Bigwigs & Benefactors of the Pikes Peak Region
Presenters
Erinn Barnes earned both a BS and MA in history from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. She currently serves as Special Collections Specialist at the 1905 Carnegie Library in downtown Colorado Springs. Her primary research interest centers on American Indians and the 20th century. Having grandparents on the tribal rolls of the Colville Confederated Tribes, she hopes to continue the family heritage through historical scholarship.
Lucy Bell has a BA in Education from the University of North Dakota and MA in Education with a minor in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Colorado. She retired after 35 years as a teacher and educational writing consultant. She is an instructor for the PILLAR Institute for Lifelong Learning and a native plant naturalist at Cheyenne Mountain State Park. She founded the Friends of Emerson discussion group now in its 10th year. Lucy Bell is a writer, currently researching the black community of Colorado Springs in the 1930s and 1940s. Her philosophy of life in one word: “Connect.”
David D. Finley earned an undergraduate degree from West Point, and, following his military service, he earned a MA and PhD in political science from Stanford University. He is a long-time Colorado Springs resident and retired faculty member from Colorado College where he taught mostly international and comparative politics, including his specialty, Cold War Soviet-American relations, and where he served for five years as Dean of the College and Faculty. He retired in 2000 and, with his wife Judy Reid Finley, continues to live happily in the historic old north end of Colorado Springs.
Susan Fletcher is the Historian and Archivist for The Navigators, where she documents and interprets the history of Glen Eyrie. Susan received her MA in Public History from Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis. She is a featured speaker on local history throughout the Pikes Peak region, including the ongoing Lunch and Learn series at the Garden of the Gods Visitors Center. She is the coauthor of the book Dawson Trotman In His Own Words and has written several articles. Fletcher is also a member of the Colorado Springs Historic Preservation Board. In addition to her career in history, Fletcher is also an artist who has pieces in several galleries and private collections.
Joyce B. Lohse earned a BS in Journalism from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL. She combines journalism and genealogy to write biographies for the “Now You Know Bio” series from Filter Press. She is administrator for Women Writing the West, and writes history-related articles for magazines such as True West, Steamboat Magazine, Colorado Central, and Women Out West. Awards include three CIPA EVVY Awards, a silver WILLA award, and a Colorado Authors’ League Award. In March 2008, she accepted induction into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame for her historical subject, Eliza Routt. Joyce’s interest in western history has led her to present over 150 programs, and has taken her on research jaunts to cemeteries and archives throughout Colorado.
Michael L. Olsen is a professor emeritus at New Mexico Highlands University, where he taught a variety of American history courses from 1973-2002. From 2003-2007 he taught full time at Pikes Peak Community College, Colorado Springs, Colorado. He holds the B. A. from St. Olaf College and the M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Washington. Dr. Olsen has long had a connection with the Santa Fe Trail and the Santa Fe Trail Association. He has published extensively on Trail history, particularly regarding social aspects and multi-cultural issues. Dr. Olsen has often participated in the production of the Pikes Peak Regional History Series symposia and publications as a researcher/presenter/moderator and as author and guest editor.
Katie Rudolph is an archivist at the Denver Public Library's Western History and Genealogy Department. She previously held the position of photo archivist at the Pike Peak Library District’s Special Collections. She holds a Masters in Library and Information Studies from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Prior to moving to Colorado, Katie held positions at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Public Television, and the University of Wisconsin’s Helen Louise Allen Textile Collections.
William Schultz is a graduate student in the department of history at Princeton University. His dissertation, “Garden of the Gods: Militarization and Religion in Colorado Springs, 1941-1991,” explores the interplay between evangelicalism and the military in post-World War II Colorado Springs. He received his BA in History and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where his senior thesis, “New Wine in Old Wineskins: Fulton Sheen, Rochester, and the Paradoxes of Vatican II,” was awarded the Frank Ryan Prize for Best Honors Thesis in History.
Katherine Scott Sturdevant is a Professor of History at Pikes Peak Community College, teaches American, Colorado, Pikes Peak, women’s, American Indian, and Southwest history, among other topics, and has won local, state, and national teaching awards. Very active in Colorado and local history, she has co-edited and contributed papers and presentations to most of the PPLD Regional History Symposiums and presented to many other events. Kathy also participates actively to support the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, leads a project to preserve the Victor Miners’ Union Hall, and works with the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame.
Eric Swab earned a BA in Product Design from the Illinois Institute of Technology and a MA in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design. During his frequent hikes on Pikes Peak he has encountered considerable evidence of the human activity, leading him to research the history of mining, logging, homesteading, the development of water and electric power, tourism, and aircraft crash sites on the peak. As a volunteer for the Pike and San Isabel National Forests he has researched the Fremont Experimental Forest, the Skelton Mountain Ranch, and the Manitou Incline, as well as, for his own enjoyment, local mining activity and old trails, roads and utility lines. He has prepared exhibits on the Fremont Experimental Forest, the Manitou Incline, and Fred Barr at various regional archaeological and historical organizations.
William G. Thomas is an amateur historian, a professional soldier (retired), and a formally trained librarian, who is the photo archivist at Pikes Peak Library District’s Special Collections. He earned a BS in political science from the University of Maryland, a BA in history from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, and a MS in library science and information studies from Florida State University.
Leah Davis Witherow is the Curator of History at the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum. For over a decade she has taught American history at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and her courses have included: Colonial History, Colorado History, Public History, and Material Culture, as well as the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era. She received her MA in history at UCCS, has achieved archival certification through the Academy of Certified Archivists, and is former President of the Society of Rocky Mountain Archivists. Leah is a frequent contributor to the Pikes Peak Regional History Symposium and book series.
Lucy Bell has a BA in Education from the University of North Dakota and MA in Education with a minor in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Colorado. She retired after 35 years as a teacher and educational writing consultant. She is an instructor for the PILLAR Institute for Lifelong Learning and a native plant naturalist at Cheyenne Mountain State Park. She founded the Friends of Emerson discussion group now in its 10th year. Lucy Bell is a writer, currently researching the black community of Colorado Springs in the 1930s and 1940s. Her philosophy of life in one word: “Connect.”
David D. Finley earned an undergraduate degree from West Point, and, following his military service, he earned a MA and PhD in political science from Stanford University. He is a long-time Colorado Springs resident and retired faculty member from Colorado College where he taught mostly international and comparative politics, including his specialty, Cold War Soviet-American relations, and where he served for five years as Dean of the College and Faculty. He retired in 2000 and, with his wife Judy Reid Finley, continues to live happily in the historic old north end of Colorado Springs.
Susan Fletcher is the Historian and Archivist for The Navigators, where she documents and interprets the history of Glen Eyrie. Susan received her MA in Public History from Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis. She is a featured speaker on local history throughout the Pikes Peak region, including the ongoing Lunch and Learn series at the Garden of the Gods Visitors Center. She is the coauthor of the book Dawson Trotman In His Own Words and has written several articles. Fletcher is also a member of the Colorado Springs Historic Preservation Board. In addition to her career in history, Fletcher is also an artist who has pieces in several galleries and private collections.
Joyce B. Lohse earned a BS in Journalism from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL. She combines journalism and genealogy to write biographies for the “Now You Know Bio” series from Filter Press. She is administrator for Women Writing the West, and writes history-related articles for magazines such as True West, Steamboat Magazine, Colorado Central, and Women Out West. Awards include three CIPA EVVY Awards, a silver WILLA award, and a Colorado Authors’ League Award. In March 2008, she accepted induction into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame for her historical subject, Eliza Routt. Joyce’s interest in western history has led her to present over 150 programs, and has taken her on research jaunts to cemeteries and archives throughout Colorado.
Michael L. Olsen is a professor emeritus at New Mexico Highlands University, where he taught a variety of American history courses from 1973-2002. From 2003-2007 he taught full time at Pikes Peak Community College, Colorado Springs, Colorado. He holds the B. A. from St. Olaf College and the M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Washington. Dr. Olsen has long had a connection with the Santa Fe Trail and the Santa Fe Trail Association. He has published extensively on Trail history, particularly regarding social aspects and multi-cultural issues. Dr. Olsen has often participated in the production of the Pikes Peak Regional History Series symposia and publications as a researcher/presenter/moderator and as author and guest editor.
Katie Rudolph is an archivist at the Denver Public Library's Western History and Genealogy Department. She previously held the position of photo archivist at the Pike Peak Library District’s Special Collections. She holds a Masters in Library and Information Studies from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Prior to moving to Colorado, Katie held positions at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Public Television, and the University of Wisconsin’s Helen Louise Allen Textile Collections.
William Schultz is a graduate student in the department of history at Princeton University. His dissertation, “Garden of the Gods: Militarization and Religion in Colorado Springs, 1941-1991,” explores the interplay between evangelicalism and the military in post-World War II Colorado Springs. He received his BA in History and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where his senior thesis, “New Wine in Old Wineskins: Fulton Sheen, Rochester, and the Paradoxes of Vatican II,” was awarded the Frank Ryan Prize for Best Honors Thesis in History.
Katherine Scott Sturdevant is a Professor of History at Pikes Peak Community College, teaches American, Colorado, Pikes Peak, women’s, American Indian, and Southwest history, among other topics, and has won local, state, and national teaching awards. Very active in Colorado and local history, she has co-edited and contributed papers and presentations to most of the PPLD Regional History Symposiums and presented to many other events. Kathy also participates actively to support the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, leads a project to preserve the Victor Miners’ Union Hall, and works with the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame.
Eric Swab earned a BA in Product Design from the Illinois Institute of Technology and a MA in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design. During his frequent hikes on Pikes Peak he has encountered considerable evidence of the human activity, leading him to research the history of mining, logging, homesteading, the development of water and electric power, tourism, and aircraft crash sites on the peak. As a volunteer for the Pike and San Isabel National Forests he has researched the Fremont Experimental Forest, the Skelton Mountain Ranch, and the Manitou Incline, as well as, for his own enjoyment, local mining activity and old trails, roads and utility lines. He has prepared exhibits on the Fremont Experimental Forest, the Manitou Incline, and Fred Barr at various regional archaeological and historical organizations.
William G. Thomas is an amateur historian, a professional soldier (retired), and a formally trained librarian, who is the photo archivist at Pikes Peak Library District’s Special Collections. He earned a BS in political science from the University of Maryland, a BA in history from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, and a MS in library science and information studies from Florida State University.
Leah Davis Witherow is the Curator of History at the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum. For over a decade she has taught American history at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and her courses have included: Colonial History, Colorado History, Public History, and Material Culture, as well as the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era. She received her MA in history at UCCS, has achieved archival certification through the Academy of Certified Archivists, and is former President of the Society of Rocky Mountain Archivists. Leah is a frequent contributor to the Pikes Peak Regional History Symposium and book series.