Review of The Frontier in American Culture: An Exhibition at the Newberry Library, August 26,1994- January 7,1995 Essays by Richard White and Patricia Nelson Limerick

Authors

Katherine A. Sulentic, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Date of this Version

Spring 1997

Citation

Great Plains Quarterly Vol. 17, No. 2, Spring 1997, pp. 151-52.

Comments

Copyright 1997 by the Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Abstract

The term "frontier" elicits many different meanings and interpretations among scholars and the American public, as do Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West show and Frederick Jackson Turner's frontier thesis. Patricia Nelson Limerick and Richard White address these topics and try to appreciate their influence in American history and culture. With the help of artifacts from the Newberry Library, Limerick and White reveal how attitudes toward the old American West developed and how we understand that time and place today.

In "Frederick] ackson Turner and Buffalo Bill," White argues that both men's visions of the American West are equally important to our understanding of historical conceptions of the frontier. White embellishes his thesis with meaningful documents, sketches, and paintings in an appealing manner. His inclusion of a Native American perspective adds breadth to his analysis of frontier historiography.

Patricia Nelson Limerick's "The Adventures of the Frontier in the Twentieth Century" takes a different, more eclectic approach, discussing everything from Velcro to Disneyland to characterize how images of the frontier invaded the American consciousness. Limerick is particularly convincing in showing how the definition of the word "frontier" has evolved over time and suggesting what it may come to mean in the future. The essay's wit and creative use of familiar American images help to emphasize how the term "frontier" permeates American culture. And in placing her interpretation of the American frontier within the framework of the twentieth century, Limerick offers her readers a unique, imaginative perspective on Western history.

Both White and Limerick provide uncommon views into the complexities of interpreting the American frontier. While shedding light on the impact of Buffalo Bill and Frederick J ackson Turner, they enrich our historical understanding of the American frontier.