Mary Lee Spence, Urbana, IL: an interview by Raquel Escobar, 23 July 2013

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Title Mary Lee Spence, Urbana, IL: an interview by Raquel Escobar, 23 July 2013
Alternative Title No. 717 Mary Lee Spence
Creator Spence, Mary Lee
Contributor Escobar, Raquel
Publisher Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah
Date 2013-07-23
Collection Number and Name ACCN 0814 Everett L. Cooley Oral History Project
Finding Aid https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:80444/xv48007
Access Rights I acknowledge and agree that all information I obtain as a result of accessing any oral history provided by the University of Utah's Marriott Library shall be used only for historical or scholarly or academic research purposes, and not for commercial purposes. I understand that any other use of the materials is not authorized by the University of Utah and may exceed the scope of permission granted to the University of Utah by the interviewer or interviewee. I may request permission for other uses, in writing to Special Collections at the Marriott Library, which the University of Utah may choose grant, in its sole discretion. I agree to defend, indemnify and hold the University of Utah and its Marriott Library harmless for and against any actions or claims that relate to my improper use of materials provided by the University of Utah.
Date Digital 2015-07-08
Subject Spence, Mary Lee--Interviews; Western History Association--History; Historians--West (U.S.)--Biography
Description Transcript (9 pages) of an interview by Raquel Escobar with Mary Lee Spence at Urbana, Illinois, on 23 July 2013. Part of the Western History Association Oral History Project, Everett Cooley Collection tape no. U-3213
Abstract Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Illinois and first woman president of the Western History Association, Mary Lee Spence, discusses her role in the WHA and shares her thoughts on the organization. A physics major at the University of Texas, she soon switched to history and later became interested in Western history, particularly influenced by her advisor at the University of Minnesota, Ernest Osgood. She joined the WHA in 1962 with her husband Clark C. Spence, but did not attend for perhaps ten years due to her children. She mentions a number of prominent historians involved in the WHA early on, including Martin Ridge, Vernon Carstenson, and Francis Paul Prucha. Having served several leadership roles in the WHA, Dr. Spence became president in 1981. She remembers the organization early on being almost entirely white, and notes its growing diversity over the decades. She also mentions that non-white professional historians’ numbers have increased and that they are more welcome at the WHA now than in the past. Dr. Spence also discusses the role of women in the organization and notes their increasing roles over the years. She feels the WHA's mission is the same as it was in the early years - to explore the history of all facets of the West. Project: Western History Association. Interviewer: Raquel Escobar
Type Text
Genre oral histories (literary works)
Format application/pdf
Language eng
Rights
Scanning Technician Niko Amaya; Halima Noor
Conversion Specifications Original scanned with Kirtas 2400 and saved as 400 ppi uncompressed TIFF. PDF generated by Adobe Acrobat Pro X for CONTENTdm display.
ARK ark:/87278/s62j86wt
Topic Western History Association; Historians--Biography
Setname uum_elc
ID 838456
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s62j86wt
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