Edward N. Tihen Research Grants
The Edward N. Tihen Historical Research Grants are presented annually to non-academic researchers to access the collections of the Kansas Historical Society. The grants are for $500. The deadline for the Tihen Research Grants Award is April 15. The award(s) will be announced each spring for research to be conducted in the collections of the Historical Society during the following fiscal year (beginning July 1).
Application and Evaluation Process
Funds for the grant are provided by the Tihen Endowment, established in 1995 by Dr. Tihen's family and friends in his memory and in appreciation of his role as an amateur historian.
Application and Evaluation Process
The purpose of the grants is to encourage amateur historians to undertake research and to publish their research, a step that Dr. Tihen never took despite his accumulation of vast resources based on primary research.
Applicants are encouraged to discuss their projects in advance with Historical Society staff members having expertise in the proposed fields of inquiry. Those applicants who have not previously utilized the holdings of the Historical Society are urged to visit onsite and explore the sources available before submitting an application.
The applicant must consult relevant research resources at the Historical Society, which may include the State Archives or the Kansas Museum of History collections. Research at other historical societies, archives, and libraries in Kansas will also be supported. Eligible costs include travel, lodging, and supplies. Grants may not be used for hiring research assistance.
A non-academic researcher is an individual not employed by a college or university. Historical Society staff members are ineligible.
The Kansas Historical Foundation reserves the right not to award any Tihen grants based either on the availability of funds or the quality of the applications.
2019 - Dee Starkey, comprehensive biography of Kansas governor, senator, and publisher Henry J. Allen (1868-1950)
2019 - Jonathan Weber, What role did the AT&SF railroad play in the development of Galveston before the hurricane of 1900?
2018 - Christine Steinkuehler, Topeka, primary and secondary source research analyzing the role of Nick Chiles, publisher of the Plaindealer, a Topeka-area African American newspaper
2017 - Douglas R. Cubbison, Casper, Wyoming, Analyzing the role played by Frontier Army Scouts in the Indian Wars west of the Missouri River, from 1829 to 1890
2017 -Johanna Wickman, Casper, Wyoming, To expand previous research to include the history of the 11th Kansas at Fort Halleck, and to obtain information on Colonel Preston Plumb, his military service, political career, and business ventures
2016 - Jonathan Weber, for research on A Forged Alliance: Agricultural Education, Mid-West Values, and the Atchison, Topeka, Santa Fe Railroad
2015 - Wendi Bevitt, Overbrook, for research on Company I of the 11th Kansas and the U.S. Colored Troops
2015 - Jarrett Robinson, Thompson’s Station, Tennessee, for research on the Life and Career of General Frederick Funston
2014 - Taylor C. Bye - Abolitionist and publisher Daniel Read Anthony, brother of suffragist Susan B. Anthony
2014 - Dr. Antonio Delgado - Early Mexican settlements in Kansas and the communities’ association with the railroads
2014 - Lori Ann Dell’aira - Study of fraud in the offices of Coffey County
2014 - Michael Hopps - Confederate Major General Sterling Price’s 1864 raid of Missouri
2014 - Jonathan Weber - Transnational corpse transportation between the United States and Mexico in the late 19th century
2013 - William McClure - Family conflict in Linn and Bourbon counties in Bleeding Kansas
2013 - Judith Pasch - Czechoslovakian ancestors
2012 - Linda S. Johnston, project - Promise and Hope in the Kansas Territory
2012 - Madaleine J. Laird, project - Quilts as Textile History
2008 - Anne Hawkins, project - Underground Railroad in Kansas Territory
2007 - B. J. Alderman, project - History of Charles F. Himes' Letters
2007 - Linda Lewis, project - History of Early Burial Ground in Johnson County, Kansas
2006 - Kevin G. W. Olsen, project - History of Manhattan, Kansas
2005 - Mary Penner, project - Preserve the history of a Santa Fe trader named Henry O'Neill
2004 - Tisa M. Anders, project - The Life of Junius G. Groves (1859-1925)
2004 - Karen M. Heady, project - photographs and illustrations for a written history of Oskaloosa, Kansas
2003 - B. J. Alderman, Kansas City, Missouri, project - frontier lawman, James G. Weakley, and the mystery surrounding one of his prisoners
2003 - Mike Watowa, Lawrence, project - an annotated bibliography of material on the Kansas Folklore Society
1999 - Vera M. Hurst, project - Atchison county farm women, and Evelyn Reed, project - Dull Knife Raid in Comanche County
1997 - Robert Mossman, Tucson, Arizona; Carol Duer Cochran, Prairie Village; and Susan Croft, Herets, England
1995 - Dinah Faber, Baltimore; Leah Suzanne Hanson, Lawrence
Applicants should submit a completed copy of the completed grant form to the Kansas Historical Foundation by April 15. This form may be printed, filled in by hand and mailed, or completed as a writable PDF, saved, and attached to an email message.
Find more information and submit applications to:
Kansas Historical Foundation
6425 SW 6th Avenue
Topeka KS 66615-1099
785-272-8681
Fax 785-272-8682
kshs.membership@ks.gov
