Arkansas
100 Years Later - A Centennial Look at the Continuing Impact of the 1927 Flood on the Lower Mississippi Delta (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi)
Funding: $21,015.00
Organization: Louisiana Preservation Alliance, Inc.
This project will commemorate the 1927 Mississippi River flood, highlighting its disproportionate impact on African American communities in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It aims to raise awareness through community programming and a dedicated website on Culturalyst, encouraging participation from various groups and artists. The project also includes outreach efforts and the creation of a “stele” to mark significant flood-related sites, fostering discussion and commemoration during the centennial in 2027.
Bridging the Blues! Connecting Music Heritage in Arkansas and Louisiana through A+ (Arkansas, Louisiana)
Funding: $21,015.00
Organization: Arkansas A+, College of Education & Health Professions, The University of Arkansas
Arkansas A+ (ARA+) and Louisiana A+ (LAA+) plan to build a curriculum bank and offer teacher workshops that focus on regional music heritage, including the Blues. A+ fellows from both states will collaborate to create robust curriculum-based lesson plans and programs that enhance the way educators integrate blues heritage in their classrooms.
Illinois
Ward Chapel AME Church Adaptive Reuse- Stabilize Roof
Organization: Cairo Historical Preservation Project, Inc.
Funding: $25,000.00
The Cairo Historical Preservation Project aims to preserve and repurpose Ward Chapel AME Church, a significant historic site in Cairo, Illinois, into a 100-seat community space and social justice museum. The first step is to protect the building by stopping water from entering through the roof, which is currently protected by an industrial tarp. Repairing the roof will allow them to move towards highlighting Ward Chapel's pivotal role in local African American history and eventually become an attraction on Cairo's tourism circuit.
Kentucky
The Trail of Tears Through Hickman County, KY; Our Native American Ancestors
Organization: Hickman County Historical Society, Inc.
Funding: $2,680.00
The project aims to document and celebrate the legacy of Native Americans who settled and raised families in the county, connecting their descendants, including current students. The Hickman County Historical Society plans to engage school children and visitors through storytelling, with a focus on encouraging the sharing of family histories. This grant will support gathering stories, publishing a local history book, promotion of the effort, and enhancing the Chickasaw/Cherokee history center to attract tourists and potentially new residents, thereby stimulating the local economy.
Louisiana
100 Years Later - A Centennial Look at the Continuing Impact of the 1927 Flood on the Lower Mississippi Delta (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi)
Funding: $21,015.00
Organization: Louisiana Preservation Alliance, Inc.
This project will commemorate the 1927 Mississippi River flood, highlighting its disproportionate impact on African American communities in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It aims to raise awareness through community programming and a dedicated website on Culturalyst, encouraging participation from various groups and artists. The project also includes outreach efforts and the creation of a “stele” to mark significant flood-related sites, fostering discussion and commemoration during the centennial in 2027.
Bridging the Blues! Connecting Music Heritage in Arkansas and Louisiana through A+ (Arkansas, Louisiana)
Funding: $21,015.00
Organization: Arkansas A+ (with Louisiana A+)[MA1], College of Education & Health Professions, The University of Arkansas
Arkansas A+ (ARA+) and Louisiana A+ (LAA+) plan to build a curriculum bank and offer teacher workshops that focus on regional music heritage, including the Blues. A+ fellows from both states will collaborate to create robust curriculum-based lesson plans and programs that enhance the way educators integrate blues heritage in their classrooms.
BlackAmericana Fest
Organization: BlackAmericana Fest
Funding: $21,015.00
BlackAmericana Fest is a free festival and platform to honor and celebrate the musical heritage, legacy, and contributions of Black artists making music in the Americana and Folk genres in New Orleans and the Mississippi River Delta region.
Mississippi
100 Years Later - A Centennial Look at the Continuing Impact of the 1927 Flood on the Lower Mississippi Delta (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi)
Funding: $21,015.00
Organization: Louisiana Preservation Alliance, Inc.
This project will commemorate the 1927 Mississippi River flood, highlighting its disproportionate impact on African American communities in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It aims to raise awareness through community programming and a dedicated website on Culturalyst, encouraging participation from various groups and artists. The project also includes outreach efforts and the creation of a “stele” to mark significant flood-related sites, fostering discussion and commemoration during the centennial in 2027.
Reopening of the McComb City Railroad Depot Museum
Organization: McComb City Railroad Depot Museum
Funding: $24,400.00
The 120-year-old McComb Train Depot, which was home to the McComb City Railroad Depot Museum, was destroyed by arson in 2021. Luckily, many artifacts survived the fire. Through this project, the museum will relocate the collection and reopen in a new building. The city was founded by Henry McComb when he relocated the Great Norther Railroad’s maintenance shops away from New Orleans. By reopening the museum, they hope to reignite interest in both the history of the railroad and their own local history.
The Clinton Riot Historical Site
Organization: City of Clinton
Funding: $10,195.00
In September 1875, a barbecue and political rally was held on the grounds of the former Moss Hill plantation. During the rally, violence erupted and five African Americans and three white people were killed. For the next several days, vigilante mobs shot and killed many African Americans in the Clinton area. This event marked the end of Reconstruction in Mississippi. Now, the City of Clinton will create and install three markers to commemorate the Clinton Riot.
Unita Blackwell Houses’ Collection Conservation
Organization: The SouthWay Foundation
Funding: $25,000.00
Unita Blackwell was the first African American woman elected mayor in Mississippi. She received a MacArthur Fellowship Grant that she used to incorporate the town, pave streets, finance water infrastructure upgrades, and invest in public housing construction. Her influence was extensive, from traveling to China to helping train mayors in rural and poor communities. The SouthWay Foundation will work with the owner, non-profits, conservator, and archivist to gather, sort, remove, and properly protect the artifacts and materials within the Unita Blackwell House in Mayersville, Mississippi. This collection will be properly stored for the future use of the restored Freedom House and mayoral Center.
Missouri
Native Life and Enduring Connections Near the Confluence
Organizations: Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Funding: $21,105.00
The Illinois State Archaeological Survey plans to collaboratively develop a new permanent exhibit at the Crisp Museum in Cape Girardeau, MO. The exhibit will feature artifacts and interpretations derived from local archaeological sites dating back to the 14th-15th centuries, and will be created alongside input from Tribes with ancestral ties to the region. This initiative aims to establish meaningful relationships between Western archaeologists and indigenous communities, culminating in a culturally inclusive exhibit that integrates scientific findings with indigenous perspectives.
Setting the Record Straight- Museum Collection Integrity Project
Organization: Sainte Genevieve Museum Learning Center
Funding: $21,300.00
The Sainte Genevieve Museum Learning Center will create a Collections Management Policy to ensure collection integrity and qualify the museum for accreditation through the American Association of Museums. They aim to engage an Archivist consultant to develop a comprehensive collections management plan and digital archive, leveraging professional expertise and ethical standards. Their project includes adopting 21st-century preservation practices, obtaining quality archival storage materials, and fostering partnerships to enhance historical preservation efforts in the lower Mississippi Delta region.
Tennessee
Telling a more complete story- A professionally produced video interweaving oral interviews and relevant artifacts in the museum to more effectively tell the stories of life in rural Shelby County
Organization: Historic Archives of Rosemark and Environs
Funding: $4,031.00
The rural communities of northeast Shelby County, historically centered around small country stores, churches, and schools, face increasing suburban encroachment from Memphis. The Historical Association for Rural Exploration (HARE) has taken on the task of preserving this rural culture through a professionally produced video that describes the exhibits and stories in the museum and weaves them into a cohesive, interesting, and historically accurate description of rural life. The video will also include interviews with representatives from the Chickasaw Nation and the African American community about life in Northeast Shelby County as experienced by their ancestors.
Last updated: October 3, 2024