Past Hewlett Lectures

2019
Celebrating 40 Years of the Society for History in the Federal Government 

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of SHFG, the 2019 Hewlett Lecture will feature a roundtable of past presidents and founding SHFG members. Phil Cantelon, Pete Daniel, Arnita Jones, Lee Ann Potter, and Terrance Rucker will discuss the achievements and evolution of the Society and federal government history over the past 40 years.

2018
Liza Mundy: Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II

2017
Panel: Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War I 

2016
PANEL:  “The National Park Service at its 100th Anniversary”

2015
PANEL:  “Legacies of the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965”

• Tom Gjelten, Correspondent for Religion and Belief on the National Desk at NPR
• Marian L. Smith, former Chief Historian for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
• Ruth Wasem, Kluge Fellow at the Library of Congress
• Phil Wolgin, Center for American Progress

2014
Anthony S. Pitch: “The Joys of Researching A Work of Non-Fiction”

2013
Margo Anderson, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee: “The Historian and Our Crisis of Data Collection vs. Privacy Rights”

2012
Panel Discussion: “The Role of Federal Historians in Records Management” 

Lincoln Bramwell, U.S. Forest Service
Paul Wester, National Archives and Records Administration
KC Johnson, historian, Brooklyn College, CUNY

2011
Adam Goodheart, Author of  1861: The Civil War Awakening – speaker cancelled

2010
David S. Ferriero, Archivist of the United States

Archivist Ferriero spoke on his agenda for the major issues facing the National Archives, including records processing and management, declassification, electronic records, and access, as well as the use of the new social media.

2009
Prof. William Roger Louis, former Chair of the State Department’s Advisory Board on Historical Diplomatic Documentation

Professor Louis spoke about his to decision to resign in protest from the Board in late 2008 and resulting insights on the challenges and issues involved in doing federal and public history.

2008

Prof. Richard Breitman, American University
Professor Breitman spoke about his recent publication, Advocate for the Doomed: James G. McDonald and American Refugee Policy in the Roosevelt Years.

2007
Brig. General Carl W. Reddel (USAF, Ret.)

General Reddel spoke on the Eisenhower Memorial Commission’s efforts to build a memorial to President Dwight D. Eisenhower near the national mall in Washington, D.C.

2006
Donald A. Ritchie, Associate Historian, U.S. Senate

Remarks titled: “Senate Voices: Thirty Years of Oral History on Capitol Hill”

2005
Dr. Allen Weinstein, Archivist of the United States

2004
Dr. David Kahn, independent scholar of military intelligence

Remarks titled: “Writing about America’s First Government Codebreaker”

2003
Brent Glass, Director, National Museum of American History

2002
Richard Ben Veniste

2001
Brian Lamb, CEO, C–SPAN

2000
Shelia Burke, Smithsonian Institution
Remarks titled: “History from Capitol to Castle”