"What's Inland? Whose Empire? Ruminations on Southern California's Image" is the title of the guest lecture at the San Bernardino County Museum on Wednesday, March 24, at 7:30 p.m. The talk, given by Dr. Larry Burgess as part of the county museum's guest lecture series, is offered at no charge.

Larry Burgess is a graduate of the University of Redlands with a B.A. in history and an M.A. and Ph.D. in history at the Claremont Graduate University. He gives between 50 and 60 programs annually on a variety of subjects relating to the history of southern California, the West, and Lincoln and the Civil War. His experience as the founding archivist and head of special collections of the A.K. Smiley Public Library, where he supervised the local and Southern California history collection, makes him admirably suited to address past and current perceptions of inland Southern California.

Dr. Burgess has been Library Director of the A.K. Smiley Public Library from 1986 to present. From May to November 2002 he acted as the Interim City Manager for the City of Redlands. He serves on many regional boards and commissions, and is currently president of the Historical Society of Southern California. He was also vice chair of the California Historic Preservation Commission, chair of the City of Redlands' U.S. Bicentennial Committee, the University of Redlands' 75th Anniversary Committee, and the City of Redlands' Centennial celebration. He is an adjunct professor in the graduate department of history at the University of California, Riverside, and at the University of Redlands. He is the author of many books, including The Smileys: A Biography and, with James A. Sandos, The Hunt for Willie Boy, named in 1995 Outstanding Book on the subject of human rights in North America by the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Human Rights.

The San Bernardino County Museum's free guest lecture series is organized to bring experts in cultural and natural history to the museum to share their research with the public. The museum is at the California Street exit from Interstate 10 in Redlands. Parking is free, and the facility is handicapped-accessible. For more information, call (909) 307-2669 / TDD/TTY: (909) 792-1462.