Clay Jenkinson Wet Plate Collodion 7-1-2016

Clay Straus Jenkinson (born February 4, 1955 in

Dickinson, North Dakota Dickinson is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 25,679 at the 2020 census. Dickinson is home to the Ukrainian Cultural Institute, which has a museum and holds events year round for the ...

) is an American humanities scholar, author and educator. He is currently the director of The Dakota Institute, where he co-hosts public radio's ''

The Thomas Jefferson Hour ''The Thomas Jefferson Hour'' is a syndicated public radio program and podcast produced in Bismarck, North Dakota. It features author-historian Clay S. Jenkinson in a first-person portrayal of Thomas Jefferson, the third US President, and is ...

'', and creates documentary films, symposia, and literary projects. He lectures at

Dickinson State University Dickinson State University (DSU) is a public university in Dickinson, North Dakota. It is part of the North Dakota University System. It was founded in 1918 as Dickinson State Normal School and granted full university status in 1987. History Di ...

and

Bismarck State College Bismarck State College (BSC) is a public college in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the third largest college in the North Dakota University System with 3,781 students as of September 2016. Established in 1939, it is a comprehensive community co ...

Life

Jenkinson was born in Dickinson, in southwestern

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

; his father was a banker and his mother a schoolteacher. Although the family moved quite often when he and his sister were children, Jenkinson grew up mostly in Dickinson. He graduated from Dickinson High School in 1973 and then attended

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

. He graduated in 1977 with a degree in English, and was then a

Rhodes scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

at Oxford. In 2005 at the age of 50 Jenkinson returned to

as a permanent resident; he resides in Bismarck. He is currently the Director of The Dakota Institute through The Lewis & Clark Fort Mandan Foundation, Chief Consultant to The

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

Center through

, and a Distinguished Humanities Scholar at

. He is James Marsh Professor-at-Large at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

. Jenkinson has one child, Catherine Missouri Walker Jenkinso

https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112119/http://nullrefs.com/ev/six-pie-day-in-delightful-dickinson.htm] from his marriage to Etta L. Walker (they married on 16 March 1986 and divorced in 1997). His daughter was named after the Little Missouri River.

Portrayal of Jefferson

Jenkinson first achieved fame for his portrayal (first-person historical interpretation) of

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

. On April 11, 1994, he was the first public humanities scholar to present a program at a White House-sponsored event when he presented Thomas Jefferson for a gathering hosted by President and Mrs. Clinton. As co-founder of the modern

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) was an adult education and social movement in the United States, highly popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Chautauqua bro ...

movement, Jenkinson has also portrayed

Sir Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both n ...

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

J. Robert Oppenheimer J. Robert Oppenheimer (; April 22, 1904 – February 18, 1967) was an American theoretical physicist. A professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, Oppenheimer was the wartime head of the Los Alamos Laboratory and is oft ...

John Wesley Powell John Wesley Powell (March 24, 1834 – September 23, 1902) was an American geologist, U.S. Army soldier, explorer of the American West, professor at Illinois Wesleyan University, and director of major scientific and cultural institutions. He ...

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

, and

Meriwether Lewis Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with ...

. Jenkinson's public portrayals take the form of lengthy monologues followed by Q & A sessions as the character (in costume) featured for that performance. At the end of his performances, he steps out of character and answers questions as himself. Another performance variation is represented by his nationally syndicated radio show, ''

'':

''"While staying resolutely in character, Mr. Jenkinson permits Jefferson to answer audience questions on a broad range of historical subjects and comment carefully on contemporary social and political topics."''

On November 15, 2006, Clay appeared as Jefferson on ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focuse ...

'' with two other Jefferson impersonators, Bill Barker and Steven Edenbo.

Awards

In 1989, Jenkinson became one of the first winners of the nation's highest award in the humanities, the

Charles Frankel Prize The National Humanities Medal is an American award that annually recognizes several individuals, groups, or institutions for work that has "deepened the nation's understanding of the humanities, broadened our citizens' engagement with the human ...

, awarded by President George H.W. Bush for his achievements. The

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

once described Jenkinson as "A leader in the revival of

, a forum for public discussion about the ideas and lives of key figures in American history." He has been awarded the Robert J. Laxalt Writer of the Year Award from

University of Nevada-Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12 ...

and is a

and Danforth Scholar. Jenkinson was a senior fellow for the Center for Digital Government, based in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, and was scholar-in-residence at

Lewis & Clark College Lewis & Clark College is a private liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon. Originally chartered in 1867 as the Albany Collegiate Institute in Albany, Oregon, the college was relocated to Portland in 1938 and in 1942 adopted the name Lewis & Cl ...

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

from 2002–2006, and Roosevelt scholar-in-residence at

from 2005-2008. In 2004, Jenkinson was inducted into the

Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame The Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame (SAHF) was established in 1984 in Minot, North Dakota, by the Norsk Høstfest Association. The Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame is "an enduring means of honoring the persons of Scandinavian descent in North ...

, a signature event o
Norsk Høstfest

Selected publications

Books

*''The Character of Meriwether Lewis: Explorer in the Wilderness'' *''Message on the Wind: A Spiritual Odyssey on the Northern Plains'' *''Becoming Jefferson's People: Re-Inventing the American Republic in the Twenty-First Century'' *''Theodore Roosevelt in the Dakota Badlands: An Historical Guide'' *''A Free and Hardy Life: Theodore Roosevelt's Sojourn in the American West'' *''A Vast and Open Plain: The Writings of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in North Dakota, 1804-1806'' *''For the Love of North Dakota and Other Essays: Sundays with Clay in the Bismarck Tribune'' *''The Bill Of Rights And Beyond Thomas Jefferson's Perspective'' *''Lewis and Clark in Iowa'' *''The Language of Cottonwoods: Essays on the Future of North Dakota''

Documentaries

*''When the Landscape is Quiet again: the Legacy of Art Link''

References

External links

Jefferson Hour.com
- official site
Dakota Sky Education.com
- Jenkinson's informational website
Prairie Public.org
- Clay Jenkinson at 50 - 04-Feb-2005

- faculty directory * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkinson, Clay S. 1955 births Living people Historians of the United States 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers American Rhodes Scholars Alumni of University College, Oxford People from Minot, North Dakota Lewis & Clark College faculty National Humanities Medal recipients People from Dickinson, North Dakota American male non-fiction writers