On @Shell & African history writing. Following UG's Indp., there were extensive debates re: a memorial for Kabaka Muteesa I. Companies too capitalized upon such causes. Here, Shell suggested to readers that their work & vision for EA followed Muteesa's call for progress. 1/10 
12 Oct. '62: 'Today, of course, everyone knows that [...] near the site of Mutesa's palace, is a beautiful, well-ordered city and the seat of the Government of Uganda. However, the railway does not go everywhere, 2/10
& E. Africans today rely more and more on motor transport. Shell have catered for this need, and their distributive organisation with over 800 outlets is the most comprehensive in East Africa. Shell is best for your car and wherever you go you can be sure of finding Shell.' 3/10
This is not the only historical essay that Shell offered in the Uganda Argus. Here's one on Ripon Falls, where readers learned about the history of European explorers and hydroelectric power near Ripon Falls (7 November 1962). 4/10
In their essay on Zanzibar, the Island's violent past and histories of slavery were ignored. By contrast, readers were presented with an Island that 'thrives as a tourist paradise whilst a modern airport brings it within [...] hours flying time of the Mainland.' 5/10
Shell's historical vision for Africa predictably prioritized European sources. Indeed, Shell produced a history book on the occasion of UG's Independence, after which their newspaper headings were entitled: "Safari with Shell." 6/10
'East Africa old and new—this book shows you EA through the eyes of the early explorers, and how those same places look today [...] Safari with Shell is a pictorial record of East Africa's development from the earliest times 7/10
to the great modern projects that are providing ever increasing benefits to the whole population.' What Shell's problematic histories begin to show is what African historians were up against in the 1960s. Before international audiences, it was incumbent upon Africanists to 8/10
return to the deep past & illustrate precolonial histories of progress & political development. We gain a sense of this in Argus, where writers structured the country's histories of progress around Muteesa I & other precolonial statebuilders. Contrary to what Shell argued, 9/10
communities throughout eastern Africa had not only engaged in much older debates about progress—they were also actively working to that end long before Europeans, northern Africans or Omani traders stepped foot in Uganda. 10/10
Image for 5/10.
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