University Of North Alabama Students And Project Say Something Launch Shoals Black History Site
May. 01, 2018
Michelle Eubanks, UNA, at media@una.edu, 256.765.4392 or 256.606.2033
Dr. Katie Owens-Murphy
UNA Dept. of English
FLORENCE, Ala.-Local nonprofit Project Say Something, in partnership with the Florence-Lauderdale Public Library (FLPL) and the University of North Alabama Public History Program, has launched a website devoted to black history in the Shoals region.
The site, which can be accessed at shoalsblackhistory.omeka.net, or through a link on the main page of the FLPL website, contains over 600 artifacts related to African-American life, culture and history in the Shoals.
Project Say Something facilitated a series of "history harvests" in the fall with the help of UNA students, community volunteers and library technologist James Mitchell. Items that were photographed, scanned, recorded and digitized include photographs, newspaper articles, school yearbooks, family and church histories, letters, and oral histories, as well as three-dimensional objects such as trophies, medals and household items.
These artifacts provide a fuller picture of events and historical periods such as Reconstruction, Jim Crow and the desegregation in the area's schools and facilities; they also celebrate the achievements of black professionals, black-owned businesses and black community organizations.
Artifacts are being used to create an educators resource packet based on local African-American history, designed for use in fourth-grade classrooms to be made available on the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area's website: msnha.una.edu.
If you have an item that you would like to contribute, you may click on the "contact us" link on the website.
This ongoing project is made possible by a grant from the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area.
For more information:kowensmurphy@una.edu
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA
The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate and graduate degree programsthrough the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business,Education and Human Sciences, and the Anderson College of Nursing.Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Tuscumbia, Sheffield and Muscle Shoals. UNA Athletics, a renownedcollegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of the NCAA Division I's ASUN and Big South Conferences.The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age or national origin.