The Prairie Archive was produced in as part of the Public History minor at Eastern Illinois University. More specifically, students enrolled in HIS 4935: Public History Practicum set out to create a physical and digital exhibit related to the long history of the Illinois Prairie. The course required that students read monographs, conduct original research, and communicate those histories for public audiences. The class also worked closely with our community partners, The Grand Prairie Friends—a land trust and conservation group based in Illinois.
The Course
HIS 4935: Public History Practicum offers students a hands-on experience to design, curate, and produce a public-facing history project. This can take many forms. For the Fall 2023 class, students worked with partners in Booth Library to produce a physical exhibit. Additionally, the researched and wrote longer historical essays related to the history of the Grand Prairie Friends. These essays will serve as the basis for the Prairie Archive. The class provides students the opportunity to imagine and execute two public history projects—one digital and one physical. This included dedicated research time, reading widely on public history approaches and methods, and learning new skills such as exhibit design, public-facing writing, digitization, and web publishing. This website will be the basis for further histories related to the Illinois Prairie.
Support
The Prairie Archive was made possible with support from a variety of individuals, groups, and institutions. Funds to support the acquisition of books, support travel and field trips, and physical materials came from the Faculty Development and Innovation Center and the Redden Fund at Eastern Illinois University. Dr. Andrew Kerins has been a vital source of information and support for students and the project dating back to the Winter of 2022. The staff at Booth Library were vital connections as students designed, prepared, and installed their exhibit. Special thanks must give to the Sarah Livesay and the members of the Grand Prairie Friends who provided their time, resources, and organizational materials to be included in the production of the exhibit.
