VIRTUAL: An Evening with Library Director Philip Shackelford, Author of Rise of the Mavericks: The U.S. Air Force Security and the Cold War, 1948-1979

Join the Hudson Library & Historical Society on Wednesday, May 17 at 7 p.m. for a livestreaming event with community college library director Philip Shackelford, who will discuss his book, Rise of the Mavericks: The U.S. Air Force Security and the Cold War, 1948-1979. Rise of the Mavericks traces the beginnings and subsequent development of the U.S. Air Force Security Service and fills the gap in the military and intelligence history literature.

Established in 1948 as part of the emerging U.S. national security apparatus, the Air Force Security Service was meant to place the fledgling U.S. Air Force on a competitive footing with its Army and Navy counterparts. As World War II ended and the Cold War began, Air Force leaders understood that an effective cryptologic capability would be crucial for maintaining and enhancing the Air Force as a strategic and decisive component of America’s national defense. Successfully deploying air-atomic strategy in the event of a future war would require reliable information on the capabilities, intentions—and potential targets—of an opposing force, in particular the Soviet Union. Communications intelligence would be a critical source of this information, and Air Force leaders were adamant that their service not remain dependent on other service structures for this capability. The Air Force Security Service rose to the occasion, quickly establishing itself as one of the preeminent communications intelligence agencies in the United States.

Philip C. Shackelford is library director at South Arkansas Community College in El Dorado, Arkansas. He has served as President of the Arkansas Library Association and was named an Emerging Leader by the American Library Association in 2019. Shackelford’s academic focus is on communications intelligence in the U.S. Air Force. He is also interested in national security, strategy, intelligence, and organizational culture.

Registration for this program is required and a valid email address is required at the time of registration. Participants will receive an email invitation a day before the program begins.

If you have any questions, please email askus@hudson.lib.oh.us or call (330) 653-6658 x1010.