The 120th annual meeting of the American Historical Association will be held January 5–8, 2006, in Philadelphia at the Philadelphia Marriott, Loews Philadelphia, and Courtyard Philadelphia Downtown hotels. Hotel reservation information is included on pages 44 and 45 of this issue of Perspectives. The meeting preregistration form is on page 46 (and will also be included in the annual meeting Program, which will be mailed to members in October). The form can also be downloaded from the Association's web site.

Many of the profession's most distinguished members will be present to deliver papers at the 195 "official" sessions as well as in the numerous other forums during the meeting. More than 900 scholars, including 94 from other countries, are expected to participate in sessions at the three and one-half day meeting. In addition, more than four dozen specialized societies will be meeting in conjunction with the AHA. Each society will be holding its own sessions, luncheons, and meetings, as well as some joint sessions with the Association.

On the evening of Friday, January 6, James Sheehan of Stanford University will deliver the presidential address. President-elect Linda K. Kerber of the University of Iowa will announce the Association's book awards, Awards for Scholarly Distinction, the Troyer Steele Anderson Prize, the Eugene Asher Distinguished Teaching Award, the Beveridge Family Teaching Prize, the William Gilbert Award, the John E. O'Connor Film Award, the Nancy Lyman Roelker Mentorship Award, and the 2005 Honorary Foreign Member.

Accommodations

AHA annual meeting sessions as well as affiliated society sessions and events are scheduled in the Marriott, Loews, and Courtyard. Blocks of rooms have been reserved at several downtown Philadelphia hotels, including the Marriott, Loews, Courtyard, Doubletree Philadelphia, Hilton Garden Inn, Wyndham Franklin Plaza, Hampton Inn, and Holiday Inn Express. The Marriott will serve as headquarters and will house AHA registration, the Exhibit Hall, the Job Register, the messaging and Internet centers, and some AHA and affiliate sessions. The Loews, adjacent to the Marriott, will be the co-headquarters and will accommodate AHA and affiliate sessions. Several affiliate sessions and events are assigned to the Courtyard. All hotels are within walking distance of these three meeting hotels.

Rates at the Marriott and the Loews are $99 single and $109 double. Rates at the Wyndham are $97 single and $107 double. Rates at the Doubletree, Hilton, and Holiday Inn are $95 single and double. Rates at the Courtyard are $94 single and $104 double and at the Hampton Inn $93 single and $103 double.

All rooms are subject to city and state occupancy taxes of 14 percent per room, per night. The special meeting rates are in effect three days before and after the meeting dates (that is, from January 2 to January 11) but will be available for only a limited number of rooms at each property.

Making a Hotel Reservation

Beginning September 6, 2005, hotel reservations must be made exclusively with ITS, the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau's housing vendor (who is based in Deerfield, Illinois). Requests for reservations will be accepted by ITS via the Internet (through a special link on the AHA annual meeting web page , which will take the user to ITS's online services for the AHA meeting, as the AHA itself cannot process reservations), the call center, fax, or mail (only if accompanied by a check deposit) through 5:00 p.m. CST, December 14, 2005.

ITS's call center (toll-free, 800-650-6835) will accept reservations from the United States and Canada during the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Central Standard Time, Monday through Friday. International callers may call 847-282-2515 to make reservations during normal business hours. Phone reservations are limited to five per call—requests for more than five must be submitted in writing.

Faxes from the U.S. and Canada may be sent 24 hours a day, seven days a week to 800-521-6017, but will be processed during business hours. International attendees may fax to 847-940-2386.

Reservations for suites can be made by through the call center, Internet, or the housing form.

Reservation requests can be sent by mail only if payments are made by check, and should be sent to AHA Housing Bureau, P.O. Box 825, Deerfield, IL 60015-0825. The checks should be made payable to AHA Housing Bureau, in U.S. funds, drawn on a U.S. bank.

Confirmation: A confirmation message will be sent by the housing bureau for all new reservations, modifications, and cancellations. The bureau will send out confirmations by mail, fax, or e-mail no later than 72 hours of processing reservations. Room reservations made by phone are confirmed immediately with a confirmation number. Please note that the individual hotels will not send out a separate confirmation.

Deposit: A deposit is required for all reservations. For standard room reservations, the deposit is $125 per room. The deposit is $250 for a one-bedroom suite and $375 for a two-bedroom suite. Deposits can be paid by credit card or by check payment. If payment is to be by check, a check made payable to AHA Housing Bureau, in U.S. dollars and drawn on a U.S. bank, must accompany the housing request form. If payment is to be by credit card, the card will be billed immediately. ITS accepts American Express, MasterCard, Visa, Diner's Club, and Discover cards. The bureau does not accept money orders, wire transfers, or invoices for room deposits. Please note that reservations will not be processed without a deposit.

Cutoff Date: The cutoff date for the AHA's official block is 5:00 p.m. CST, December 14, 2005. After this date, remaining inventory in the block will be released and rooms will be available on a space-available basis. All hotels have agreed to honor the AHA's convention rates based upon space availability. If all hotels sell out, the AHA will work with the bureau to secure additional hotel rooms.

Changes, Cancellations, and Refunds: Meeting attendees can continue to make and modify (depending on availability) or cancel reservations from September 6 through December 14, 2005, 5:00 p.m. CST through ITS by telephone, fax, in writing, or through e-mail. Attendees will not be penalized for any cancellation made on or before December 14. Cancellations processed prior to the cutoff date will be refunded the same method of payment by which the attendee originally paid the deposit.

Beginning December 19, attendees who wish to cancel must contact the hotel directly. Reservations canceled after December 14 but prior to 72 hours of arrival will be subject to an $18 processing fee.

Reservations canceled within 72 hours of arrival date are subject to forfeiture of the entire amount of the deposit.

Transportation to Philadelphia

Association Travel Concepts (ATC) is the official travel agency for the annual meeting. As such, ATC has negotiated discounts with United Airlines, US Airways, American Airlines, Amtrak, Avis Rent A Car, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car to bring attendees special air, rail, and car rental rates that are lower than those available to the public. These cost saving options may be booked online at the AHA Travel Center web site—just follow the member travel links from http://www.atcmeetings.com/aha. Individuals can also fax requests to 858-362-3153 or e-mail reservations@atcmeetings.com. ATC staff are available for reservations from 9:00 a.m.&–7:00 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday.

Airfares: By calling ATC, attendees will secure discounts of 10 to 15 percent off the lowest available fare for United (ID number 510CK) and 10 to 15 percent off applicable classes of service for US Airways (ID number GF65653502), and American (ID number A6416AH) on tickets purchased more than 30 days prior to the meeting. For tickets purchased less than 30 days prior, the discounts will be 5 to 10 percent. Some restrictions may apply and service fees will vary. Discounts apply for travel Monday, January 2 through Wednesday, January 11, 2006.

ATC will also search for the lowest available fare on any airline serving the Philadelphia International Airport. ATC provides personalized service, advance seat assignments, special meal requests, frequent flier program updates, electronic ticketing, e-mail access for convenient booking of your tickets, and more.

These cost saving options may also be booked online by going to the AHA's Travel Center (http://www.atcmeetings. com/aha) and following the member travel link. Low fares available only on the Web can be found using the ATC search engine. Attendees can explore region-to-region flat zone rates and consolidator and net fares without a Saturday night stayover to find lower fares.

Train fares: Amtrak offers a 10 percent discount off the lowest available fare to/from Philadelphia. Discount fares are available December 30, 2005 through January 14, 2006. To book space, call your travel agent or Amtrak at 800-872-1477 and refer to fare order number X92H-947 when making the booking. Fares cannot be booked via the Internet. Special high-speed Metroliner Service is available every hour along the Northeast corridor. Discounted fare is also valid on Metroliner and Acela service for all departures seven days a week, except for holiday blackouts (for a list, see http://www.amtrak.com). The offer is also valid with sleepers, business class, or first class seats with payment of the full applicable accommodation charges. The offer is not valid on Auto Train.

Car rental: Attendees can also arrange to rent a car through Avis (ID number J952801; 800-331-1600) or Enterprise (ID number 32H7476; 800-593-0505), with discounted rates effective January 2 through January 11, 2006.

Ground Transportation

Arriving by air. The Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), located seven miles from downtown, serves the Philadelphia area. Incoming visitors can reach hotels via taxi ($25 flat rate to center city Philadelphia; 20 minute trip) and van shuttle service ($8 one way; up to one hour travel time). In addition, Southeastern Pennsylvania Trans-portation Authority's (SEPTA) R1 Airport Line (http://www.septa.org) offers one of the best airport-downtown links in the country. The commuter train line provides fast, convenient, and economical service to and from the five airport terminals. The R1 Airport Line costs $5.50 for one-way fare downtown. The trip takes about 20 minutes, with trains departing every half hour from 6:00 a.m. to midnight. Stops within the central Philadelphia area are at four locations: University City Station (Convention Avenue at South Street) is located near the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, and the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology; 30th Street Station (30th and Market Streets) is located directly in the Amtrak station; Suburban Station (16th and Market Streets) is located in the heart of the central Philadelphia business and shopping districts; and Market East Station (10th and Market Streets) is located in the Gallery Shopping Mall with direct entrance to the Philadelphia Marriott.

Arriving by rail: The Amtrak's 30th Street Station is located at 30th and Market Streets, a 10-minute taxi ride ($6) from the hotel. Riders can also travel on SEPTA, alighting at the Market East Station for the Marriott. The special fare for travel between 30th Street, Suburban, and Market East Stations is only sold as a round-trip fare for $3.50. In addition, Amtrak tickets are accepted as fare for travel between these three stations

General Information

Group Meetings and Reunions. Societies and groups that have not already made arrangements to hold sessions or other meetings should send their requests for room space as soon as possible to Sharon K. Tune, by e-mail (stune@historians.org), or fax (202-544-8307). Please specify preferred date, inclusive hours, attendance forecast, and any special equipment desired.

Business Meeting. Resolutions for the business meeting signed by 25 members of the Association will be accepted until December 15; those received by October 14 will take precedence and will be published in the December Perspectives and must be no more than 300 words in length. Resolutions should be sent to the Executive Director at the AHA office, with a copy to the Parliamentarian, Michael Les Benedict, 106 Dulles Hall, Ohio State University, 230 W. 17th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210.

Resolutions are governed by the following bylaw (adopted by the Council at its meeting on May 15–16, 1980, and amended May 9, 1994), pursuant to Article VII, Sections 1-5, of the AHA's constitution: No motion, resolution, or other business shall be passed by a division of the members at the annual business meeting unless there is present a quorum of one hundred members in good standing.

Locations. AHA sessions will be held at the Marriott and Loews hotels. The Local Arrangements Committee office and Press Room will be in the Marriott's Room 501 and the AHA Headquarters/Staff Office in the Marriott's Registration 1 (5th level). The Job Register will be located in the Marriott's Grand Ballroom Salon H and the Exhibit Hall will occupy the Marriott's Franklin Hall. AHA meeting registration desks and meal ticket cashiers will be in the Marriott's Liberty Ballroom. The Messaging and Internet Centers will be located in the Marriott's Grand Ballroom Salon E.

AHA Registration

Advance Registration: Intending participants are urged to preregister at the reduced rates of $75 members; $95 nonmembers; $45 student members; $55 student nonmembers; $45 unemployed; and $20 precollegiate teachers. The AHA also offers special preregistration rates of $50 for high school teachers and $100 for undergraduate teachers leading groups of up to five students. The preregistration form is on page 46. Advance registration must be received by Wednesday, January 4, 2006. Please note that preregistration for the 2006 meeting will be handled by a processing service and forms should be sent to the address shown on the form and not the AHA.

Registration at the Meeting: The registration desks at the annual meeting, located in the Marriott's Liberty Ballroom, will be open from noon to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 5, from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Friday, January 6, and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 7. Fees for registering at the meeting will be $90 members; $110 nonmembers; $50 student members; $60 student nonmembers; $50 unemployed; and $25 precollegiate teachers. The special group rate mentioned above is not available on site.

Admission to all sessions, exhibits, Job Register, Messaging Center, and the Internet Center requires a registration badge.

Refund Policy: Advance registrants who are unable to attend the meeting may request a refund of their registration fee in writing. Requests should be postmarked by December 23, 2005, and should include a copy of the preregistration form that was submitted. Proof of payment—copies of front and back of cancelled check or copy of credit card statement—may also be required. All refunds are subject to a $10 processing fee. No refunds will be issued for requests postmarked after December 23, 2005.

Exhibit Hall

The exhibits will be located in the Franklin Hall Ballroom on Level 4 of the Marriott and will be open January 5 from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m., January 6 and 7 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and on January 8 from 9:00 a.m. to noon.

Job Register

The Job Register will be located in the Marriott's Grand Ballroom Salon H. Hours of operation will be January 5 from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m., January 6 and 7 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and January 8 from 9:00 a.m. to noon.

Messaging and Internet Center

The Messaging and Internet Center, which will facilitate electronic communication among attendees and also make finding them easier, will be located in the Marriott's Grand Ballroom Salon E.

— Sharon K. Tune is the AHA Convention Director.