas; Winter Park, Florida; and Springfield, Illinois. The 2012 and 2013 meetings will be held in Manhattan, KS, and Banff, Alberta respectively. Those interested in making a bid to host the conference should contact the Future Sites Committee chair, Susan Gray (segray@asu.edu) for guidelines. The deadline for proposals is January 5, 2012. Proposals to host the conference should consist of the following information: 1. Proposed dates 2. Rationale for hosting the conference 3. Proposed members of local organizing committee 4. Proposed venues (including information on number, capacity, and A/V capabilities of spaces) 5. Food and accommodation arrangements (and where relevant, transportation) 6. Ideas for hosting receptions and field trip excursions 7. Funding / sponsorship plan 8. Preliminary budget

2012 Call for Papers Deadline Extended
The deadline for the call for papers for the 2012 meeting of the Agricultural History Society has been extended to October 15. Click here for all you need to know.

Conference on Southern Culture CFP
Converse College in Spartanburg, SC, is pleased to announce a Call for Papers for the Converse College Conference on Southern Culture, April 12 – 14, 2012. The focus of this conference is the “big picture” of southern culture, from okra to opera. We are particularly interested in the intersections of “high” and “low” culture in the South, and the ways in which the rich working class and folk elements of southern culture have, in many instances, been reinterpreted, and, some might argue, appropriated, by more traditionally high cultural mediums. We invite papers that examine the unique qualities of diverse southern cultures, interrogate the threads that bind these cultures together, and, we anticipate, propose divergent ways of thinking about the South. We recognize that there are many excellent conferences that focus on specific historical events, individual Southern writers, and select sociological phenomena. For that reason, we envision this conference as a place to pull many threads together in unusual and perhaps innovative combinations to examine larger questions. We welcome non-traditional approaches including thoughtful personal narratives and papers that draw on non-traditional resources to explore large scholarly questions. To further ensure that this conference provides a place for inter-disciplinary and non-traditional examinations of Southern Culture, and because we do not expect to run multiple, concurrent sessions, we would prefer single paper proposals rather than full panel proposals. The academic conference will be a key component in a weeklong conversation about modern southern culture that will include featured speakers, panel discussions, literary readings and musical performances. Writers Lee Smith and Hal Crowther will be the keynote speakers. We invite papers from scholars and professionals working in the fields of Literary Studies, History, Religion, performing arts, and southern foodways, and we hope to use conference papers as the basis for scholarly collection of essays. This conference will continue a proud tradition of “studying the South” at Converse College. In the spring of 1962, the Southern Literary Festival met at Converse and featured Eudora Welty, Flannery O’Connor, and Cleanth Brooks, among others. On the fiftieth anniversary of that event, we propose to examine, not just southern literature, but the wide range of elements of southern culture. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: Religious traditions in the south High southern church/low southern church Non-Christians in the south Contemporary southern drama, or the lack of it Visual arts Food security issues in the modern rural south Images of the south in popular culture Urban/agrarian/southern Folk arts The role of food in southern culture: church, family, community, etc. Women are cooks and men are chefs: gender and food Why not southern? Does regional mean provincial? Or does it mean a strong sense of place? Southern cuisine as haute cuisine The evolving role of race in shaping southern culture Immigrants and southern culture Southern musical traditions Please send 250-word abstract as an email attachment, along with a brief CV (Word or PDF, please) to: Anita Rose, Conference Co-chair Associate Professor and Chair of the English Dept. Email: Anita.rose@converse.edu Deadline: November 1, 2011

Agricultural History Job Opening - U.S.
U. S. History. Assistant Professor. The Mississippi State University Department of History invites applications for a tenure-track appointment in U. S. History, 19th or 20th century, beginning August 2012. Specialists in Agricultural, Rural and/or Environmental history are welcomed. Teaching responsibilities are two courses per semester. Offerings include undergraduate and graduate courses in the area of expertise, a turn in the American history survey course, and graduate seminars. Demonstrated ability to contribute to the department’s vibrant intellectual life is especially favored. A Ph.D. by time of appointment is required. Evidence of successful teaching and publications are preferred. Salary is commensurate with qualifications. Applications will begin to be scrutinized on October 28. Please include e-mail address to facilitate contact. Send letter of application, curriculum vitae, and three letters of recommendation to Professor Alan I Marcus, Head, Department of History, Mississippi State University, Mailbox H, Mississippi State, MS 39762. You may also apply and send your documentation via email at aimarcus@history.msstate.edu. Candidates must complete the Personal Data Information Form at jobs.msstate.edu . Minorities and women are encouraged to apply. Mississippi State University is an AA/EOE.

Agricultural History Job Opening - Europe
European History. Assistant Professor. The Mississippi State University Department of History invites applications for a tenure-track appointment in some area of European History, 19th or 20th century, beginning August 2012. Specialists in Agricultural, Rural and/or Environmental history are welcomed. Teaching responsibilities are two courses per semester. Offerings include undergraduate and graduate courses in the area of expertise, a turn in the Western Civilization survey course, and graduate seminars. Demonstrated ability to contribute to the department’s vibrant intellectual life is especially favored. A Ph.D. by time of appointment is required. Evidence of successful teaching and publications are preferred. Salary is commensurate with qualifications. Applications will begin to be scrutinized on October 28, 2011. Please include e-mail address to facilitate contact. Send letter of application, curriculum vitae, and three letters of recommendation to Professor Alan I Marcus, Head, Department of History, Mississippi State University, Mailbox H, Mississippi State, MS 39762. You may also apply and send your documentation via email at aimarcus@history.msstate.edu. Candidates must complete the Personal Data Information Form at jobs.msstate.edu . Minorities and woman are encouraged to apply. Mississippi State University is an AA/EOE.

The Political Culture of South Dakota, Call for Papers
The South Dakota State Historical Society (SDSHS) Press invites chapter proposals on all aspects of the political culture of South Dakota from the territorial period to the present. Political culture should be broadly construed to mean any and all aspects of life, culture, and economics of South Dakota that relate to the organization and disposition of civic affairs. Interested parties should consult the forthcoming The Plains Political Tradition: Essays on South Dakota Political Culture (South Dakota State Historical Society Press, Fall 2011), which will serve as a model for the future volume and a building block for future research. Proposals should be sent to this office by January 2, 2012. Successful proposals will need to be followed with completed manuscripts of approximately twenty-five pages (plus notes) by January 2, 2013. Manuscripts that are approved will appear in a future volume to be edited by Jon K. Lauck, John E. Miller, and Donald C. Simmons, Jr., and published by the SDSHS Press in 2014. Potential areas of political culture for discussion include, but are not limited to: agrarianism, urban history, ethno-cultural histories, American Indian politics and reservation life, religion, transportation, the environment, general politics, important political figures, demographic analyses, comparative analyses (South Dakota vs. other states), legal history, sport and recreation, labor history, state government, economics, and folk culture. DEADLINE for submission of chapter proposals to be reviewed by SDSHS: January 2, 2012 If proposal is approved the DEADLINE for submission of draft chapters will be January 2, 2013. All proposals (and queries) should be submitted to Martyn Beeny, Associate Editor, at South Dakota State Historical Society Press, 900 Governors Drive, Pierre, SD 57501. Proposals should be accompanied by a professional résumé or curriculum vitae.

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