Local & Legendary: Maine in the Civil War Grants
APPLICATION DEADLINE: TBD
Maine Historical Society (MHS) and Maine Humanities Council (MHC) are pleased to announce Local & Legendary: Maine in the Civil War, a new grant program to engage Maine communities in their Civil War history. Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, Local & Legendary will bring together collaborative project teams comprised of libraries, historical organizations, and educational institutions to explore local Civil War history in multidisciplinary ways and investigate questions of that era's motivations, loyalty, identity, and politics at the community level. Digital exhibits created by the team will be added to Maine Memory Network's Civil War site.
The state of Maine holds a special place in the history of the American Civil War. Though far from the front lines, the state and its citizens played key roles in the coming of the war, the war itself, and its aftermath. More than 70,000 Mainers served in Union blue (including more than 24 Union generals), and nearly 10,000 lost their lives. But the story of Maine and the Civil War is also about the struggles, concerns, and triumphs of the 558,000 Mainers who remained at home. How did national issues and events shape your town's experience, and how, in turn, did the citizens of your town shape the national story of the Civil War?
We invite Maine's communities to take a journey through their Civil War history as a way to better understand who they are today. Ten communities from around the state will be selected to participate over two program years of the project. Four communities were chosen for the 2013-2014 academic year: Belfast, Gorham/Windham, Portland/Westbrook, and Presque Isle. Six more will be chosen in 2014-2015. Selection of the communities will be based on geographic and population diversity, and the strength of their applications.
Program Information
Who Should Apply
Any Maine town, city, village, other community is invited to apply to the program. We will also accept two-town partner applications. One of the required organizations (library, historical society/archive, or educational institution) must take the lead on forming the team and directing the application process. (Application materials available in November)
The Maine in the Civil War project requires a significant commitment of time and effort by your local team. Participation will enable your community to immerse itself in its history, discover new ways to come together, collaborate and share resources, and develop significant skills and capacity. Our staff is available to discuss your community's interest, team, and application.
Program Activities
Each community selected for the program will participate in, organize, and host a number of activities to engage participants in local, state, and national themes related to the Civil War. These include the following:
- Attending a one-day symposium and program kick-off in Bangor in April or May 2014. Event time and details are forthcoming. (Leaders from each of the three partnering organizations on a given team are required to attend; attendance is optional for other team members.)
- Attending a three-day program orientation at Bowdoin College in July 2014. An orientation agenda and lodging details will be made available in the spring. (Leaders from each of the three required partnering organizations on a given team are required to attend; attendance is optional for other team members.)
- Attending monthly team meetings and work sessions in the local community from August to May.
- Digitizing up to 50 Civil War-related historic items from local collections, cataloging them, and uploading them to Maine Memory Network.
- Creating on Maine Memory Network a Civil War-related exhibit (text and images) or series of exhibits that draws on historical documents, photographs, and artifacts. This exhibit will be added to Maine and the Civil War: The Homefront and the Battlefield site.
- Organizing and hosting a series of "One Story, One Community" reading and discussion programs and extension activities using a book, movie, or other text(s) related to the Civil War. A Maine Humanities Council discussion facilitator will be provided to each community. Download an extensive bibliography of Civil War books, films, and other resources.
- Hosting a public celebration at the end of your project to unveil the team's work. This event will also include a production by the Theatre of Ideas drama group that has been customized to reflect the Civil War history of your community.
Program Support
Your community team will receive extensive support, guidance, and technical training throughout the project from MHC and MHS staff. In addition to the $2,000 grant, community teams will receive:
- Two intensive group trainings for team leaders for which all room and board, and travel expenses, are covered.
- Attendance by MHC and MHS staff at most monthly team meetings and activities.
- Extensive technical training from MHS staff in how to digitize historic items for inclusion on Maine Memory Network, and how to research, write, illustrate, and construct a robust online MMN exhibit about your community's Civil War history.
- Extensive instruction from MHC staff in how to plan, organize, and carry out your community's "One Story" activities, including assistance with choosing a text and identifying non-traditional populations to include in the project.
- An experienced MHC discussion facilitator to lead a series of "One Story" discussions in your community.
- Assistance in designing and hosting a celebration event at the end of the project.
- A customized Theatre of Ideas production based on some aspect of the Civil War history of your community.
- Substantial readings, manuals, and other resources to help guide your team through the project year and learn more about the Civil War era. A deadline-driven timeline of project activities will also be provided to the team.
Local Teams
Work in each local community will be planned and coordinated by a local planning team, the group that should submit its community's application. Each planning team should include at least one representative from a local library, historical organization, and educational institution. The planning team may also include students. Each team will designate a team coordinator to serve as its local point person and to help coordinate project activities. The planning team will meet monthly, often with MHC and/or MHS staff in attendance, to coordinate project activities, monitor progress, and discuss opportunities and issues that arise, and to facilitate communication with MHC and MHS. Maine Historical and Maine Humanities staff will help teams organize their work, identify specific project tasks, set priorities, define specific roles and responsibilities for team members and other local participants, and assist in all phases of the project. We anticipate that each team will be organized a little differently, and reflect the particular interests, needs, talents, and temperaments of its community.
There will be many opportunities for additional members of each community to get involved and contribute. The planning team, in fact, should form the nucleus of a larger team of local participants—historical society members, teachers, students, librarians, retirees, service club members, civically-engaged individuals, and other volunteers—who will contribute to the project in a variety of ways according to their time, interest, and ability. Some of these opportunities might include mentoring students, helping with research, sharing information and knowledge, organizing events, handling publicity, leading extension activities, transcribing documents, scanning photographs, writing, editing, or participating in interviews.
Expectations for Local Teams
Successfully completing the program requires a significant commitment of time and effort by your local team. Local teams will be expected to meet formally at least once a month to plan and monitor project activities and to get together regularly as needed throughout the program year to complete program activities. One representative from each partnering organization is required to attend the mandatory project orientation at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, July 2014, and a mid-year training at MHS in Portland in January 2015 (actual date TBD). Each partner is expected to contribute to the team and remain engaged throughout the program year. Team members must be prepared to participate in a series of program evaluation interviews prior to beginning the project, during the project, and upon completion of the project. Not every team will be chosen for this process necessarily, but all teams must be willing to participate if selected. Please discuss these expectations as a team prior to applying and contact program staff with any questions.
Benefits of Participation
Participating in Maine in the Civil War can help your community to:
- Develop or fine-tune approaches, relationships, programs, and skills that will help leaders and staff of local cultural and community organizations become vibrant 21st century institutions.
- Develop and strengthen relationships within your community by finding common cause, sharing resources, planning and implementing projects effectively, and gaining practical experience working together.
- Provide a model for how other communities can explore and understand their historical experience.
Communities must speak with both Anne Schlitt and Larissa Vigue Picard before submitting an application:
- Larissa Vigue Picard at Maine Historical Society, lvpicard@mainehistory.org or 774-1822
- Anne Schlitt, Maine Humanities Council, annes@mainehumanities.org or 773-5051
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.