Arkansas Historical Association offers a number of awards:
James H. Atkinson Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Arkansas History
The J.H. Atkinson Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Arkansas History was initiated by the Arkansas Historical Association in 1989 to promote the teaching of Arkansas history in grades K through 12 by recognizing individual excellence in the classroom. A bequest from the will of J.H. Atkinson helps fund the cash prize that in recent years has risen to $300.00. Continuous donors are Richard Dixon and the White Hall Social Studies Club.
As a leader in Arkansas education, James H. Atkinson was a founder and twice president of the Pulaski County Historical Society and editor of its journal for more than ten years. For more than twenty years, he served on the editorial staff of the Arkansas Historical Quarterly, and in 1952 he became president of the Arkansas Historical Association. He was also chairman of the Arkansas History Commission for eight of the twelve years that he served on the board. For his enduring contributions, his title, "Mr. Arkansas History," is more than well deserved. The award for Excellence in the Teaching of Arkansas History is given in his honor. The winner is determined by a three-person panel selected by the president.
J. G. Ragsdale Book Award in Arkansas History
The J. G. Ragsdale Book Award in Arkansas History was first presented by the Association in 2002. It is endowed by AHA permanent member and trustee emeritus John G. Ragsdale to honor J. G. Ragsdale, a founding member of the Arkansas Historical Association and chairman of the board of trustees of the University of Arkansas. The award carries a prize of $500 and is presented every year at the annual conference in April. Eligible works include book-length historical studies written in English and published in the two calendar years preceding the annual conference. Submissions are judged by a three-person panel appointed by the president.
Violet B. Gingles Award
David O. Demuth of Benton gave $2,500 to established the Violet B. Gingles Award in April 1979 in honor of his late mother-in-law, Violet B. Gingles. She died shortly thereafter and Mr. Demuth made a corporate gift of $100 from Gingles Hardware Company of Benton to honor "the wife of our founder." Friends of Mrs. Gingles sent the association $317.50 in memorials which brought the award to $2,917.50. After David Demuth death Mrs. Cherry Demuth, his widow, sent the association a check in the amount of $82.50 (April 1979) to bring the award to $3,000. Cal Ledbetter, Jr., made a gift of $100 as a memorial to Mr. Demuth, and Ted Boswell made a gift of $25, bringing the total Gingles endowment to $3,125. The $300 prize has been given each year, starting with the annual meeting in 1980. In recent years the prize amount has risen to $500. The award is bestowed yearly to the person who submits the best paper on Arkansas history. The three judges are appointed by the president.
The Lucille Westbrook Local History Prize
On 6/16/79 the Arkansas Historical Association accepted a prize endowment
from Mr. Parker Westbrook, Nashville, Arkansas, to establish the Lucille Westbrook
Local History Prize in honor of his sister, Miss Lucille Westbrook. The initial
contribution was $1,000. Later that same year, in October, another $1,000
was added bringing the total Westbrook endowment to $2,000. In 1988 Lucille
Westbrook gave $1,000 to the award, which allowed the prize to be raised to
$300. Then in January 1990, Parker Westbrook added another $1,000. The endowment
is now $4,000. A contest is held yearly to determine the winner of the prize
for the best paper in the field of local, county, city, or regional history.
The topic must deal with some phase of neighborhood, city, county, or regional
Arkansas history, or some person associated with local history.
The Lucille Westbrook Prize consists of a check for $500 and certificate of
recognition. The award is given to the person who writes the best manuscript
article on a local Arkansas subject. Three judges are appointed by the president
who select both the Gingles and Westbrook award winners.
Walter L. Brown County and Local Journal Awards
In 1990, initial contributions to the Walter L. Brown award fund amounted to $2,000. The fund was designed to promote research and writing of Arkansas history and encourage excellence in the teaching of Arkansas history. The association presents the Walter L. Brown Award for Best County or Local History Journal and the Walter L. Brown Award for Best Article Published in a County or Local History Journal every year at its annual conference. The awards carry a prize of $100 and are determined by three judges appointed by the president.
Other Journal/Article Awards*
Honorable Mention as runner-up for Best County or Local Historical Journal
Best Biography, Autobiography, or Memoir
Best Church History
Best Family History
Best Community History
Best School History
Best Business History
Best Edited Document
*Certificates only are given for these awards
Addendum:
Women's History Institute's Susie Pryor Award - The Arkansas Women's History
Institute presents its Susie Pryor Award every year at the AHA's annual conference.
Established in 1985, the award recognizes the best unpublished essay or article
on a topic in Arkansas women's history. It is named in honor of Susie Pryor
(1900-1984), the first woman to run for public office in Arkansas.
The Civil War Roundtable Association presents its Dale Bumpers Award for the best Civil War article in a local or county historical journal at the AHA's annual conference.
Life/Permanent Membership
In 1963 the Arkansas Historical Association established two new categories of membership: life and permanent members. The dues for life membership were $200, and the names of all permanent members were to be carried on the rolls of the Association and printed in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly in perpetuity. Any life member could become a permanent member by paying an additional $100. Descendants or friends of life members who were deceased could pay the $100 to honor the deceased member with a permanent membership. The Association also accepts permanent memberships for deceased persons who belonged to the original Arkansas Historical Association or who have distinguished themselves in service to the state or to the Association. Currently, it takes $500 and $1000 respectively to become life or permanent members.
Jon. P. Morrow, Jr., of Batesville honored his grandfather, Virgil Young Cook (Nov. 14, 1848-March 12, 1922), with the first permanent membership in the Association. A native of Kentucky and a veteran of Forrest's CSA cavalry brigade, Cook came to Arkansas in 1866. He engaged in mercantile pursuits and served as an agent of the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railroad.
Friends of the 50th Campaign
The "Friends of the 50th" fund dates back to the 50th Anniversary Annual Meeting of the association held in Little Rock on April 4-6, 1991. Members continue to contribute to that fund, which as of 2003 was renamed Friends of the Association fund.
Arkansas Historical Association's Capital Campaign
Planning for the Capital Campaign began under the leadership of Andre L. Guerrero, a member of the board of trustees (1993-1996), appointed to chair a committee to explore the possibility of raising funds for the association. After Guerrero left the board, Jo Ann Pugh took over leadership of the committee. Together with Jeannie Whayne they secured the first of several key donations in 1996. The Capital Campaign is endowed to insure and enhance the work of the Association in accomplishing its mission to promote the preservation, writing, publishing, teaching and understanding of Arkansas History. The initial contribution began with Association funds and continued with gifts and pledges.
Special Publications
During Tom Dillard's tenure as president (1982-1983), the Association voted to launch a publications program, in addition to publishing the quarterly. One aspect of that was the creation of the newsletter. The Association also embarked upon a book publishing program and raised $50,043.66 to underwrite publication of the book Sawmill by Ken Smith. It was anticipated that revenue from that book would subsidize a second book and so on down the road. Initially the books were not to be academic treatises or monographs but publications that would have broad public appeal and, whenever possible, an educational component was supposed to be developed. For example, the Association produced an educational film strip for Sawmill. The funding for the original special publication program came in the form of a $25,000 grant from the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. In addition, Mr. and Mrs. J.R. Bemis contributed a $5,000 grant; $2,500 came from the Ross Foundation; $1,500 came from Jim Walton; $1,000 came from the Forester (Arkansas) Historical Society. Other donations, ranging from $10 to $500, were also received. In the early 1990s, the Association considered another project but determined not to fund it. Since that time, AHA books published through the U of A Press have not required use of the funds. All royalties for all books are paid into the Special Publications Fund. Funds from the account were used to produce a brochure for use in the Capital Campaign and to produce pamphlets for AHA membership drives.
Arkansas Historical Association
Department of History
Old Main 416
University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701
479/575-5884 email: Donna Ludlow
Comments to the Arkansas Historical Association