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Marion, Iowa © Tasha Sams
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Ratifying the 19th Amendment took more than 70 years and intense collaboration. The Preserving Women’s Legacy Grant program—a special suffrage centennial project for Indiana Main Street communities—was created to commemorate those years of hard work and to catalyze the discovery, preservation, and activation of places that tell stories about women’s contributions across the state. This initiative was the result of a satisfying collaboration between Indiana Humanities and the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), the state’s Main Street Coordinating Program.
On August 26, the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment going into effect, three outstanding projects were announced. In addition to project funding, grantees received capacity building and marketing assistance. Indiana Humanities, a statewide organization that encourages Hoosiers to think, read, and talk, helped ground the process in rich historical scholarship, managed grant review and administration, and lent its communications expertise. OCRA, which oversees the Indiana Main Streets program, gave technical advice and secured funding for the initiative.
Meet the winning communities and learn how Indiana Humanities and OCRA pivoted this fantastic centennial celebration in response to COVID.
Downtown Angola Coalition: Commissioning a life-size sculpture of abolitionist Sojourner Truth
Downtown Angola Coalition was awarded $40,000 to commission a life-size sculpture of abolitionist Sojourner Truth. In 1861, Truth gave a speech on the Steuben County courthouse grounds supporting civil rights and the Civil War. This sculpture will commemorate Truth’s connection to the city of Angola and serve as a reminder of the significance women and women of color had in the fight for equal rights and suffrage. With help from the public library system, the project will also include book studies and lesson plans about Truth. This project is in partnership with the Steuben County Commissioners, the City of Angola and the Steuben County Tourism Bureau.
"The sculpture unveiling is going to be quite a focal point of the year," said Colleen McNabb-Everage, President of Downtown Angola Coalition. The unveiling is scheduled for June 6, 2021: a date which is approximately the anniversary of Truth's speech on the courthouse steps. To bring this rich history to life, the Main Street program is honoring this unveiling with speeches from local historians and a reenactor giving a Sojourner Truth-esque speech on the steps of the courthouse after arriving in town on a wagon.
"We do have a lot of African American history in Steuben County," said McNabb-Everage. "We're hoping from our awareness of Sojourner Truth's visit here and time here, that those [stories] also will start to come out."
Michigan City Mainstreet Association: Creating a piece of public art to honor Naomi Bowman Talbert Anderson
Michigan City Mainstreet Association was awarded $40,000 to construct either a sculpture, mosaic or mural (based on community and artist input) in Charles R. Westcott Park to honor Naomi Bowman Talbert Anderson. Anderson was born in Michigan City in 1843 to free African American parents and became a significant suffragist, civil rights activist, orator, writer, and poet. The artwork will have a narrative format for all ages, and a companion to this will be the creation of an archived collection of biographical information about Anderson. This project is in partnership with the Lubeznik Center for the Arts, the NAACP LaPorte County Branch–Unit 3061, and the Unity Foundation of LaPorte County.
"With this project, we're hoping to have it be interactive, so that when people come out there, the young people will learn," explained W. Faye Moore of LaPorte County NAACP. "Maybe they'll want to vote more because they'll know it was a struggle."
Rediscover Downtown Peru: Creating the Miami County Woman’s Suffrage Trail
Rediscover Downtown Peru was awarded $35,000 to create the Miami County Woman’s Suffrage Trail. The trail will begin with a life-size bronze statue of Marie Stuart Edwards as a young teen standing by her bike on the grounds of the Peru Public Library. The statue, as well as displays and plaques around the county, will increase awareness of the role local women played in the fight for suffrage. This project is in partnership with Miami County Worth Remembering, AcesPLUS and the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Starting in the late 1910s, Peru was the hub for Indiana's suffrage activity. In 1917, local suffragette Marie Stewart Edwards was elected the State President of the Indiana Franchise League, drawing state-wide attention to the activity underway in Peru. Women from across the state would travel to her community to train at her house, learning to become active lobbyists for the 19th Amendment. For a couple of years, even the local newspaper—the Peru Republican—was a central establishment for Indiana's suffragists; they are credited with printing out most of the collateral materials for the National League of Women Voters.
The buildings in and around this Main Street community that played key roles in this state-wide hub will be knit together with Rediscover Downtown Peru's new bike trail. "I think people that have lived here their whole lives will be shocked when they find out when they find out how important Peru was and the women of Peru were in getting the right to vote," said Jill Miles, Vice President of Rediscover Downtown Peru.
Downtown Angola Coalition receiving their grant at their kick-off event at which they were joined by Lt. Governor Crouch. Photo credit: Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs
Since COVID limited in-person events, Indiana Humanities and OCRA settled on videography and other storytelling techniques to make a big deal of the announcement. The partners set the goal of helping people understand the histories of the remarkable women featured in the projects, while also building awareness of the work and value of Indiana Main Street organizations. Here are some of the approaches we took:
Creating Videos. A videographer traveled to all three communities, interviewing project team members, shooting footage of Main Streets and capturing the distinctive spirit of each place. The announcement video, which premiered on Facebook, also featured Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, the head of OCRA and the chair of the Indiana Women’s Suffrage Centennial Committee. Each grantee received an extended cut focused solely on their community’s story.
Engaging Social Media Influences. Local historic preservation enthusiasts helped amplify the stories uncovered as a result of the Preserving Women’s Legacy Grant program. One such amplifier was Indiana-based historic architecture photographer, Anne Shaw, who took a road trip to photograph historic buildings highlighted in Peru’s suffrage trail. These photos were featured on her popular social media accounts, and helped share the stories with a broader audience.
Providing Trainings for Grantees. A day-long virtual workshop was held for the grantee project teams to arm them with storytelling strategies while grounding their promotion in Indiana women’s history. The workshop included a slew of Indiana-based experts, such as Sarah Marsom, a heritage resource consultant, who provided examples of historic site signage and activation ideas and brainstormed possible signage for the communities; Dr. Nancy Gabin, the state’s foremost expert on women’s history and professor at Purdue University, who gave tailored commentary for each project and pointed grantees towards existing scholarship and researchers to deepen and enrich their projects; and Jihada Garrett and John Thomas, two communications consultants based in Indianapolis, who shared storytelling tips and provided advice on how predominantly white organizations can be sensitive to telling African American history, given that two of the three projects feature Black women.
Ribbon-Cutting Events. All grantees were required to host a kick-off or ribbon-cutting event in Fall 2020. The kick-offs are yet another effort to build awareness of the projects and generate community support; the first of these events, in Angola on September 9, saw a strong turn out by state and local elected officials, including Lt. Governor Crouch.
Learn more about this event here and be sure to watch the announcement video featuring Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch.
Main Street America is pleased to announce the launch of a $1.8 million sub-grant program as part of our partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) Thriving Communities Program.
Beloit, Kansas © Shane Hampton
Erin Barnes spoke to Frances Jo Hamilton at Heritage Ohio about the importance of stepping up for our communities.
It is important to make sure that the growth of your community does not result in displacement or marginalization. Putting equity at the core of your transformation strategy helps you work towards measures of success that benefit everyone.
Creating real change in business ownership starts with local communities leading the way, backed by strong partnerships and collaborations.
MSA President and CEO Erin Barnes explores how a holiday market in a public park brought a new focus on growing humanitarian needs in downtown city centers.
Learn how Main Street America's work with the DOT's Thriving Communities Program is supporting transformative efforts with community partners like the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe.
Learn how Pikeville Pride partners with Pikeville Main Street to fostering a welcoming and inclusive community in their rural Kentucky town.
May is Jewish American Heritage Month! We collected ideas and resources to help you explore Jewish American history on your community and work toward a more inclusive Main Street.
At Fort Vancouver in Vancouver, Washington, Native Hawaiians played a critical role in the success of the Hudson Bay Company. Today, Vancouver’s Hawaiian history and heritage plays a crucial role in efforts to reenergize the city’s historic downtown.
Urban Impact Inc., harnesses strategic investments and collaborative efforts to foster a vibrant and sustainable future, from visionary adaptive reuse ventures to transformative development grants for small businesses and property owners in Birmingham, Alabama's historic 4th Avenue Black Business District.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $20B in federal Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) awards distributed to eight national non-profit consortiums. Main Street America looks forward to partnership and engagement with awardees and local programs to identify projects and expand impact throughout our network.
Hillsboro, Oregon © Alicia Gallo
Main Street America Program Officer encourages communities to advance equity for women to grow a more inclusive Movement.
Learn how this Louisiana town has used an accessibility-first approach to build a welcoming and inclusive community.
Downtown Ruston, Louisiana. Photo by Henry McCoy.
Tasha Sams, Manager of Education Programs, shares highlights of phase one of the Equitable Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (E3) in Rural Main Streets Program and the biggest takeaways from the workshop experiences.
In this video, learn more about the Williams’ family story, how the business is helping to revive downtown Helena, and the impact they’re having on a national level.
Learn how Main Street Now 2024 host city Birmingham, Alabama, is deepening their commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment.
© Mayor Randall Woodfin
In this episode of Main Street Business Insights, Matt sits down with Derrick Braziel, owner of Pata Roja Taqueria and co-founder of MORTAR, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Learn how micromobility can increase access, equity, and inclusion in your Main Street with examples from local programs across the network.
Learn how Albany, Georgia, recognizes their civil rights legacy and supports the African American community today.
Celebrate this traditional Mexican holiday with Gardnerville, Nevada.
Gardnerville, NV © Main Street Gardnerville
Tasha Sams shared their experiences at this unique Appalachian cultural festival.
Learn how this community in Oklahoma celebrated Dia de la Independencia with a big festival.
Tulsa, OK © Kendall Whittier Main Street
Learn how Rio Grande City is building a welcoming and inclusive city for both Mexicans and Americans.
Rio Grande City, TX © Rio Grande City
Learn how the Little Santo Domingo neighborhood of Miami is working with the Truist Foundation to strengthen pathways to small business ownership.
© Allapattah CDC
Learn how this Massachusetts community uses their farmer's market to increase access to fresh food.
Every year, H2BE holds their Juneteenth Mobility Stroll and Roll in Dearborn, MI, which celebrates Black Americans and improves local connections. Learn more about the event and why Juneteenth is important to this community.
Dearborn, MI © H2BE
Do you want to support the next generation of Main Street leadership! Start a youth board! Learn how Historic Downtown Clinton set theirs up and how your organization can benefit from one.
The Main Street Movement is a proud ally of the LGBTQ+ community. We spoke to Main Street leaders about how they support the LGBTQ+ community during Pride and beyond.
Steps you can take to engage your local Jewish community and make your Main Street feel welcoming for individual Jewish locals or visitors.
On May 9, the National Trust for Historic Preservation released its list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places for 2023 which included a cultural district located within a designated Main Street America community.
Miami, FL © NTHP
The annual Cinco de Mayo Parade and Fiesta in the Mexicantown Main Street district offers a great example of collaborative partnerships that honor the community’s cultural heritage and support local businesses through events.
Meet Kavi, the first Indian American Girl of the Year doll and a (fictional) resident of 2023 Great American Main Street Award winner Metuchen, New Jersey!
Metuchen, NJ © Lauren Beischer Photography
Community Development Block Grants are powerful tools for Main Street programs. Learn more about how CDBG's can be applied to our work and how you can advocate for the program
Main Street America was awarded $5.9 million to support 20 communities in the Main Streets Community of Practice through the Department of Transportation's Thriving Communities Program over the next two years.
We spoke to Debbie Ho, Executive Director at Chinatown Main Street, to learn about the history of women in Boston Chinatown.
Boston, MA © Kyle Klein
Meet the newest recipients of this grant program to build stronger, more prosperous small towns and rural communities
Learn the unique history of Folsom, New Mexico, and how they are working with New Mexico MainStreet today.
Learn how this community is honoring Martin Luther King Jr. and telling the stories of Black leaders in their community.
Dublin, GA © Visit Dublin GA
Learn about the City of Boston’s efforts to invest in economic equity.
Downtown Sheridan Association partners with the Crow Tribe to host the annual First People’s Pow Wow event during the WYO Rodeo Week.
We spoke to three women who were awarded Inclusive Backing grants to learn more about their passions, their businesses, and their advice for other women.
Wixom, MI © Carissa Serylo
Storytelling is a critical part of the placemaking work that we do in Main Street districts. But are we sharing every story equally?
Jonesborough, TN © Jay Huron
Main Street Franklin is leading the way in showing how women business owners can be a powerful force for change in their communities.
Anette Landeros, President and CEO of Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, shares the importance of supporting Hispanic business owners and communities.
#EquityRising, Old Algiers Main Street Corporation's new job training program, seeks to combat rising cost of living by helping residents train for careers that will allow them to stay in their neighborhood.
We spoke to three Black business owners who were awarded Backing Small Businesses grants from Main Street America and American Express to better understand their challenges, successes, and the kinds of support that have helped them the most.
Camden, AR © Kimberly Moore Davis
June is Pride Month. Learn how Erie, PA, Emporia, KS, Frederick, MD, Macon, GA, and Billings, MT, celebrated the LGBTQ+ community.
Erie, PA © Dave Tamulonis
Stockbridge Main Street has made significant strides in exploring and sharing the story of Martin Luther King, father of civil rights hero Martin Luther King Jr.
Stockbridge, GA © Stockbridge Main Street
Juneteenth is the anniversary of the final emancipation of enslaved people in the US. Here are five examples of examples of community celebrations from Main Streets across the network.
Charles Town, WV © Elizabeth Ricketts
Learn how Downtown Florence has partnered with local Francis Marion University to provide opportunities for both students and local small businesses.
Learn about The Bottom, a historic African-American community in Thomasville, Georgia, and efforts to preserve it's history and share it's story.
Thomasville, GA © City of Thomasville
Learn how four Main Street communities celebrated Black History Month.
Oklahoma is home to the headquarters of nearly 40 federally recognized Native American tribes, and many of their offices, cultural sites, and museums are located close to or within Main Street districts.
El Reno, OK © El Reno Main Street
Kendall Whittier is one of the most diverse neighborhoods in an ever-diversifying Tulsa. Learn how they are making efforts to engage their large Hispanic community.
Tulsa, OK © Kendall Whittier Main Street
We spoke with two Black entrepreneurs in UrbanMain commercial districts: L. May Creations in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago and The Four Way in south Memphis, Tennessee.
Memphis, TN © Four Way
Heart of Biddeford shares the strategies they developed to support Black-owned businesses in their community.
Biddeford, ME © Heart of Biddeford
This May marked the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre in the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. We explored the impact and legacy of this tragic event.
Tulsa, OK © Dr. Tiffany Crutcher
Main Street communities across the nation are celebrating Juneteenth, the oldest national commemoration of the ending of slavery in America and the nation’s newest federal holiday!
Learn about the various programs and initiatives that Fremont is using to promote inclusive economic development.
Fremont, CA © Fremont Economic Development
From small business owners to public artists to local leaders, join us this month to amplify the impact of the LGBTQ+ community in your Main Street district.
San Luis Obispo, CA © Downtown SLO
Brooksville Main Street’s Women Leading the Way Campaign celebrated the legacy of the trailblazing women who made history in their community.
Brooksville, FL © Brooksville Main Street
For Black History Month, we want to recognize and celebrate the Black business owners and entrepreneurs who have overcome challenges and obstacles in launching and running their own businesses, thanks to resilience, creativity, and hard work.
In remembrance and in honor of Dr. Marin Luther King Jr., over 900 streets in the United States were named after him. Many are located predominantly in African American communities.
Milwaukee, WI © Historic King Drive BID
Downtown SLO has kept the magic of their holiday lights installation alive by evolving their winter wonderland into a dual celebration of Valentine’s Day and Lunar New Year, or Chinese New Year.
San Luis Obispo, CA © Downtown SLO
Main Street programs around the Network have created engaging and COVID-safe ways to honor and celebrate the histories and lives of Black Americans in their commercial districts.
Meet some amazing women business owners!
Learn how the Allapattah Collaborative in Miami, Florida, implements a range of initiatives to expand equitable development and ensure current businesses can not only remain in the corridor but also flourish.
Read the results of our survey aimed at understanding how business owners are managing the recovery from COVID-19 and responding to recent protests and social unrest related to police violence against Black Americans.
Our research team dug into some of the data about the state of Black-owned businesses on Main Street, the structural challenges they face, and how Main Streets can support them.
Since 2013, Try This West Virginia has sought to improve health environments in local communities as a collaboration of organizations working together to combat the health challenges facing West Virginians.
Supporting new and existing small businesses, and the entrepreneurs who run them, represents a vital aspect of the revitalization of downtowns and neighborhood business districts.
The Equitable Economic Development Fellowship is a two-year, one million-dollar effort funded by the Surdna Foundation and the Open Society Foundations to help equity, transparency, sustainability and community engagement become driving forces in local economic development efforts.
The Zuni Pueblo MainStreet is the nation's first (and so far, only) Native American Main Street community.
As part of the Edward Jones Placemaking on Main Challenge, Downtown Brattleboro created a pop-up, mobile mini-museum.
History and architecture play an active role in educating and immersing the next generation of preservationists in Le Mars. From museum visits, scavenger hunts, to "show and tell," involving the youth and senior communities is a priority for this Main Street.
Across the county, communities are embracing the arts as a catalyst for revitalization—of buildings, businesses, and local culture.
From walkability and transportation connectivity, to access to nature and availability of fresh food, place is inextricably linked to achieving positive health outcomes in rural America.
Appealing to mobility-challenged shoppers yields benefits beyond the store.
Main Street America is committed to helping build inclusive communities. Homelessness is an increasingly important issue facing Main Street communities big and small, urban and rural.
To understand the role that immigrant business owners play in Boston’s small business ecosystem, you need only to walk through any Boston Main Streets district.
New arrivals have made Shaw more diverse.
Preserving diverse populations, not just buildings.
