LAKELAND, Fla. (Jan. 12, 2007) — Florida Southern College’s Center for Florida History welcomes Dr. Steve Engle to the Florida Lecture Series on Jan. 25. Engle will discuss “Struggle for the Heartland: The Civil War in the West” at 7 p.m. in the William M. Hollis Seminar Room on the Florida Southern campus. The lecture is free and open to the public.

“We are delighted at the opportunity to have Dr. Engle with us on January 25.  He is a great speaker and one of America’s foremost authorities on the Civil War in the West,” said James Denham, professor of history and director of FSC’s Center for Florida History.

A native of West Virginia, Engle holds degrees from Shepherd College (B.A.) and Florida State University (Ph.D.), and has been chair of the Florida Atlantic University Department of History since 2001. He specializes in nineteenth century American history with an emphasis in the Civil War and Reconstruction era. More specifically, his research focuses on civil-military relations and ethnic dimensions of the Civil War. He is the author of several books, including “Yankee Dutchman: The Life of Franz Sigel” (1993), “Don Carlos Buell: Most Promising of All” (1999), “Struggle for the Heartland” (2001), and “The American Civil War in the West” (2001). He co-authored (with Gallagher, Krick and Glatthaar) “The American Civil War: This Mighty Scourge of War” (2003). Engle has presented several papers at professional conferences in the United States and Germany, and his articles and reviews have appeared in the Journal of American History, American Historical Review, Civil War History, Journal of Southern History, and AHA Perspectives. The winner of numerous teaching awards, Engle was named Distinguished Teacher of the Year in 2000. He was a Fulbright Scholar in Germany and in 2003 was named a Distinguished Lecturer by the Organization of American Historians. Engle serves as the executive treasurer and book review editor for the Society of Civil War Historians.

About the Florida Lecture Series 
The Florida Lecture Series is produced by the Center for Florida History under the direction of Dr. James M. Denham. The program brings speakers to the Lakeland campus who approach the issue of “Florida Life and Culture” from a wide range of disciplines, including history, public affairs, law, sociology, criminology, anthropology, literature, music and art. Its overall objective is to create an opportunity for members of the community, faculty, and student body to listen to, interact with and learn from leading scholars and specialists of the state’s history and culture.

About Florida Southern College
Founded in 1885, Florida Southern College is a private, comprehensive, United Methodist college with a liberal arts core. The college maintains its commitment to academic excellence through 38 undergraduate majors and distinctive graduate programs in business administration, education, and nursing. Florida Southern has a 13:1 student/faculty ratio, provides strong student/faculty mentorship programs, boasts 25 NCAA Division II national championships, and is ranked by U. S. News and World Report as one of the top ten Southern Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelors institutions and by the Princeton Review as a “Best Southeastern College.” Located on scenic Lake Hollingsworth, Florida Southern is the home of the world’s largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture.