Historical Milieu: Utah's Jewish Pioneers   

Photo courtesy of Naomi Zeveloff

On September 10, 1911, twelve Jewish families arrived in Gunnison, Utah, to establish a Jewish agricultural community.  The group was part of the "Back to Soil" movement, which believed Jews needed to leave the city and live on farms. The Gunnison colony, called Clarion, was one of many established throughout the United States, Canada, and Argentina.  As Utahns  celebrate Pioneer Day, it's worth remembering this brave group of Jewish pioneers who made a home in the Beehive State.

We dedicated an episode of Beehive Archive to Utah's Jewish pioneers. Click here to listen to it on our website (scroll down to episode #172 called "The Jewish Pioneers of Clarion, Utah.").

Museum Interpretation Initiative: Award Winner!   

The Utah Humanities Council proudly announces that it has been selected for a 2012 Leadership in History Award of Merit from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) for its Museum Interpretation Initiative: Telling Our Stories program.  Implemented in partnership with the Utah Museums Association, the program has been supported by a matching grant from the national Institute for Museum and Library Services.

The Museum Interpretation Initiative is a three-year project that has provided nationally renowned speakers and sessions at the annual Utah Museums Association conferences, and a series of free, intensive, hands-on workshops delivered to small museums throughout Utah.  The workshops provide best practice collection research, exhibit development, and interpretation techniques, which give museum personnel the knowledge, skills, and resources to create their own interpretive exhibits.  Completed museum projects span the state, ranging from Logan Canyon and Manila to Bluff and Santa Clara, documenting important aspects of Utah's history.  Since its inception in 2010, the Museum Interpretation Initiative has helped 50 small museums in Utah create more engaging exhibits, bringing important aspects of Utah history to life.

Visit the Museum Interpretation Initiative portion of our website to learn more about the program and to see how Utah's museums are telling their community stories. You can also read our entire press release and see coverage by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Literature Landscape: 15th Annual Book Festival Approaches 

Fall is just around the bend and the Utah Humanities Council Book Festival is quickly taking shape.

Things get off to an early start this year with Timothy Egan's visit on September 13th as part of the Orem Reads programming focusing on the Dust Bowl era and Egan's book, The Worst Hard Time. But October is the busy season for books in Utah and UHC is sponsoring events across the state throughout the month, including visits from SLAM poet extraordinaire Ana Castillo, education advocate Taylor Mali, an afternoon with Poets Laureate Lance Larsen (Utah) and William Trowbridge (Missouri), and historian Thomas Andrews, author of Killing for Coal. From the poetry of Rumi to Mormon foodways to Jung's Red Book, there is a something for everyone this year.

Our keynote day will feature David Quammen and Craig Childs as well as thriller author Mark Sullivan. In addition, John Turner will discuss his new biography of Brigham Young (a topic that never fails to create lively discussion in the Beehive State), and Donna Poulton, associate curator of the Utah Museum of Fine Art and editor of a new retrospective, LeConte Stewart: Masterworks, will discuss the life and art of the beloved Utah artist. Finally, just in time for Halloween, we'll finish off the festivities with a visit from Charlaine Harris, author of the Sookie Stackhouse vampire mystery series which inspired the HBO series True Blood.

This is just a fraction of this year's offerings, so keep an eye on our website for a full lineup.

Free College Humanities Course
Enroll now in a free, accredited college humanities course, taught by college faculty, in Salt Lake City, Ogden, or Cedar City. The Venture Course in the Humanities is accepting applications now from anyone 18 or over, living on a low income, with a desire to learn more about their world and themselves. Study art history, American history, literature, philosophy, and critical writing and thinking with others eager to expand their minds. A high school diploma is not required for admission. For more information, call Jean Cheney at 801.359.9670.  


"Muslim Journeys" Bookshelf Available
Announcing the availability of a new National Endowment for the Humanities Bridging Cultures Bookshelf on the theme "Muslim Journeys."  The "Muslim Journeys" Bookshelf is a collection of twenty-five books and other resources intended to offer public audiences a selection of new and diverse perspectives on the people, places, histories, beliefs, and cultures of Muslims around the world, including those within the United States. In partnership with the American Library Association, NEH will distribute the Bookshelf to 1,000 libraries in January 2013. Click here to download a PDF preview of the booklet describing the bookshelf. You can also visit the American Library Association website for more details.