Monday, October 31, 2005

Congratulations to MA candidate Scott Wright, who has just returned from Ottawa, where he was honoured by Canadian Blood Services for his outstanding volunteer work on behalf of that organization. Among other things, Scott serves as the U of S liason to Canadian Blood Services. In April, he also received the Saskatchewan Centennial Leadership Award for his outstanding contribution to the province and the blood supply (both as a volunteer organizer and as a much-drained donor.) Scott would think us remiss if we did not add that Saskatoon residents wishing to volunteer, donate money, or bleed for the team should contact Canadian Blood Services at 1-882-236-6283.

Sunday, October 30, 2005

The first History Grad Colloquium of the year will be held this coming Friday afternoon, November 4th, from 5pm in the basement of the Faculty Club. Chris Clarke will speak on "History’s explorations on the explorations of explorers in the first 50 years of the New World", while Rob Morley will speak of "Wrestling with the Modern in a Time of War: British Pilot Training, 1912-1918". All faculty, grad, and honours students welcome.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

It is not often that successfully defending one's MA thesis counts as only the number two highlight of one's month, but given that Liz Scott was married earlier in October, I suppose we here at What's Up can grant that her thesis defense earlier today must rank second. How close a second is not for us to say. What we can say is that Liz's defense of "Cockney Plots: Working Class Politics and Garden Allotments in London's East End, 1890-1918" went swimmingly. Congratulations, Liz.

M.A. candidate Liz Scott married Chris Harris (whom some of you will recognize as the Global TV sportscaster) on October 8th at Grace Westminster United Church here in Saskatoon. Liz reports that it was "a smallish affair with mostly just family and close friends attending, but a wonderful day all around." Congratulations, Liz and Chris!

Thursday, October 20, 2005

Belated congratulations to Whitney Lackenbauer, former CRC Postdoctoral Fellow in our department (2003-04), now an assitant professor at St. Jerome's University in Waterloo, Ontario. This past summer Whitney's article "The Methodological Challenge of "non-Events": A Reflection Using Comparative Case Studies on Military-Aboriginal Relations Over Land Use in Twentieth-Century Canada", Journal of the Canadian Historical Association, 2004, was co-winner of the Journal of the CHA Prize for best article.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

The MA Oral Thesis Defence for Elizabeth Scott and her thesis on "Cockney Plots: Working Class Politics and Garden Allotments in London's East End, 1890-1918" will be held on Wednesday, October 26th at 9:30 am in the College of Grad Studies boardroom (Rm 50).

Tuesday, October 18, 2005

The History Department will be holding an informational meeting for all Honours students planning to participate in the Michael Swan Colloquium. The meeting will take place on Wednesday November 9, 2005, from 2:30 until 3:30 p.m., in Arts 710. Refreshments will be served. If you have any questions, please contact Martha Smith-Norris, Director of Undergraduate Studies (smithm@sask.usask.ca).

Sunday, October 16, 2005

Many thanks to Rylan Loucks and Chris Phillips of HUSA for their help with the revamped Experience US, the annual open house for high school students. Instead of the traditional departmental table wedged into a noisy hallway or gym, this year students actually considering taking a history class signed up for one of six one-hour presentations at which faculty and HUSA reps could make their pitch on behalf of History and CMRS. Frank Klaassen, Keith Carlson, and Gordon DesBrisay represented the department before a total of about 140 visitors.
Congratulations to HUSA co-president Chris Phillips, who has had a paper accepted for the 41st International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo, Michigan this coming April. Chris' paper is entitled 'The Syve will Turne Rounde': Reclaiming Ritual Magic in Oxford, Bodleian, MS Additional B.1", and will be part of a panel entitled "Codicological Contexts for Works of Magic".

Saturday, October 08, 2005

The vastly successful HUSA Film Series reignites for this academic year with Kingdom of Heaven, director Ridley Scott's epic recounting of the Crusades, starring Orlando Bloom as an implausibly lonely French blacksmith who discovers, go figure, that he's actually Liam Neeson's son (ok, Liam Neeson's character's son) and thereby heir to a tidy noble inheritance. But not until he's done with the whole Crusades thing. An under-rated film that you really ought to see. Catch it for FREE on Monday, October 17th, at 7:pm in Arts 241 (the Neatby-Timlin Theatre). Introduced by HUSA's own Chris Phillips. Everyone welcome.

Friday, October 07, 2005


Congratulations to Anastasia Tataryn, who will shortly graduate with High Honours in History, and at the forthcoming fall convocation will also be honoured with the Rose Litman Medal in the Humanities.

Anastasia, left, is seen here with her sister atop Hell's Gate on the Fraser River in B.C. while attending the department's Ethnohistory Summer School last year.

Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Come schmooze, come schmooze with us! Thursday, October 6th is Meet the Prof's Night! A priceless opportunity for students and faculty to hang out in casual fashion at Louis's on campus, 4-6pm. All History Students or prospective History Students or people who like History Students or people who are like History Students are welcome. Sponsored by your friends at HUSA.
Brendan Edwards recently published a short article entitled "To Put the Talk Upon Paper: Aboriginal Communities" in The History of the Book in Canada, Volume II, 1840-1918, edited by Yvan Lamonde, Patricia Fleming, and Fionna Black (University of Toronto Press, 2005). For additional information, click here.

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Bill Waiser is a busy bee. This past Saturday, for example, he spoke at the commemoration ceremony for the Addison Sod House, a National Historic Site located near Kindersley. It was one of four talks Bill gave last week. This week he is in Ottawa to address the Ottawa Writers' Festival. Upon his return he promises to tell us more about his recent talk to the Saskatchewan Waste Reduction Council (not to be confused with the Saskatchewan Waist Reduction Council, though Bill probably spoke to them, too.)
We here at What's Up offer somewhat belated but nonetheless heartfelt congratulations to former Ph.d. candidate Jeff Wigelsworth. A candidate no longer, Jeff successfully defended his thesis, "'Their Greater Degree of Infidelity': Deists, Politics, Natural Philosophy, and the Power of God in Eighteenth Century England" on September 26th. Professor Justin Champion of Royal Holloway, University of London, was the external examiner.