Presentations

I have developed a variety of PowerPoint presentations and given programs to hundreds of groups, including k-12 and college students, community service organizations, historical audiences, libraries, home owners associations, and professional societies.  

These programs cover a wide range of topics and can be packeged as part of a book signing event.  Please contact me for further details or to schedule an event.

GENERAL HISTORY

• The Grand Canyon: Past and Present. This program features repeat photography captured in my 2024 book, The Grand Canyon, which illustrates how the Canyon and its array of visitor resources have changed--and stayed the same--over time.
   
• Brighty of the Grand Canyon.   Marguerite Henry’s 1953 book Brighty of the Grand Canyon, as well as the eponymous 1966 movie that it inspired, are fictionalized accounts of a real-life, free-spirited burro that roamed the Grand Canyon from the 1890s – 1920s. This program will look at the real story of Brighty and how it compares to the book and movie accounts, as well as the controversy caused by a statue of Brighty created in 1967.
   
• The Lincoln Memorial. The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, is a monument to the nation's 16th president, a commemoration of the country's post-Civil War reunification, and a setting for national events and quiet visits. A century after it opened, it remains one of the United States' most beloved shrines.
   
• Theodore Roosevelt Slept Here.  A mostly nonfictional account of Roosevelt and his ties to Arizona, from visits during and after his presidency, to policies he developed and community pride he inspired.
   
• Historic Tales of Flagstaff.  Memorable characters and events highlight Flagstaff's fascinating past, from Theodore Roosevelt, Charles Lindbergh, and Navajo code talkers, to Apollo astronaut training and the successful search for a planet. Mike Kitt and I capture these and other vignettes in our book, "Historic Tales of Flagstaff". In this program, I will read excerpts from it while sharing historic images. 
   
• ​Zane Grey and the Call of the Canyon.  Reviews Grey's life and then focuses on his exploits in Arizona, particularly activities relating to his book and movie, Call of the Canyon, set in Oak Creek Canyon.
   
• ​Who Was Del Webb?  His name adorns communities across the country, but who was he?  This program reviews his life as a real estate developer and baseball team owner.
   
• ​Dauntless Courage and Boundless Ambition: The Life of Buckey O'Neill. O'Neill was one of Arizona's legendary pioneers, a man who wore many hats: newspaper publisher, sheriff, prospector, mayor, Roughrider.
   
• ​The History of Baseball Spring Training in Arizona.  Major League Baseball teams have been training in Arizona for more than a century, starting with sporadic training sessions and barnstorming games and evolving into the modern Cactus League.
   
• John Weatherford and his Hotel.  A leader of the Flagstaff, Arizona community in the 19th-20th centuries, Weatherford built an iconic hotel that has stood for more than a century.

HISTORY OF ASTRONOMY/SCIENCE

• Robert Burnham, Jr. and His Celestial Handbook.  Robert Burnham, Jr. compiled one of the most popular astronomy books ever—the three-volume observing bible, Burnham’s Celestial Handbook—while working at Lowell Observatory in the mid-20th century. Yet Burnham’s life was enigmatic. This program will look at this complicated man who brought the wonders of space to people around the world.
   
• The Far End of the Journey: Lowell Observatory's Historic 24-inch Clark Telescope.  This program covers one of our country's most storied telescopes, from its early history of groundbreaking research to famous visitors and its recent renovation.
   
• The 1894 Lowell Expedition to Arizona.  Reviews the daring site-testing expedition throughout  Arizona Territory that resulted in the founding of Lowell Observatory.
   
• Flagstaff Goes to the Moon.  Much crucial preparation for sending Apollo astronauts to the moon took place in Flagstaff, including mapping of the lunar surface, astronaut training, and instrument testing.
   
• High Plains Celestial Drifter: Clyde Tombaugh and the Discovery of Pluto.  The story of Clyde Tombaugh and his discovery of a new world is at once unlikely, inspirational, and breathtaking. A passionate student of the night skies, this Kansas farm boy couldn't afford to buy telescopes to explore the night sky so he built his own. He skill at recording night sky phenomena landed him a job at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, and within a year of starting there, he discovered the ninth planet. His story is as captivating as the best novel.
   
• Percival Lowell and his Impact on Astronomy.  A brilliant member of a Boston Brahmin clan, Lowell was a controversial figure in the astronomical world of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He left several legacies that forever changed the course of astronomy.
   
• The History of Science in Flagstaff.  Northern Arizona boasts an abundance of natural resources and scientists have been coming here since the mid 1800s to explore these riches.  This program covers this research, from early transportation surveys, to focused research expeditions by John Wesley Powell and others, to the establishment of permanent research facilities.
   
• Dinosaur Wars.  The Gilded Age is remembered as a time of corruption and unscrupulous behavior among businessmen and politicians. This nefarious behavior transcended into science, where two paleontologists—Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh—went from friendly collaborators to bitter rivals. Through thievery, bribery, and bullying, they tried to outdo and embarrass each other at every step. In the process, they led expeditions around the American West that led to some of the greatest dinosaur discoveries ever.
   
• The History of Lowell Observatory.  For more than 120 years, Lowell scientists have carried out groundbreaking research, including the discovery of Pluto, first detection of the expanding nature of the universe, and moon mapping for the Apollo program.
   
• The Life of Edwin Hubble.  Hubble was one of the most influential--and pompous--astronomers of the 20th century, with his most important contributions coming during his time at Mount Wilson Observatory in California.
   
• V.M. Slipher and the Expanding Universe.  Lowell Observatory's mild-mannered astronomer from Indiana made one of the most important astronomical discoveries of the 20th century when he detected the first evidence of the expanding nature of the universe.