SAN MARINO, Calif.—A conference focusing on the experience of the Civil War and another on maritime history are among the highlights of the new year of research programming at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Public lectures will include talks on the Chinese and Japanese gardens, urban agriculture, and subjects representing the diversity of the Library’s manuscript and rare book collections.

The conference “Civil War Lives” will bring a number of esteemed scholars to The Huntington in October, including Pulitzer Prize–winner James McPherson. In November, an international group of scholars will gather for “The New Maritime History: A Conference in Honor of Robert C. Ritchie.” “It will honor Ritchie’s significant contribution to the development of maritime history, both as a scholar in his own right and as a facilitator of other people’s research,” said Steve Hindle, The Huntington’s new W. M. Keck Foundation Director of Research. Ritchie retired from the same position in June after 19 years at the helm. In 1986, he published “Captain Kidd and the War Against the Pirates.” In his nearly two decades at The Huntington, he built a robust conference program, including a recurring series on the history of the Pacific Ocean.

One of Ritchie’s other legacies has been the establishment of a strong fellowship program, including annual awards to “Distinguished Fellows”—midcareer and senior scholars who spend the academic year at The Huntington and present public lectures based on their research. The fall schedule includes talks from three of the five distinguished fellows for 2011–12:  Frances E. Dolan, professor of English at the University of California, Davis, will talk about stories of witchcraft in 17th-century England; Ramón Gutiérrez, professor of history, University of Chicago, will address the religious origins of the Mexican American Civil Rights movement; and Peter Stallybrass, professor of English, University of Pennsylvania, will give a presentation on how handwriting evolved with the history of printing.

Lectures and conferences for the winter and spring will be announced in January 2012. For updates and information, please visit www.huntington.org.

Fall 2011
Conferences and Public Lectures

Conferences

Samuel Johnson: New Contexts for a New Century
Sept. 9¬–10 (Friday¬–Saturday) 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
A number of international symposia marked the 300th birthday of Samuel Johnson in 2009. One of the lessons that emerged was that there remains a great deal more to learn. Few knew, for example, that the Church of England in 2005 had anointed Johnson as a minor saint. This symposium will focus on his texts and the context from which they emerged, including his poetry, criticism, biography, religion, philosophy, and politics. $25. Registration: 626-405-3432 or researchconference@huntington.org

Religious and Spiritual Concepts in the Gardens of China
Sept. 24 (Saturday) 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
Religion and spirituality have been significant influences in the creation of gardens in China, both private and imperial.  In particular, Buddhism has had a profound connection to gardens and their owners.  This one-day symposium will explore Buddhist and other spiritual ideas in the gardens of Chinese emperors, monks, and scholars.  Free; advance registration required.  Call 626-405-3503.

Civil War Lives
Oct. 21–22 (Friday–Saturday) 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
Fresh perspectives on a diverse group of prominent Civil War figures ranging from Ulysses S. Grant and Frederick Douglass to George and LaSalle Pickett will be examined in this conference, co-convened by Gary W. Gallagher of the University of Virginia and Joan Waugh of UCLA. $25. Registration: 626-405-3432 or researchconference@huntington.org

Only at Home
(Ranch Symposium)
Nov. 18 (Friday) 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
This second annual conference features a full day of speakers on topics related to growing edibles at home, including presentations on unusual edibles, native plants to attract beneficial insects, grey water, home garden design, and more. $50. Optional dinner at an additional cost. Registration: 800-838-3006 or http://www.brownpapertickets.com.

The New Maritime History
Nov. 11–12 (Friday–Saturday) 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
This conference, organized in honor of Robert C. Ritchie upon his retirement as W. M. Keck Foundation Director of Research, spotlights innovative research on how the exploration of the oceans changed the institution of slavery, long-distance trade, property crime, the environment, literature, and memory from medieval times to the 19th century. $25. Registration:  researchconference@huntington.org or 626-405-3432.

Lectures

All lectures take place in Friends’ Hall, are free, with no reservations required unless otherwise noted. For further information, call 626-405-2100.

Penjing: From Its Roots to the Present Day
(Chinese and Japanese Garden Lecture)
Sept. 7 (Wednesday) 7:30 p.m.
International bonsai expert Thomas Elias will survey the history of penjing, the Chinese art of miniature trees and rockery (known in Japan as bonsai). He will explore the evolution of the art form during the Tang, Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties and the relationship between penjing and bonsai styling in the 20th century.

True Relations and Ridiculous Fictions: Evaluating Stories of Witchcraft in 17th-Century England
(Distinguished Fellow Lecture)
Oct. 4 (Tuesday) 7:30 p.m.
In English witchcraft trials, the evidence was largely the stories told by both accusers and accused. Frances E. Dolan, professor of English at the University of California, Davis, and the Fletcher Jones Foundation Distinguished Fellow at The Huntington for 2011–12, will discuss how contemporaries distinguished between credible and incredible stories and how today’s scholars evaluate surviving stories as historical evidence.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Ginkgo But Were Afraid to Ask
(Chinese Garden Lecture)
Oct. 11 (Tuesday) 7:30 p.m.
Peter Del Tredici, senior research scientist at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, will present an in-depth look at one of the most ancient and fascinating trees on the planet: the ginkgo. Del Tredici has been studying the natural history and evolution of the species for the last 25 years. His most recent travels have taken him to remote areas in southwest China in search of wild ginkgos.

Fire Season: A Conversation
(Pasadena’s 2011 AxS Festival)
Oct. 12 (Wednesday) 7:30 p.m.
Philip Connors, author of Fire Season: Field Notes From a Wilderness Lookout, joins the director of the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West, William Deverell, in conversation. The event is part of “Fire and Water,” Pasadena’s 2011 AxS Festival. For more information, visit http://www.axsfestival.org.

From Twigs to Figs
(Ranch Lecture)
Oct. 25 (Tuesday) 7:30 p.m.
Jon Verdick, owner of Encanto Farms Nursery in San Diego, will provide an introduction to propagating, growing, caring for, and—above all—enjoying figs, a fruit treasured throughout the world.

A Hole in the Dream: The Ghost Dance and the Crisis of Gilded Age America
(Billington Lecture)
Nov. 8 (Tuesday) 7:30 p.m.
The tragic climax of the Ghost Dance at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, in 1890 has come to symbolize the end of the frontier, but it was more than that. According to Louis Warren, professor of history at University of California, Davis, the visions that gave birth to the movement and the complicated American response to it signaled the start of the 20th century and its pervasive anxieties about environmental decay and racial animosity.

“The Arts of Daily Living”: Showcasing an Alternative Modernism at the Los Angeles County Fair, 1954 (Exhibition Lecture)
Nov. 9 (Wednesday) 7:30 pm.
In the Fine Arts Building of the 1954 Los Angeles County Fair, director of exhibitions Millard Sheets collaborated closely with the staff of House Beautiful magazine to produce an extraordinary installation of 22 architect-designed model rooms. Jeremy Adamson, curator of a 2001 Smithsonian exhibition on Sam Maloof, will discuss the roles of numerous Pomona Valley artists and craftsmen in the project. The talk is related to the Huntington exhibition “The House That Same Built: Sam Maloof and Art in the Pomona Valley, 1945–1985,” which opens Sept. 24.

Charts of the Cosmos: Chinese Bronze Mirrors and Textiles of the Warring States through the Tang Periods (ca. 450 B.C.E.— 907 C.E.)
(Exhibition Lecture)
Nov. 15 (Tuesday) 7:30 p.m.
Suzanne Cahill, professor of history, University of California, San Diego, will explore the meaning and relationship of Chinese bronze mirrors and silk textiles on view at The Huntington in the exhibition “Ancient Chinese Bronze Mirrors from the Lloyd Cotsen Collection” (opening Nov. 12). Cahill will explain what the patterns on mirrors and textiles tell us about the beliefs, desires, and fears of the privileged classes in early China. These beautiful and luxurious objects were used both in daily life and in burial to attract good fortune and ward off evil. Over time artisans from the two different disciplines of metalwork and textiles most likely influenced each other’s designs.

Reies López Tijerina and the Religious Origins of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement
(Distinguished Fellow Lecture)
Nov. 16 (Wednesday) 7:30 p.m.
The Mexican Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s encompassed two extremes: the pacifism of Cesar Chavez and the radicalism of Reies López Tijerina. Ramón Gutiérrez, professor of history, University of Chicago, and the Los Angeles Times Distinguished Fellow at The Huntington for 2011–12, will discuss the Pentecostal origins of Tijerina’s political thought and its transformation over time.

Writing after Printing: Engraving and the Transformation of Handwriting
(Distinguished Fellow Lecture)
Dec. 7 (Wednesday) 7:30 p.m.
From the late 16th century, writing masters began to use engravings to reshape how people learned to write.  Peter Stallybrass, professor of English, University of Pennsylvania, and the R. Stanton Avery Distinguished Fellow at The Huntington for 2011–12, will explore the seeming paradox that “manuscript” comes after printing.

About The Huntington
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is a collections-based research
and educational institution serving scholars and the general public. More information about
The Huntington can be found online at www.huntington.org.

About The Huntington’s Research Program
Each year, through a rigorous peer-review program, The Huntington awards approximately 150 grants to scholars in the fields of history, literature, art, and the history of science. Through a partnership with the University of Southern California, The Huntington also sponsors two research institutes: the USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute and the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West, each of which presents full slates of seminars and conferences during the academic year. Scholarly pursuits at The Huntington lead to best-selling and Pulitzer Prize–winning books as well as many of the nation’s history and social studies textbooks. Through the Huntington Library Press, the institution produces the Huntington Library Quarterly and several books each year.