The New Mexico Federation of Women's Clubs Oral History Project, Ms 392, documents several decades of civic and charitable activity in southern New Mexico. Through oral histories and supporting documentation, these interviews offer their perspectives on work, social life, and the cultural life in each of the communities in which these ladies lived during the first half of the twentieth century. Among the topics discussed are civic improvements, schools, libraries, social integration, fundraising, volunteer work, club conventions, community action, and political lobbying.

In We Will Be Heard, noted political scientist Jo Freeman chronicles the struggles of women in the United States for political power. Most of their stories are little-known, but Freeman's compelling portrait of women working for change reminds us that women have never been silent in the political affairs of the nation. From J. Ellen Foster's address to the 1892 Republican Convention to Nancy Pelosi's 2007 election as the first female Speaker of the House, women have worked to influence politics at every level. Well before most could vote, women campaigned for candidates and lobbied to shape public policy. Men welcomed their work, but not their ideas. Even with equal suffrage women faced many barriers to full political participation. The fifteen case studies of women's struggles for political influence in this book provide the historical context for today's political events. Starting with an overview of when and why political women have been studied, the three sections of the book look at different ways in whi

Interpreting the Legacy of Women’s Suffrage at Museums and Historic Sites is an invaluable guide for public historians and practitioners who wish to share an updated historic narrative that is inclusive of the full breadth of the movement, including the pervasive bias and racism. This book acknowledges the barriers faced by history practitioners, from the difficulty in finding materials that document the political actions by women of color, to our own reluctance to broach this disparity, and then offers practical solutions and techniques for bringing about a larger shift in organizational culture. To begin, this book includes a chronological primer on the US women’s suffrage movement and the events around the 50th, 75th, and finally the centennial of the ratification of the 19th Amendment that took place in 2020. Additionally, four women’s history practitioners share case studies from their work at the National Woman’s Party, the Frances Willard House, and the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. Each organization is moving forward to confront the racist tactics, or documented racism within their own history. The final case study written by Chick History showcases their multi-year project to digitize and make available family and local history related to African American women’s political history in Tennessee before 1930. The case studies can be used as models for best practices, cautionary examples of lessons learned, and can be replicated at sites of all sizes. Lastly, the book provides an expansive list of online resources as well as a discussion guide on the history of women’s voting rights. Interpreting the Legacy of Women’s Suffrage at Museums and Historic Sites will be helpful to both practitioners and community organizations as they engage in public discussions or convene focus groups around the sensitive topics of bias and racism within the larger women’s suffrage movement.

As part of the Works Progress Administration during the Depression, two women interviewers, Lou Sage Batchen and Annette Hesch Thorp, gathered womens stories or cuentosfrom many native ancianas to glean vivid details of a way of life now long disappeared.

This volume brings together an impressive collection of important works covering nearly every aspect of early Native American history, from contact and exchange to diplomacy, religion, warfare, and disease.

What questions ought historians investigate to understand the twentieth-century West? In nine original essays, noted senior scholars Robert Cherny, Thomas Cox, Fred Erisman, Richard Etulain, Gene Gressley, Roger Lotchin, Gerald Nash, and Glenda Riley offer insightful suggestions to aid the study of modern western history. The opportunities for research advanced here are meant to be suggestive and open-ended, presenting new approaches and perspectives on a variety of topics. Some of the essays cover traditional areas such as economic, political, and cultural history; others examine the environment, cities, gender, and the myths of the West.An introduction and a conclusion offer masterful overviews of interpretations of the twentieth-century West. The individual essays also offer first-rate historiographic accounts that will interest students and specialists alike.This book will be important for a decade.Martin Ridge

WILLA Literary Award Winner in Creative Nonfiction 2022 Spur Award Winner 2022 Top Pick in Southwest Books of the Year New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards Finalist in Cover Design Honorable Mention in the At-Large NFPW Communications Contest The Forgotten Botanist is the account of an extraordinary woman who, in 1870, was driven by ill health to leave the East Coast for a new life in the West--alone. At thirty-three, Sara Plummer relocated to Santa Barbara, where she taught herself botany and established the town's first library. Ten years later she married botanist John Gill Lemmon, and together the two discovered hundreds of new plant species, many of them illustrated by Sara, an accomplished artist. Although she became an acknowledged botanical expert and lecturer, Sara's considerable contributions to scientific knowledge were credited merely as "J.G. Lemmon & wife." The Forgotten Botanist chronicles Sara's remarkable life, in which she and JG found new plant species in Arizona, California, Oregon, and Mexico and traveled throughout the Southwest with such friends as John Muir and Clara Barton. Sara also found time to work as a journalist and as an activist in women's suffrage and forest conservation. The Forgotten Botanist is a timeless tale about a woman who discovered who she was by leaving everything behind. Her inspiring story is one of resilience, determination, and courage--and is as relevant to our nation today as it was in her own time.