Upcoming Events

The Development of the American West Symposium

The West has always been at the forefront of the American mind. From the early days of the Republic, when the vast area beyond the Appalachian Mountains spurred imagination, through the mid-19th century, when the vast plains beyond the Mississippi River beckoned those seeking a new start, the West has both inspired and defined the absolute limits of American achievement. “The American Frontier” and “Manifest Destiny” were used by politicians and citizens alike to spur the United States to be a continental empire.

At the same time, as often unruly Americans spread West, those who inhibited those lands – numerous Native American tribes – were pushed aside, contained, or conquered outright. Thus, while “The West” often has positive connotations in American History narratives, it also has a dark side – too often forgotten in the pursuit of heroic storytelling.

The PIPE Symposium on the Development of the American West brings together leading scholars from across the nation to consider a balanced analysis of how the American West developed from a political-economic perspective. Paper topics will include:

• Gender Gaps in Frontier Entrepreneurship: Evidence from 1901 Oklahoma Land Lottery Winners

• Inequalities in Vote by Mail in the US West: Origins and Current Realities of US Mail Access for Native Americans in Arizona

• Keeping the Faith: Spanish Missions and their Impact on Native Americans in the Southwest and California

• The Comparative Effect of Federal and State Land Policy in the US West

• The Cultural Legacies of the US West and Military Enlistment Behavior

After the paper presentations, we will have a book-manuscript presentation by Emilie Connolly (Brandeis University), entitled “Empire’s Succession: Trusteeship, Capitalism, and Native American Dispossession in the United States.” Paul Frymer (Princeton University) and Sarah Quinn (University of Washington) will serve as discussants.