The Agricultural History Society is cancelling the 2020 Annual Meeting, scheduled for June 3-6, 2020 in Knoxville, Tennessee. The declaration of a national emergency in the U.S. due to the COVID-19 pandemic has made it impossible to continue with conference planning. The health and safety of our members, their families, campuses, and communities is paramount, although the financial security of the organization in the face of travel restrictions also contributed to the decision. Those who have registered will be refunded all of their money. Anyone who booked a hotel room must cancel that reservation immediately to avoid incurring charges for an unfilled booking.
The society wishes to thank the program committee, led by Evan Bennett, and the local organizer, Tore Olsson, and grad workshop convener Denise Phillips for their hard work on conference planning. Our hope is to make it to Knoxville for a future meeting. Thanks also to the members of the executive committee whose expertise and professionalism helped move us towards a prompt decision that should prevent undue inconvenience and will promote the health of all of us.
While this year’s face-to-face meeting is not possible, we want to offer colleagues the opportunity to highlight their research on the AHS website. Webmaster Neil Oatsvall is happy to create a special blog section on the website for presenters to post short synopses of 750-1,500 words with any images from your planned conference presentation. Members and guests can engage with the presenter in the blog comments, if desired. Contact Neil Oatsvall if you are interested in participating.
In the meantime, the society is planning for a conference in Las Cruces, New Mexico from June 2-5, 2021. Those who had a paper or panel accepted for the 2020 meeting are invited to participate in the 2021 conference with their 2020 contribution, if they wish. More details will come in the CFP that will be released in June.
The Agricultural History Society is grateful for the ongoing support of its members and friends.
Debra A. Reid
President, Agricultural History Society
Joe Anderson
Executive Secretary, Agricultural History Society
Sara Morris
Treasurer, Agricultural History Society