As the Fall Semester begins, I encourage you to establish or renew your membership in the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (SHGAPE). As a student member and the society’s current Graduate Student Representative, I have realized SHGAPE’s special openness to young scholars and its eagerness to nurture their careers. In fact, SHGAPE makes a special effort to encourage and co-sponsor panels organized by and/or composed of graduate students and junior faculty actively working on GAPE topics. At its annual luncheon at the OAH and its social hour at the OAH, I have found many friendly opportunities to socialize with established scholars and other members. SHGAPE’s Fishel-Calhoun and Vincent DeSantis Prizes award new scholars for significant articles and first books, respectively. Finally, its low $15 annual student dues (including journal subscription) make joining the society financially feasible.

SHGAPE was formed in 1989 to encourage and facilitate research and teaching on the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, covering the years from 1865 to 1917. It is an affiliated society of the American Historical Association. H-SHGAPE first came on-line in mid-April 1994 and publishes frequent book reviews, discussion threads, and other announcements. The society also publishes the quarterly Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era and a semi-annual print newsletter.

The executive council of SHGAPE cordially invites you to join our society. We at SHGAPE sincerely hope that you will consider becoming a member and we look forward to your participation at upcoming conferences and events.

If you have any further questions about SHGAPE or my experiences as a grad student member, I encourage you to contact me, Julia F. Irwin, at IrwinJ3@southernct.edu.

To join SHGAPE, visit http://www.h-net.org/~shgape/member.html