Middletown@100
Robert and Helen Lynd published Middletown: A Study in Modern American Culture in 1929. They based their arguments in the book on historical, participant observation, and survey research conducted in Muncie, Indiana, between January, 1924 and June, 1925. Their success inaugurated a tradition of studying Muncie to assess broader patterns in American culture and society. The Center for Middletown Studies is marking the centennial anniversary of the original, groundbreaking Middletown investigation with several initiatives. Some are designed to highlight the extensive archive generated by the Lynds and their successors. Others examine some of the key questions about American society and culture originally raised by the Lynds. In all of these efforts, we aim to give the local community a role in shaping how Muncie–as Middletown–is portrayed. While nominally focused on Muncie, the Middletown@100 initiatives help us understand broad changes that have taken place across American society and particularly in the American Midwest over the past century.
Check back for more details about projects and events marking the centennial of Middletown Research.
Photo by Edward Strother, Ball State Digital Media Repository