HISTORY CENTER GEORGE R. MATHER
The 2008-2009 George R. Mather Sunday Lecture Series opens on Sunday, September 14, at 2:00 PM, as Russell A. Working presents “Growing Up in Indiana During the Great Depression Years.” Working shares his experiences of growing up during the Great Depression years. The depression brought with it a rigorous lifestyle that was enough to break a person’s spirit. Working shares how he and his brothers actually found moments of humor and happiness in the midst of their most horrible family hardships.
Working was born in Toledo, Ohio, and spent most of his formative years on a farm near Twelve Mile, Indiana. He graduated from Indiana University in 1951 and was immediately drafted into the Army, where he served two years. His career as an educator spanned 40 years. He has written numerous professional articles, co-authored a book “A Handbook of Educational Variables,” and is the author of two autobiographical books “One of Four” and its sequel “A Soldier’s Letters.”
This is the 15th anniversary of the George R. Mather Lecture Series, founded by the Rev. Mather in 1993. In the early 1990s, while serving as a member of the History Center’s board of directors, Mather proposed a series of free Sunday afternoon lectures so that everyone would have the opportunity to learn more about history that played a significant role in Fort Wayne and Allen County. Those lectures have been a staple of the History Center’s programming ever since. The 2008-2009 George R. Mather Lecture Series is sponsored by the Dunsire Family Foundation.
Subsequent lectures in this series will feature: G. Stanley Hood, “The Political History of Allen County: How Did a Solid Democratic County Become a Solid Republican County?” (October 5); Alfred J. Zacher, “Why Presidents Succeed” (November 2); Dr. Patty Martone, “Fort Wayne Women Who Have Broken the Mold” (January 4, 2009); Dr. Curtis J. Jones, “They, Too, Came as Pioneers: Early African-American Settlers in Northeast Indiana” (February 1); Jan Shupert-Arick, “The Lincoln Highway Across Indiana” (March 1); John D. Beatty, “Mapping Fort Wayne: A History of the City in Maps” (April 5); Dyne L. Pfeffenberger, “From the Emboyd to the Embassy: A History of Fort Wayne’s Opulent Showplace” (May 3); and Jim Sack, “World War I Repression of Fort Wayne’s Germans” (June 7).
All lectures in this series are free to the public, and will be held at the History Center, 302 East Berry Street, Fort Wayne. Parking is free. The History Center is handicap accessible. For more information call (260) 426-2882, or visit the web at: www.fwhistorycenter.com.
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