The Plains Political Tradition

"Against a backdrop of agricultural ups and downs, varied religious beliefs, worldwide conflict, and powerful personalities, The Plains Political Tradition deftly examines ingredients critical to the success and failure of civic movements, legislation, and political campaigns and careers. Exceptionally well organized and presented."— Midwest Book Review

Not all politics is party politics. Nowhere is this fact more apparent than within the boundaries of South Dakota. Although the state is known for its agrarian conservatism, political tradition in the land of infinite variety is more than simply Republican or Democrat. An awareness of the influence of culture lies at the core of understanding the decisions of political leaders and voters alike.

In this capstone volume of The Plains Political Tradition series, editors Jon K. Lauck, John E. Miller, and Paula M. Nelson gather essays from historians and other scholars who identify major influences on the political culture of South Dakota. Against a backdrop of agricultural ups and downs, varied religious beliefs, worldwide conflict, and powerful personalities, the authors examine ingredients critical to the success and failure of civic movements, legislation, and political campaigns and careers.

Praise for previous volumes of The Plains Political Tradition :

“An impressive body of advancing knowledge focused on the northern plains. . . . This work merits close reading.”— Thomas D. Isern , historian

“Reveals a state that embodies the dual legacies of liberal grassroots activism and political conservatism. . . . This collection of essays honors these political anachronisms and authoritatively meets its goal to ‘integrate and synthesize this field of study and locate it in the broader context of American history.’”— ForeWord Reviews

“All of the essays are thoroughly grounded on robust footnotes which bespeak the solid work done on South Dakota history and politics.”— Nebraska History

Jon K. Lauck grew up in South Dakota and earned his Ph.D. in history from the University of Iowa and his law degree from the University of Minnesota. He is interested in the history, culture, economics, and politics of the American Midwest and in American and European history more generally.

John E. Miller is a historian from Brookings, South Dakota. He received his B.A. degree in history from the University of Missouri and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in history from the University of Wisconsin. He taught twentieth-century American history courses and other historical subjects at the University of Tulsa and at South Dakota State University for thirty years before becoming a full-time writer in 2003.

Paula M. Nelson is professor emeritus in the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where she taught for twenty-six years. Her research interests include agricultural settlement in the Great Plains and upper Midwest, rural life and culture, rural women’s history, and small towns. Nelson is the author of After The West Was Won , and The Prairie Winnows Out Its Own , books about west river South Dakota homesteading and agriculture, and is the editor of Sunshine Always , a book of courtship letters from Dakota Territorial days. She has written numerous articles, essays and book reviews.