The HES (History of Economics Societies) list was started in Feb of 1995.    
We currently have 862 members from countries around the world.    
  
Here is part of the message you receive when you join the list:  
*****  
The HES list is a moderated email discussion list sponsored by the History of   
Economics Society and the European Society for the History of Economic Thought.   
Subscription is open to anyone interested in the history of economics and/or   
economic thought who is willing to participate in email discussion with an   
attitude of mutual respect.   
  
HES features: discussion of persons, themes, sources and historical methods in   
the history of economics; announcements of funding, Internet resources,   
conferences and other events; requests for information and some answers; and   
exchanges about teaching the history of economics.  
*****  
  
As your moderator, I am responsible for making sure that the discussion stays   
within the bounds of the history of economics.  Many of our discussions spiral  
out of control and my job is to prevent that from happening. I reject messages   
with an explanation.  
  
If you are an author, I can use your help in a variety of ways:  
  
1) Please avoid one liners.  The list isn't a chat room.  Your message will be   
archived and threads will be available for future scholars.  
  
2) On the other hand, please do not post extremely long messages. Most people  
do not read messages that are more than a few paragraphs long (except for this   
one :-)).  
  
3) Although I understand that the history of economics is a safe haven for a   
variety of heterodoxies, the HES list is really not the place to discuss   
current economic policies.  
  
4) Finally -- and here I'd like to be careful, but clear -- please remember   
that your posts are not just private notes to someone, but a worldwide   
publication.  My moderation net has big holes since this isn't a refereed journal, but you
can improve the quality of the conversation.  I reject messages
that are outside the scope of the history of economics, but I am uncomfortable  
rejecting messages based on quality of content.  I need your help here.    
Do not fire off-the-cuff responses. Imagine that some of the top scholars in  
the history of economics are going to read your message -- as they surely are.  
  
I'd like to thank those of you that have offered to carry on discussion off   
list. You do not have to respond to every post or you can respond in private  
if the conversation is taking you outside the bounds of the history of   
economics.  
  
Putting snippets of text to which you are responding and deleting the rest   
of the previous text is also helpful.  Remember, the messages are in an open,   
searchable archive (http://eh.net/pipermail/hes/) so there is no need for a   
trail.  
  
If you are exclusively a reader, please consider contributing in order to   
improve the conversation. Unlike a classroom setting, I can't simply call on   
you.  I welcome your support in moderating the list.  Let everyone know what   
you think about the conversation and why.  
  
We might not all agree on exactly how the HES list should be run.  Some might  
want only announcements and CFPs, while others are comfortable with more of an   
open chat room style where anything goes.  I hope, however, that everyone will   
agree that the HES list is a wonderful resource for historians of economics. We   
are a worldwide community of scholars that can discuss issues in the history of   
economics at a high level.  
  
I welcome any feedback or suggestions, either privately ([log in to unmask])   
or to the HES list ([log in to unmask]).    
  
Thank you.  
  
Humberto Barreto