The major joy of owning a bookstore is the constant knowledge acquisition that comes with buying, pricing, and stocking interesting books. This week's knowledge came from the books published by the Denver Corral of the Westeners International organization. Who are they? From the WI website:
The Westerners movement began in Chicago in 1944 by Leland D. Case,
editor of The Rotarian magazine, and Elmo Scott Watson, a
newspaperman and educator. Case had grown up in South Dakota and was
fascinated by history as was Watson. Since the academic world did
not seem to offer much for “history buffs” the two men decided to
form a group open to anyone interested in the history of the
American West. The members would promote the study and understanding
of Western history and, at the same time, have fun and avoid taking
themselves too seriously. The first local “corrals” and “posses”
(names of the member groups) began organizing in 1945, after Chicago
in 1944, and the movement has spread to include more than 138 such
groups in the U.S. and overseas. Laypersons form the majority in
most corrals. The corrals usually meet monthly for a meal and
program about some Western history topic. Each group is rather
loosely organized, with few rules and its own traditions. While
Westerners are devoted to their historical interest, the main thing
to remember is that membership in a corral or posse satisfies this
interest in a spirit of fun and camaraderie. The purpose of the Westerners is fun and scholarship related to the
American frontier West. "Westerners share a dislike for
stuffed-shirtism, over-seriousness, shiftless thinking, and above
all ignorance," wrote the late Ray Allen Billington, historian.
Western traditions prevail in all meetings of Westerners.
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