Dr. Bruce Craig wins 2019 Mary Lee Spence Documentary Book Award
University of Prince Edward Island history department professor Dr. Bruce Craig has been awarded the 2019 Mary Lee Spence Documentary Book Award for his most recent book, Portrait of a Prospector: Edward Schieffelin’s Own Story, published by University of Oklahoma Press, 2017.
The Mary Lee Spence Award is presented annually by the Mining History Association to recognize the editor of a work published during 2017-18 that “masterfully crafts background documentation, creates a flowing account from diverse sources.” The prize committee noted that Dr. Craig’s editorial efforts “superbly brought together the tale of prospector Edward Schieffelin.” Previously, Dr.Craig’s book placed second in Utah State University’s Mountain West Center’s prestigious Evan’s Handcart Award competition, which recognizes the best of research and writing in biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs which focus on the stories of people who have shaped the character of the American West.
Dr. Craig’s book is unique in that it breaks with a long-held tradition in historical writing in that it does not fall comfortably in either the category of biography or autobiography. Rather, the work is perhaps best described as a “constructed autobiography.”
The central figure in the first-person narrative is Edward Schieffelin: the discoverer of the famed Arizona Tombstone silver lode in 1877 and a towering figure who epitomized the American frontiersman of the 19th century American West. Schieffelin never wrote an autobiography, but left behind a journal of his adventures. Also left for posterity were several oral history interviews conducted in the 1890s by famed historian Herbert Howe Bancroft.
Dr. Craig’s accomplishment was to marry the two types of primary resources documents into a cohesive narrative using only Scheiffelin’s own words. In essence, Dr. Craig fashioned the autobiography that perhaps Schieffelin himself would have written had he lived long enough to do so. Dr. Craig rounded out the book by crafting an introduction and conclusion and provided extensive explanatory footnotes.
The book is available for purchase through your favourite online bookstore and locally on Prince Edward Island at The Bookmark on Queen Street, Charlottetown.
The University of Prince Edward Island prides itself on people, excellence, and impact and is committed to assisting students to reach their full potential in both the classroom and community. With roots stemming from two founding institutions—Prince of Wales College and Saint Dunstan’s University—UPEI has a reputation for academic excellence, research innovation, and creating positive impacts locally, nationally, and internationally. UPEI is the only degree granting institution in the province and is proud to be a key contributor to the growth and prosperity of Prince Edward Island.
