THE GHOSTS OF WESTERN FUTURE AND PASTBy: AARON FREY

“Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

THE ENDURING FRONTIER HERITAGE

OVERALL PERCEPTIONS OF THE WEST

•The settling of the West gave us our unique character

•Manifest Destiny

•The Frontier Era was Pure

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

PERCEPTIONS AND REALITIES OF THE WEST DURING THE 18TH AND EARLY 19TH CENTURIES

•Rugged, unforgiving place

•Pioneer region

•People wanting settlement promote the West as being very sophisticated and culturally advanced

•Fastest growing region of the country

•Huge demographic shifts

THE ENDURING FRONTIER HERITAGE

“Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

PERCEPTIONS AND REALITIES OF THE WEST FOR PRESENT DAY

•“Big” Country

•Westerners promote the West as being the “Old West”

•Fast growing region

•Nostalgic

THE ENDURING FRONTIER HERITAGE

“Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

PRIMACY, AUTHENTICITY, PROMISE, AND PLACE

WHAT IS PRIMACY?

•The belief in being FIRST

•Westerners feel a sense of primacy when discussing “their” region

•This is often resented among people who move in to the region

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

ROMANTICIZING THE WEST BY WHITES

•Learning from hardships builds character

•“Do it yourself” attitude

•Settlers were conquerors

•Westerners feel a sense of entitlement because of “their” experience

PRIMACY, AUTHENTICITY, PROMISE, AND PLACE

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

RACISM AND ABUSE IN THE OLD WEST•Ethnic cleansing of Native Americans

•Relocation of Native Americans to Reservations

•Understated importance of Mexican Americans and African Americans in the settlement of the West

•Minorities viewed as savages and second class citizens

PRIMACY, AUTHENTICITY, PROMISE, AND PLACE

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

CALIFORNICATION IN THE CONTEMPORARY WEST

WHAT IS CALIFORNICATION?

•Other western states are “anti” California• Because they are proud of their simple,

affordable lifestyles• Because California is so “modern”• Because California is “unwestern”

•California is proud of being modern and “unwestern”

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

CALIFORNICATION IN THE CONTEMPORARY WEST

INTELLECTUALS OPINIONS ON “CLOSING THE WEST”

•Francis A. Walker & Frederick Jackson Turner’s concerns:• Scared southern and eastern European immigrants

would not become Americanized• Based on prejudices• White Anglo-Saxon Protestant mentality

•Regionalism and distrust of outsiders

•Overall anti-immigrant attitudes

CALIFORNICATION IN THE CONTEMPORARY WEST

POSITIVES WITH REGIONALISM

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

•Community integration and cooperation

•Moving beyond racial and cultural differences to:

• Make interdenominational churches• Consolidate schools• Business growth

•Westerners were a very positive example for the country while Jim Crow ruled the South

“Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

CHANGE, MYTHOLOGY, AND REGIONAL IDENTITY

CHANGE•Frontier has become civilized

• This was the original goal of pioneers• This is now resisted by Westerners

•In 1990 over 80% of people living in the west now live in cities

•The west has been profoundly affected by:• Social norms• Political aspects• Cultural values• Economic changes• Demographic changes• Environmental issues

•Change is inevitable

CHANGE, MYTHOLOGY, AND REGIONAL IDENTITY

“Courtesy of Western History and Genealogy from the Denver Public Library [http://history.denverlibrary.org/images/index.html]”

MYTHOLOGY

•Westerners hang on to the golden age or the “good old days”

•Westerners remember the past selectively • Remember positives and romanticize them• Forget undesirable memories

•The “myth” of the west will probably always be remembered

Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

CHANGE, MYTHOLOGY, AND REGIONAL IDENTITY

REGIONAL IDENTITY

•Western mythology has a place in the study of the West

•The West is very culturally diverse

•The West itself is very diverse geographically, economically, and socially

•The West is very unique and different from any other part of the country

•The people of the West pride themselves on being different from any other people

Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

CONCLUSION

•Our perceptions of the West have helped to shape it’s lore

•Promoters of settlement sold the West as already being tamed

•Modern day promoters of the West as a place of rustic beauty and wide open spaces

•The West was and is a rapidly growing region

•Romantic reminisces of the West

•Elitist, Racist Legacies

•Also positive cooperation among peoples

“Courtesy of Kansas Memory [www.kansasmemory.org]”

CONCLUSION CONT’D

•The truth of the West is probably found somewhere in between Myth and Reality

•The West helps to define America

•All views of the West are historically important