Colorado and the American West: Finding Place In the Histories of Your State and Region
By Michael Matson
There is a large gap between scholarly and public history. Consequently, the progressive and radical nature of many scholarly publications is rarely utilized in reorienting our conceptions of primarily white-, wealthy-centered histories. Such popularly classist, racist, sexist, and speciest historical conceptions apply to both local and global pasts, and are in large part fueled by the media most accessible to the public: widely circulated newspapers and magazines, the world wide web, and television. Often, and for a number of reasons, reviews or commentary on scholarly histories are not present in these mediums, and so there is little motivation for people to seek them out, whether in bookstores, or preferably, libraries.
The reality that “the vast majority of published materials rarely make it into reviewing media,” certainly should not be—or remain—the truth.[1] It is critical that mainstream reviewing media cover all aspects of the alternative press, particularly well-researched works. The exclusion of such material “makes it difficult for alternative publications to become part of current social discourse,” leaving the masses with less information to contemplate, discuss, and develop further.[2] Scholarly works effectively challenge our current notions of history, and therefore the ways in which we use our diverse roots and pasts to shape our identities and perceive our positions/roles in our own historical epochs. The purpose of this article is to direct Ark Valley Voice readers to alternative publications—both new and old—focusing on the history of your home state and region: Colorado and the American West. The links listed below will direct you to works which are particularly accessible, readable, and narrative-driven, exposing you to extremely interesting, valuable, and enlightening arguments and stories. This is meant to be a pathway to books and ideas you may not be aware of, or are not frequently confronted with.
Knowing who shaped our surroundings, and how and why they did so, builds a powerful connection to the natural and built environments we interact with on a daily basis. But attempting to learn about the past without recognizing the powerful presence and perspectives of historically marginalized peoples makes a holistic understanding of our local pasts impossible. Thus, many of the books found through the sources below will include the stories of often overlooked or underappreciated, but deeply significant, beings and their surrounding environments, many of which may include some of your own ancestors and the lands you live on today. Consequently, reading these works will hopefully facilitate the creation of unique, individual senses of place, and subsequently, more informed, thoughtful, critical, and egalitarian worldviews.
All of this is highly connected to the betterment of our current global predicaments. Constructing a meaningful sense of place translates into respect for that place and its inhabitants. This reading material is meant to produce or at least spark conscientious interactions between people and places on a local scale. Whether that scale be confined to your own homes and towns, the Arkansas River Valley, the state of Colorado, or the greater American West makes no difference, for this is the scale with the greatest potential to fuel more expansive environmental, political, and social progress.
Aside from the valuable information available at your local historical societies and public libraries, books that will deepen your understanding of Colorado and Western history can be found on the following websites:
http://www.coloradohistory.org/publications/rev_cntr.htm
(The Colorado Historical Society Book Review Center website directs you to state-related book reviews, new book notices, and most importantly, topically oriented bibliographies for interests ranging from the Colorado fur trade to African Americans in Colorado and Western history. Navigate through the rest of CHS’s website to find out about historic sites, programs, and events around the state.)
http://www.upcolorado.com/
(The University Press of Colorado website allows you to browse by various Colorado- and Western-related book series, or by individual subjects of interest. Most titles published by a public university such as the University of Colorado will be relevant to state and regional history, geography, anthropology, etc.)
http://www.centerwest.org/
(Since its inception in 1989, and its reorganization in 1995, the Center of the American West at the University of Colorado at Boulder has been committed to providing essential information of various subject matter to Coloradans and Westerners in order to create “forums for the respectful exchange of ideas and perspectives in the pursuit of solutions to the region’s difficulties.” Look through the Center’s news, publications, projects, and events to expand your state and regional education.)
http://yalepress.yale.edu/yupbooks/SeriesPage.asp?series=122
(Yale University Press publishes the Lamar Series in Western History, which is composed of “scholarly books of general public interest that enhance the understanding of human affairs in the American West and contribute to a wider understanding of why the West matters in the political, social, and cultural life of America.” Books found on this website will relate more closely to Western regional history, though some will focus more exclusively on Colorado. This series will be of particular interest to anyone hoping to gain a better understanding of American Indian histories.)
[1] Tami Oliphant, “The Invisibility of the Alternative Media,” in Library Juice Concentrate, ed. Rory Litwin (Duluth: Library Juice Press, 2006), 101.
[2] Oliphant, 102.
