The Indian School on Magnolia Avenue: Book Excerpt
The Indian School on Magnolia Avenue: Book Excerpt
In 1902, the federal government opened the Sherman Institute in Riverside, California, to transform American Indian students into productive farmers, carpenters, homemakers, nurses, cooks, and seamstresses. The Indian School on Magnolia Avenue: Voices and Images from Sherman Institute, edited by Clifford E. Trafzer, Matthew Sakiestewa Gilbert, and Lorene Sisquoc, tells the story of this flagship institution and features the voices of those who attended the school. The book is the first collection of writings and images focused on an off-reservation Indian boarding school. Contributors to the volume draw upon documents held at the Sherman Indian Museum to explore topics such as the building of Sherman, the school's Mission architecture, the nursing program, the Special Five-Year Navajo Program, the Sherman cemetery, and a photo essay depicting life at the school. In the following excerpt from the conclusion, Matthew Sakiestewa Gilbert discusses his time spent conducting research in th
e Museum's archival vault and his experience bringing his findings back to Hopi alumni of the Sherman Institute.
Women in the West
We can’t let March and Women's History Month pass without highlighting some remarkable books that unveil and celebrate women’s experiences in the West.
In her 2011 WILLA Award winning memoir, To the Woods,Evelyn Searle Hess describes the challenges and lessons of building a new life in the wild foothills of Oregon’s coast range. An elegant tour of the natural history of place through the seasons, To the Woods is also an exploration of sustainable living and the joys of simplicity.
Reflecting on Oregon's History
"It is a gift to look back and unpack everything in between then and now and reflect aloud. How many of us get to do that before we become dust?" —Avel Louise Gordly
The theme of this year’s African American History Month, “Honoring Black Women in American Culture and History,” is an irresistible opportunity to highlight two books that tell the story of significant women in Oregon's history.
Celebrating with Heart: Oregon Turns 153
On February 14, the state of Oregon marks 153 years. This coming week some of our Portland-area colleagues and collaborators are offering fabulous opportunities to toast Oregon's rich history.
On Monday, Feb. 13, 7 pm, noted historian Richard Etulain—who contributed the foreword to Eileen O'Keeffe McVicker'sChild of Steens Mountain—presents on "Abraham Lincoln and the American West During the Civil War Era" as part of the Oregon Encyclopedia's History Nights series. His talk happens at McMenamin's Mission Theater, 1624 NW Glisan, Portland.
Deanna Paniataaq Kingston, Scholar and Advocate
All are invited to a celebration of Deanna Kingston’s lifeMonday, February 6, 1 to 3 p.m.MU Ballroom, Oregon State UniversityAfter several years struggling with cancer, the author of a forthcoming OSU Press book passed away in December. Dr. Kingston, who was an associate professor of anthropology at Oregon State University, was in the process of finalizing the manuscript for her book “Niglarugut Ugiuvangmiuguruagut: We King Islanders are Wolf Dancing," part of the First Peoples: New Directions in Indigenous Studies initiative. Read their blog post about Deanna. Oregon State University’s tribute to Deanna highlights her many personal and professional accomplishments. She received the 2010 Phylllis S. Lee Award from OSU for her dedication to social justice; at the time of her death she was principal investigator on two National Science Foundation grants. (Read NSF's tribute.)OSU Press plans to move forward with the book project in partnership with the OSU Anthropology Department. As acquisitions editor Mary Elizabeth Braun shares, “Deanna was a gifted and innovative scholar who spent much of her career working for her community, including creating a website for the King Island Placenames Project and many long-term efforts in documenting traditional ecological knowledge.”(Photo courtesy of Life @ OSU.)
Oregon Book Award and Other Goings On
Congratulations to Brian Doyle and Glenn Anthony May, Oregon Book Award Finalists! Mink River is up for the The Ken Kesey Award for Fiction andSonny Montes and Mexican American Activism in Oregon for The Frances Fuller Victor Award for General Nonfiction. Timothy Egan hosts the awards ceremony on April 23rd in Portland. Click here for ticket information and to peruse the complete and impressive list of finalists. Don't forget to cast your ballot for the Readers’ Choice Award. We've already bragged about our amazing cover designer, David Drummond, and OSU Archives has even created a flickr set of OSU Press covers designed by Drummond. The AAUP Book, Jacket, and Journal Show—which is traveling the country and is on display in the Valley Library at Oregon State University through Jan. 18th—features examples of excellent book design from the scholarly publishing world. OSU Press’s The Lumberman’s Frontier is among the award-winners for cover design. 
New Books for the New Year
Hello, 2012! What better welcome could there be than a peek at new books coming this spring?
We are pleased to announce Songs of Power and Prayer in the Columbia Plateau, our first title in the First Peoples: New Directions in Indigenous Studies initiative. In his new book, Chad Hamill describes the encounter between a Jesuit and his two Indian “grandfathers”—one a medicine man, the other a hymn singer—exploring the transformative role of song in the twentieth century. First Peoples blogged about Chad in July. Another addition to our indigenous studies books, Asserting Native Resilience, explores Native responses to the climate crisis from a rich variety of perspectives. The volume is edited by Evergreen State College professors Zoltán Grossman and Alan Parker. Many readers have discovered Brian Doyle through his first novel, the amazing Mink River. (And Mink continues to be discovered by new readers—it is the current selection for Lake Oswego Reads and remains on Powell’s bestsellers list.) Don’t miss The Wet Engine, a poignant exploration of the heart as a physical organ and as a metaphor, woven with the author’s experience of his infant son’s heart surgery. The Press is proud to make this wonderful book available again in a new paperback edition. And there’s more: wildlife encounters captured in jewel-like micro-essays; an analysis of Oregon’s land-use planning policies; essays exploring conservation thinking in the U.S.; histories of Multnomah County, of Oregon government and politics, and of the iconic Reed College; portraits of cowgirls and ranch women of the American West… We invite you to download our Spring 2012 catalog to learn more.