Research Center for Local History and Culture

Subjects

Research Center for Local History and Culture One example of a project associated with the Research Center for Local History and Culture is “Worship in the Wabash Valley,” directed by Prof. Ann Short Chirhart of the Department of History. Worship in the Wabash Valley explores how places of worship have shaped identity in the region. By collecting oral histories, this project offers a collaborative means for students, faculty, and the community to detail family interactions, ethnicity, personal identity, values, and sense of place in one site--a place of worship.  Places of worship constitute the bedrock of communities, forming interactive relationships across generations that develop patterns of conduct, outlook, and beliefs.  This project seeks to engage students, faculty, and the community in a common endeavor to document places of worship in the region's past. To this date, congregations that have participated in this project include Allen Chapel A. M. E.  and St. Benedict Parish.