Call for Chapter Proposals

The editors of volume three in The Plains Political Tradition:
Essays on South Dakota Political Culture series are calling for chapter proposals. Proposals are due June 1, 2015, more information is below.

The Plains Political Tradition: Essays on South Dakota Political Culture, Volume 2, $22.95, http://www.sdhspress.com

Writers in the fields of history, political science, geography, and related fields are invited to submit chapter proposals for volume three of The Plains Political Tradition: Essays in South Dakota Political Culture series, published by the South Dakota Historical Society Press.

Proposals must provide a detailed description of what will comprise the chapter, including descriptions of the sources to be used, the topics to be explored, and the contributions the chapter will make to the understanding of South Dakota political culture.

The selected chapters must be formatted to the Chicago Manual of Style, thoroughly documented with end notes, contain original research, and be appealing to both popular and scholarly audiences. Graphs, tables, charts, and photographic suggestions are welcome as attachments to the essay. Chapters on political actors, parties, pressure groups, organizations, legislation, outcomes, events, campaigns, the media, political socialization, ideas, rhetoric, social-economic-cultural transitions, and other elements of politics that help explain South Dakota’s political culture are invited. Comparative studies which place South Dakota within the broader purview of other states, the region, or the nation will be especially welcome, as will synthetic studies that place the material in the broadest possible context of place and time. Special attention should be paid to how the subject being discussed reflects or contributes to a deeper understanding of the political culture of South Dakota. For additional direction, prospective authors are

The Plains Political Tradition: Essays on South Dakota Political Culture, Volume 1, $19.95, http://www.sdhspress.com

strongly encouraged to review the chapters in the previous two volumes of The Plains Political Tradition series, published in 2011 and 2014 by South Dakota Historical Society Press.

The editors for volume three will be Jon K. Lauck, John E. Miller, and Paula M. Nelson. Proposals for chapters are due on June 1, 2015, and they should be submitted by electronic mail to Paula Nelson at nelsonp1951@yahoo.com. If a proposal is accepted, the final chapter will be due March 1, 2016. Final chapters should range from 6,000 to 8,000 words (not counting notes), be double-spaced, and be submitted as a word document in 12 pt Bookman Old Style font. Authors who are selected for inclusion in the new volume will be invited to participate in a book release conference to be held in March 2018 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

A Few Photos from the South Dakota Festival of Books 2012

This gallery contains 4 photos.

A Comment on Political Tradition

The South Dakota State Historical Society (SDSHS) Press has just released The Plains Political Tradition: Essays on South Dakota Political Culture edited by Jon K. Lauck, John E. Miller, and Donald C. Simmons, Jr.

Jon Lauck has written a small guest post regarding the study of politics in South Dakota for this blog:

Many people believe—and I think they are right—that public discourse and civic participation and democratic institutions in general are stronger when a citizenry has a solid understanding of the historical origins of current issues and a larger sense of how politics works in the place where they live. Unfortunately, in South Dakota, many years have passed since a large-scale assessment of the state’s politics has been undertaken. The last attempt was Alan Clem’s 1967 book Prairie State Politics: Popular Democracy in South Dakota. Thanks to the SDSHS Press and the publication of The Plains Political Tradition, we now have an opportunity to once again engage in a serious conversation about the deeper currents underlying South Dakota’s political system.

South Dakota’s Political Culture

Politics can sometimes be a tricky subject to bring up in polite conversation. Fortunately, here at the SDSHS Press, we have a worldly readership and audience, so we’re less hesitant to start such a discussion. And that is exactly what we’ve done in our latest book, The Plains Political Tradition: Essays on South Dakota Political Culture edited by Jon K. Lauck, John E. Miller, and Donald C. Simmons, Jr.

Throughout the state’s history there has been a Republican dominance in state politics, but that doesn’t mean the political culture of the state is monochromatic. In fact, when you start to dig below the surface you find that there is a varied and colorful political culture. The twelve essays in the book look at a wide range of topics, from early Dakota Territory political culture, to immigrants and their effect on our politics; from the political parties themselves to the oft-hidden but still there political left; from women and literature to war, peace, and missiles; from environmentalism and the American Indian Movement to local government and the politics of defeat.

The topics are diverse, but then that is the point: South Dakota’s political culture is as varied as the people who live in the state, as different as East River and West River, and as opposite as right and left.

If you are in Mitchell, SD, November 14, there is going to be conference at the George McGovern Center at Dakota Wesleyan University where historians, politicians, journalists, and academics will discuss the ideas raised in The Plains Political Tradition.

New Covers

Just thought we’d share with you the covers of the next three books to come from the South Dakota State Historical Society Press. Let us know what you think!

Principle over Party

The newest book in the South Dakota State Historical Society Press’s catalogue is Principle over Party: The Farmers’ Alliance and Populism in South Dakota, 1880-1900, and it just arrived in our warehouse this past weekend.

This book has been in the hopper a long time, but that happens sometimes, and often there is little that we can do about it; it just takes a good amount of time for a book to mature and be ready for the wider world! South Dakota’s political history is fascinating, filled with intrigue and some dynamic developments, which, given that the state is often not at the center of modern history, can come as a surprise.

R. Alton Lee has done a great job of putting together the story of the Populism movement in South Dakota at the end of the 1800s. By doing so, he has filled in a gap in the historical narrative of this important political movement.

As historian Jon Lauck wrote for the back cover of the book, “After decades of battles between historians over the meaning of the American Populist movement, South Dakota is now joining the discussion with the publication of Al Lee’s authoritative book, the first book-length analysis of South Dakota Populism ever published.”

So, it may have taken a while, but we think it has definitely been worth the wait!

New Books Coming in 2010

Just in case you are interested, here is the full list of books you can expect in 2010 from the South Dakota State Historical Society Press:

The Mystery of the Maize by Mark Meierhenry and David Volk, illustrated by Marty Two Bulls, Sr.

Beyond Mount Rushmore: Other Black Hills Faces edited by Mary Kopco

Sitting Bull, Prisoner of War Dennis Pope

Principle Over Party: The Farmer’s Alliance and Populism in South Dakota, 1880-1900 R. Alton Lee

The Enchanted Buffalo L. Frank Baum, illustrated by Donald F. Montileaux

Check out www.sdshspress.com for updates and further information on this list.