As we’ve reported previously, EDLM has now completed its collection of diaries and other material. We want to offer our thanks to all of the volunteers who have generously contributed to the project’s archive over the past decade. We’re likewise thankful to all of the students—graduate and undergraduate—who have helped develop and manage the project over the years. We will continue to maintain the archive as we move forward and will post updates here.
One such update is that the project co-directors, Pat Collier and Jim Connolly are now completing a book based on the archive that attempts to portray some important aspects of daily experience in a Rust-Belt city such as Muncie. We will have more to share about this effort in the near future.
We’re also happy to share that some of our writing is featured in the inaugural issue of Rust Belt Studies. Our thanks to the editors, Katharine Trostel and Valentino Zullo, for including our work. We’re honored to be part of such a distinguished group of scholars. Check out the issue, where you’ll find not only our essay (“Rust Belt Feelings”) but excellent discussions of how to think about and teach about the history and experiences of the Rust Belt, along with several reviews of new books. The new journal is produced by the Rust Belt Humanities Lab at Ursuline College, which is using humanities scholarship to better understand the history, present character, and future prospects of an often overlooked or caricatured region. We’re pleased to be part of that effort.