The Big 12: Readings in the History of the Great Plains

This page is intended for the guidance of my graduate students who are preparing to take comps in my regional specialty—the History of the Great Plains.

Here's the general scheme. I expect you to be well versed in twenty works in preparation for comps. You will have general knowledge of the field, sure, but be particularly prepared with respect to the twenty titles. The twelve titles here listed are the base list, a catalog of classics. To this, and in consultation with the second reader for your comps, we will add a few current and notable books in the field, along with a few works that provide conceptual grounding for your research.

Why have I listed twelve titles? That's Lutheran upbringing for you. Here's the base list.

The Big 12 (Great Plains)
Cather, Willa	O Pioneers! or My Antonia
Fite, Gilbert C.	The Farmer's Last Frontier
Fowke, Vernon C.	The National Policy and the Wheat Economy
Friesen, Gerald	The Canadian Prairies
Kraenzel, Carl F.	The Great Plains in Transition
Osgood, Eugene W.	The Day of the Cattleman
Riley, Glenda	The Female Frontier
Robinson, Elwyn P.	History of North Dakota
Sharp, Paul F.	Whoop-Up Country
Stegner, Wallace P.	Wolf Willow or Beyond the Hundredth Meridian
Webb, Walter P.	The Great Plains
West, Elliot	The Contested Plains

The Wizard / Tom Isern