A Message from the President

Welcome to the website of the Russell Kirk Center.

Russell and Annette Kirk

We hope that visitors to this site will be inspired to discover more about the life and thought of Russell Kirk and about the work of the Center that carries forward his legacy today. Russell believed deeply that civilization can only thrive when there is, in the words of Edmund Burke, a partnership of “those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are yet to be born.”

Russell saw his mission as conveying to America’s rising generations an understanding of the process by which a healthy culture is transmitted from age to age. Today, this mission is continued in the work of the Russell Kirk Center, which promotes, through its publications, seminars, and fellowships, an appreciation of the “permanent things” that maintain and nurture our civil social order.

You will find on this website information about Russell’s life and writings and about the various projects that we administer here at the Center. There are links that will enable you to find and purchase books by Russell Kirk, subscribe to the Center’s publications, and learn more about our academic programs.

If you would like to support us in our work of intellectual and cultural renewal, please contact us for information on how to make a donation to the Center.

Sincerely,

Annette Y. Kirk

Kirk was convinced that in our age, the unimagined life is not worth living for a human being. He labored to reform our sensibilities, so that we could see ourselves both for what we are and for what we have become. He labored to make available an intellectual tradition of dissent from the modern age. He labored to release our hearts from the bondage of ideology.

Mark Henrie

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News and Events

Kirk in Traverse Magazine

John J. Miller has a lovely article about Dr. Kirk and his life and legacy in the January issue of Traverse Magazine, now released online. Take a look.

Aug 2010

Kirk in the 1950s

We have new posts of several articles of Russell Kirk in the online archive, including four from the 1950s. Kirk covers topics including tradition, revolution, the age of boredom (addressing themes that later became Eliot and His Age), and ”The Inhumane Businessman.” Do take some time and read them.

Aug 2010

The University Bookman

We have posted the latest number of the University Bookman, which is our penultimate print issue. The Bookman will be expanding our presence online after this point. This number features reviews on two very different historians—Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., and Carlton Hayes—and continuing efforts to define the right. The full contents are available here.

Jun 2010

Spring Permanent Things

The Spring 2010 number of our Permanent Things newsletter is up featuring updates on past Wilbur Fellows and articles on other admirers of Russell Kirk. You can download a copy of the PDF from this link.

Jun 2010

Intercollegiate Review on Kirk

To commemorate the 16th anniversary of the death of Russell Kirk on April 29, we would like to highlight the new archives of the Intercollegiate Review, particularly the 1994 commemorative issue on Russell Kirk, featuring essays from several noted writers and friends of Dr. Kirk.

Apr 2010

Kirk Center in Italy

Senior Fellow Marco Respinti announces progress on the web site for the Centro Studi Russell Kirk based in Milan, Italy. It is still under development, but you can visit at www.russellkirk.eu. We have also recently posted an updated bio for Marco.

Feb 2010