Titled “On the Cusp of War:
Houston in the 1860s,” the conference will address not only the social,
institutional and economic changes in the Houston area as a result of the Civil
War, but also address historical movements since the 1860 through presentations
and discussions with Houston leadership, scholars, academics and the public.
The format includes keynote speakers, breakout sessions with the choice of two
or more panel presentations per session, and exhibits/interactive displays from
local history and neighborhood organizations.
At the conference, former
Mayor Bill White will present two special awards to living history legends J.P.
Bryan (Houston History Hero Award) and John Britt (Betty Trapp Chapman Houston
History Award), in appreciation of their tireless work in the field of history.
Presentations scheduled for the program include:
·
Juneteenth – former Texas legislator Albert "Al"
Edwards—author and sponsor of House bill making June 19th a paid holiday in
Texas; Alvia Wardlaw, Ph.D., Texas Southern University; Merline Pitre, Ph.D.,
Texas Southern University; Naomi Carrier, Independent Scholar; Portia Baker
Hopkins, Lee College
·
Worrying Women, Working
Women: Houston Area Women during Civil War and Reconstruction - Angela Boswell, Henderson State University
·
The Slaves of Houston from
Steamboat Arrival to Emancipation - Kelly
M. Ray, Chicago, Museum Curator and Independent Scholar
·
Civil War on the Upper
Gulf Coast - Ken Grubb, Battle of
Galveston, Wharton County College; Brady Hutchinson, Sabine Pass, San Jacinto
College
·
Reconstruction in Houston – Ronald Goodwin, Ph.D., Prairie View A&M
University
·
Antebellum Wilderness: The
Natural History of the Houston Area -
Jaime Gonzalez, Independent Scholar
·
The Changing Images of
Houston, 1860-1900 - Ann Becker, Harris
County Historical Commission.
·
Houston Activism - Houston History magazine staff:
o Yates High School Principal William Holland the Third Ward
Community - Debbie Z. Harwell, managing
editor
o Animal Rights Activism in Houston - Lindsay Scovil, associate editor
o Chicana Activist Maria Jimenez - Denise Gomez, oral history intern
o Houston’s Graffiti Art: Visual Activism - Nimra Haroon, magazine intern
o Can Catholicism Win America? Kennedy, Anti-Catholicism, and
the Election of 1960 - John S. Huntington,
University of Houston
o Our Endurance is Exhausted! The Black Campus Movement in
Houston, Texas, 1960-1969 - Stephanie
Weiss, University of Houston
o A Troubled Relationship: Gay Houstonians and the Police,
1975-1995 - Chris Haight, University of
Houston
o The Texas Federal Writers Project’s Houston City Guide:
Travel For Change - Michael Mitchell,
College Library Director, Houston Community College Southeast
o Oveta Culp Hobby: How a Small-town Texas Girl became a
National Treasure - Debra Winegarten,
independent scholar and author of “Oveta Culp Hobby: Colonel, Cabinet Member,
Philanthropist”
o The War on Poverty and the Struggle for Democracy in
Houston during the 1960s - Wesley G.
Phelps, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of History, Sam Houston State University
o Houston in 1860 - Eddie
Weller, Ph.D. San Jacinto College
o Race and Faith in the Bayou City: African American,
Latina/o, and Anglo Baptists in Houston’s Civil Rights Movements - David Cameron, Texas A&M University
o Hidden Heritage: The History & Legacy of African
American Planning in Houston-Area Freedom Colonies - Andrea Roberts, University of Texas (Paper and Workshop)
Sponsorships
are welcome; all sponsors will be invited to attend a private cocktail
reception and tour of the Nau Civil War Collection on Friday, September 11,
2015 Hosted by Bobbie and John Nau and Silver Eagle Distributors, the event
will be held at Silver Eagle Distributors, home of the collection at 7777
Washington Ave.
Sponsors of this year’s
conference include Ralph and Miki Lusk Norton, Jan and Jack Cato, Bill Barnett,
Betty Trapp Chapman, The Strake Foundation, Humanities Texas, University of
Houston-Center for Public History, Summerlee
Foundation, Texas Historical Foundation, University of Houston Libraries,
University of Houston Honors College and Texas State Historical Association.
“It has been an extremely successful year for Houston
History Alliance as it becomes a model for preserving and disseminating local
history for the rest of the state,” says Cecelia Ottenweller, Co-President,
HHA. “Besides this incredible annual history conference which is also the
launching place for articles and scholarly papers about Houston’s history, HHA
is dissipating history through a monthly local history radio program, a
bimonthly newsletter and—soon—its Handbook of Houston History project that will
be available online. HHA also recently finalized partnerships with TSHA for the
funding of an editor position to direct the Handbook project, and an
affiliation with the Center for Public History at the University of Houston to
provide us office space.”
The cost of the conference is $50 per person before
September 11; $40 for seniors, for those presenting in the breakout sessions,
and for representatives of exhibiting organizations; and $25 for teachers not
covered by scholarships from their respected school systems. If space allows,
on-site registration will be available for $60 per person. All tickets include
lunch and admission for a full day of activities.
