Speak Your Piece: a podcast about Utah's history

The past is never truly “in the past.” It’s all around us, it informs us. It speaks to our shared and to our separate identities. “Speak Your Piece” is a podcast where contributors share their insights and discoveries about Utah's 12,000 year (plus) human story. Hosted by Brad Westwood, Senior Public Historian (Utah Dept. of Culture & Community Engagement), and co produced by Chelsey Zamir, a new episode is released every other week, sometimes more, sometimes less. SYP explores the key arguments with new and worthwhile older publications, articles or websites; or delves into a notable museum, archival collection, archaeological report; or allows a respected writer, curator or historian to speak freely, sometimes about difficult history. SYP seeks to tell a history of Utah in a way you might not heard it before., told by the people who know it best: historians, writers, curators, archaeologists, rare book dealers, archivists, librarians and more. Speak Your Piece is recorded and engineered at the Utah State Library in Salt Lake City. Jason Powers is the sound and post-production engineer. The SYP logo is a photograph entitled "Canyonlands," taken by Utah outdoor photographer Al W. Morton, circa 1955, within the Canyonlands National Park (NPS). The lone man in the image is Kent Frost, looking over a series of needle rock formations located in San Juan County, Utah. The image and rights are owned by the Utah State Historical Society.

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Speak Your Piece: a podcast about Utah's history

Dr. Cassandra Clark: "Landscape of the Mind" (Season 2, Ep. 4 - Part 1)

November 02, 2020 • Brad Westwood • Season 2 • Episode 4

Dr. Cassandra Clark is an adjunct professor at the Salt Lake Community College and is a Public History Marketing Content Coordinator for the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts. She completed her doctorate in American History at the University of Utah in August 2020. Her dissertation title is: “Landscapes of the Mind: The Brain, Space and Scientific Race Theories, and the Environment in the Intermountain West, 1840-1950.” Dr. Clark’s research focuses on western history, history of mental health, race, and scientific race theory.

In today podcast we will be discussing Dr. Clark’s dissertation which focuses on the history of mental health in the interior western states; however we will try to focus, as much as possible, on the history of mental health in Utah.