The following is an abbreviated listing of the awards presented by the Western History Association at its annual conference. There are no standard forms for any of the awards. Certain awards—such as the Bert M. Fireman Award, the Oscar O. Winther Award, or the Award of Merit—do not require applicants to initiate the award consideration process. Previous prize winners may be found in the Archives.
All listed addresses for committee members are mailing addresses. If you have any questions, please contact the WHA office by email wha@umsl.edu or call 314-516-7282.
Click on title to read full description of award. If you do not have Adobe Reader (PDF), you may download it here.
Awards for Articles
- Arrington-Prucha: ($500) Annual award for the best article on the history of religion in the West
- Ray Allen Billington: ($500) Annual award for the best journal article in Western history, not published in the Western Historical Quarterly.
- Bolton-Cutter: ($500) Annual award for the best journal article on Spanish Borderlands history.
- Arrell Gibson: ($500) Biennial award for the best essay on the history of Native Americans.
- Jensen-Miller: ($500) Annual award for the best article in the field of women and gender in the North American West.
- Michael P. Malone: ($500) Biennial award for the best article, essay or commentary on state, provincial, or territorial history in North America appearing in a periodical publication.
- Oscar O. Winther Award : ($500) For the best article published in the Western Historical Quarterly.
Awards for Books
- Robert G. Athearn: ($1,000) Biennial award for the best book on the twentieth-century West.
- Caughey Western History Prize: ($2,500) Annual Award for the best book of the year in Western History.
- John C. Ewers: ($500) A biennial award for the best book on the topic of North American Indian Ethnohistory.
- W. Turrentine-Jackson: ($1,000) A biennial award for a first published book on the American West.
- Joan Patterson Kerr: ($500) A biennial award for the best illustrated book on the American West.
- Hal K. Rothman: ($500) A biennial award for the best book in western environmental history.
- Dwight L. Smith (ABC-CLIO): ($500) A biennial award for a bibliographic or research work
- Robert M. Utley: ($500) Annual award for the best book on military history of the frontier and western North America
Award for Public History
- Autry Prize: ($1,000) Annual award for work completed that contributes to a broader public reflection and appreciation of the past or serves as a model of professional public history practice.
Student Awards
- Bert M. Fireman Award: ($500) For the best student essay published in the Western Historical Quarterly
- Sara Jackson Award: ($500) To support graduate student research
- Walter Rundell Award: ($1,500) To support dissertation research
Conference Scholarships
- Indian Student Conference ($500) To support Indian student attendees at the WHA conference
- Trennert-Iverson: ($500) To support graduate student attendees at the WHA conference
Fellowship Awards
- Huntington-WHA Martin Ridge Award: ($2,000) For a month research fellowship at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California.
Charles Redd Center Teacher Award
- Charles Redd Center Teaching Award Announcement: ($500) Four teaching awards for K-12 Teachers.
- Other documents needed to apply for this award:
Other Awards
- Award of Merit: For outstanding service to the field of western history and to the Western History Association
- Honorary Life Membership: Awarded by the WHA President