No. 856 Ken Owens, 2013

File — Box: 77, Folder: 5

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Professor of History Emeritus Ken Owens of Sacramento State University discusses his academic development, career, and participation in the Western History Association. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, he attended Lewis and Clark College in Portland and worked under Arthur L. Throckmorton, who encouraged him to work with Ernest S. Osgood at the University of Minnesota. Despite Dr. Osgood’s retirement shortly after Ken’s arrival, he earned a PhD in American history and worked with Dave Noble. Dr. Owens mentions the lack of interest in Western history at Minnesota, and spends some time discussing the evolution of, and interest in, the field. He first taught at Northern Illinois University and then moved in 1968 to Sacramento State University, where he spent his career. At Sac State Dr. Owens was key in developing the Native American history program, Ethnic Studies, and later the Public History program as well. Dr. Owens became involved with the Western History Association at their second annual meeting in Denver in 1962, and credits his position at Sac State to the influence of well-known Western historian W. Turrentine Jackson. He discusses the organization’s evolution over the decades and mentions the shift from a more Turnerian model to the New Western History. Dr. Owens also discusses the growth of public history in the organization.
Project: Western History Association oral history project.
Interviewer: Greg Smoak.

Dates

2013

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.