The Wrigley-Fairchild Prize was established by the American Geographical Society in 1994 as a way to promote scholarly writing among new scholars published in the Geographical Review. The prize was given every three years to the author of the best article by an early-career scholar published in the most recent three volumes of the Geographic Review. Beginning in 2019, the Wrigley-Fairchild Prize was awarded to the best article for each volume year. The prize is named for previous editors Gladys M. Wrigley and Wilma B. Fairchild who edited the journal for a combined 52 years.  Douglas McManis, who edited the journal from 1978 until 1995, established and funded the award to honor the editorial standards of his predecessors.