The 2007 meeting of the South-Central Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies was held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on February 22-24. The conference theme, “Across and between Eighteenth Centuries,” was meant to stress projects that make connections between different disciplines, cultures, languages, genres, or places. We welcomed proposals on all topics pertaining to the long eighteenth century, however.

The conference took place at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Tulsa. On Thursday evening there was a reception at the University of Tulsa’s McFarlin Library. There was a brief performance by “Trio Tulsa,” an internationally renowned chamber music group, and an exhibit of eighteenth-century holdings from the library’s special collections.

At lunch on Friday, a plenary panel commemorated the 25th anniversary of the journal Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature by discussing the past 25 years of scholarship on eighteenth-century women writers and depictions of women in three national literatures: Britain, the United States, and China. Speakers included Carla Mulford, Associate Professor of English at Pennsylvania State University, Susan Staves, Professor Emerita of English at Brandeis University, and Maram Epstein, Director of the Asian Studies Program and Associate Professor of East Asian Languages and Literature at the University of Oregon.

On Saturday afternoon, conference attendees were bused to the Gilcrease museum of Native American art and art of the American West. The dinner banquet took place here, followed by a plenary address, Native Americans and the Seven Years War, by Daniel K. Richter, Professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania and The Richard S. Dunn Director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies.

This conference also featured a special session with discussion of a pre-circulated paper, Now Appearing (or Disappearing) in the Long Eighteenth Century: How Ulloa’s Iris and Similar Flashes of Brilliance Define ‘The Period,’ by Kevin Cope, Professor of English at Louisiana State University and SCSECS past president.

Tulsa is well known for the art deco architecture of its historic downtown. A link to a self-guided tour is posted below, and if several conference attendees show interest we will schedule a guided tour of the downtown via street or tunnel system, depending on the weather. Conference attendees also may be interested in side trips to the Philbrook art museum (10 minute drive from downtown), the Oklahoma aquarium (20 minutes), the Tulsa Zoo (15 minutes), or the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve (90 minutes), the largest protected area of tallgrass prairie in the world. Many bars and restaurants are also a short walk or convenient 5-10 minute taxi ride from the hotel, and the hotel offers free shuttle service within a 3-mile radius.

The registration fee of $180 included the Thursday evening reception and Trio Tulsa performance, the Friday luncheon, the Saturday dinner banquet, morning coffee and pastries for all three days and afternoon coffee and snacks for Thursday and Friday, bus transportation to and from TU on Thursday and the Gilcrease on Saturday, and (if desired) a walking tour of Tulsa.

For further information, please visit the "Call for Papers" link or contact

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
(Clicking on one of these links will open a new window on your web browser so you will not lose contact with the SCSECS website)

Crowne Plaza Hotel Gilcrease Museum Trio Tulsa University of Tulsa Philbrook Museum Tall Grass Prairie Preserve Self-Guided Downtown Tulsa Walking Tour Downtown Tulsa Tunnel Tour Oklahoma Aquarium Tulsa Zoo