Congress of History of S.D. & Imperial Counties

Join us on Friday, February 18, and Saturday, February 19, 2022, for our 56th (mostly) Annual History Conference. This will be in person, at Portuguese Hall in Point Loma, San Diego, CA. Got an event you want to speak about? Let us know by November 20, 2021!

Celebration. Commemoration. Remembering. Coming together after a year and a half of staying apart. As people, we are social beings. We gather for many reasons: to share joy, to honor others, to remember good times, or to make our voices heard. This conference showcases events that have inspired us to gather, be they happy (parades, fairs, festivals, or fun) or serious (protests, passings, problems, or pain). These events may repeat each year (like holiday celebrations) or may have been a one-time event.  

Is there an event that defined you, your family, or your community? Was there a gathering that you attended that was pivotal in your life? Is there a gathering that keeps traditions alive? Was the gathering a positive experience, or no? If the event happened or started at least 20 years ago, we want to hear about it (we use 20 years to have some historical perspective). In “Come One, Come All” we want to hear about it! 

Historians, researchers, writers, and storytellers: Each year the Congress of History presents a history conference on topics that reflect our region. We’ve done conferences on big themes (like the impact of world wars on the region). This year we seek talks about events that have importance to you. You don’t have to be a professional speaker, writer, or historian. Great presentations come from those who care! 

Download the Request for Speakers form, or just send an email to Louise Torio, Conference Chair, at historicsandiego@aol.com with your idea for a talk. Questions? Contact Louise via email, or text or call her at 619-233-8833 by November 20.

Thank you to everyone who made the 2021 virtual “Remarkable Women” Conference a success! For those who missed the conference, our speakers have graciously allowed us to share their recorded talks for one month for those who paid but could not attend. If you want the link and code to the downloads, please send us an email to Info@CongressOfHistory.org.

Thank you to our wonderful, insightful speakers without whom the conference would not have been possible. Several speakers have books for sale. See the slides below on how to purchase those books.

Thank you to our sponsors. Sunbelt Publications is generously giving friends of the Congress of History at 20% discount on Sunbelt Publications through the end of March 2021. See the slide below to use the code to get the discount, or you can “shop the warehouse” in El Cajon to see all amazing books available to you at reduced price.

Welcome to the 55th Annual Congress of History Conference celebrating 100+ years since the approval of the 19th Amendment, & highlighting remarkable women of our region.

Program in pdf format ( link )

Friday and Saturday, February 26 and 27, starting at 9:00 a.m.

Due to the pandemic last March we had to cancel our conference on “Remarkable Women: Breaking Down Barriers / Creating Legacies in the San Diego Region.” We will hold our conference virtually on Friday, February 26, and Saturday, February 27, from 9:00 a.m. to approximately 3:00 p.m. (with breaks for lunch). Thank you to the conference co-chairs, Rosanne Goodwin and Helen Halmay.

Many of the wonderful speakers who planned to speak last year will be joining us to discuss their “remarkable women.” A few planned speakers cannot make it. We will post the final schedule of speakers here on our website as soon as it’s locked in. We will record the conference, so if anyone cannot attend on February 26 and 27 they can view it at a later date.

Questions? Please email us at info@CongressOfHistory.org.

We will hold our COH Annual Meeting on Saturday, February 20, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. All members are invited to attend. We will post the Webex meeting link a few days before the meeting. You will just be able to click on the link to join the meeting.

The slate for the 2021-2022 Board is as follows:

President: Christopher MilnesVice President: Louis GoldichSecretary: Louise TorioTreasurer: Andrew HalmayPast President (nonvoting member): Dianne CowenBoard Members at Large: Barbara Busch, Steve Veach, Jonnie Wilson Webmaster: Ray Blavatt

Thank you to outgoing Board members Rosanne Goodwin and Jennifer Stone.

Please let us know if you have an interest in serving on your COH Board.

VIRTUAL HISTORY CONFERENCE, Friday and Saturday, February 26 and 27, starting at 9:00 a.m.

Due to the pandemic last March we had to cancel our conference on “Remarkable Women: Breaking Down Barriers / Creating Legacies in the San Diego Region.” We will hold our conference virtually on Friday, February 26, and Saturday, February 27, from 9:00 a.m. to approximately 3:00 p.m. (with breaks for lunch). Thank you to the conference co-chairs, Rosanne Goodwin and Helen Halmay.

Many of the wonderful speakers who planned to speak last year will be joining us to discuss their “remarkable women.” A few planned speakers cannot make it. We will post the final schedule of speakers here on our website as soon as it’s locked in. We will record the conference, so if anyone cannot attend on February 26 and 27 they can view it at a later date.

Questions? Please email us at info@CongressOfHistory.org.

Please Join Us on December 5, 2020 for 
Readings from Garment for a Long Journey

COH Board member Jonnie Wilson will be speaking

Hosted by the Ocean Beach Branch Library

Founder of the Ocean Beach Poetry Circle and resident of San Diego for more than 50 years, LoVerne Brown wrote poems about nature, human relationships, politics, social justice, diversity, humor, and poetry itself. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the San Diego Public Library in 1999.

Online Saturday December 5, 2020, 2:00 pm

Please register for this event at http://bit.ly/sdplbrown

Registrants will receive an email confirmation and a link to the Zoom event

Link to LoVerne Brown’s website ( link )

We will be moving forward on what looks to be a “Virtual Conference” coming up next year. Stay tuned and more info will be following.

Our next Congress of History meeting will be on Saturday, September 19, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. via videoconferencing using WebEx. If you’d like to join us, please contact us at info@CongressOfHistory.org and we will send you a link to our meeting.

8/9/2020

Hi Everybody,
A short note to let everyone know that on July 18, 2020 the Board of the Congress Of History voted unanimously that existing memberships be extended at no cost for one additional year. This of course is in response to the Pandemic’s impact.

Rest assured that we will continue to work toward future Conferences.

Sincerely,
Christopher Milnes
President, Congress of History

Dear Members and Friends of the Congress of History of San Diego and Imperial Counties,

Our next Congress of History meeting will be on Saturday, July 18, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. via videoconferencing using WebEx. If you’d like to join us, please contact us at info@CongressOfHistory.org and we will send you a link to our meeting.

As a reminder, the Remarkable Women conference has been rescheduled to Friday, February 26, and Saturday, February 27, 2021, at Portuguese Hall in Point Loma, San Diego. Please save these dates. We are holding our conference at this guaranteed time next spring rather than trying to reschedule for this summer. 

We are sincerely grateful to our friends and co-sponsor, the Portuguese Historical Center, for their support of this conference, and to the United Portuguese S.E.S., Inc., for accommodating the date change to 2021. We’re excited that most of the scheduled speakers can make the new dates; this conference is too good not to share with you!

Thank you for being understanding as we all endure this global health emergency. As all of us are able to open up and have activities again, please send your event information to us at info@CongressOfHistory.org. 

As history has shown us, this too shall pass!

Chris Milnes
President