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Part of doing public history is exploring the ways in which moments of the past are disseminated and interpreted outside academia. In this special episode, playwright Nicole Burton and director Rikki Howie Lacewell sit down with Dr. Debbie Harwell (Instructional Assistant Professor of History, University of Houston) to discuss their stage adaptation of her book, Wednesdays in Mississippi: Proper Ladies Working for Radical Change, Freedom Summer 1964 (University Press of Mississippi, 2016). Both page and play detail the civil rights initiative led by Dorothy Height of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). Together with Polly Cowan, their plan was to send interracial and interfaith teams of northern women down to Mississippi during 1964 as a way of supporting rural Black communities and civil rights workers. Beyond delivering aid, these women quietly fostered change by holding intimate, cross-racial meetings with Southern women, where honest conversations helped shift attitudes and build grassroots support for the civil rights movement. While neither Burton nor Howie Lacewell readily identifies as a public historian, their efforts to convey underrepresented histories are firmly grounded in archival research and oral history methods. Even so, both stress that it’s not just about the facts - it’s about cultivating an experience for audiences to connect with the truth of the past.

To learn more about the play, Wednesdays in Mississippi, read coverage here.

For more on Nicole Burton and her work:

• https://www.nicolejburton.com/
• www.pipelineplaywrights.org

For more about Rikki Howie Lacewell: https://www.confidencetheatrics.com/about

The Center for Public History at the University of Houston. https://uh.edu/class/cph

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In this special episode, Miranda Ruzinsky and Katie Truax – UH graduate students in public history – highlight the tradition of community support in Third Ward demonstrated through the institutions and public spaces associated with the funeral process. The role of black-owned businesses, churches and religious leaders, and public remembrance like murals are central to the neighborhood’s resilience in difficult times of death and grief.

This episode was researched, recorded, and produced by Miranda Ruzinsky and Katie Truax for the Center for Public History at the University of Houston.

To learn more:

Beverly, Trevia Wooster. “At Rest: A Historical Directory of Harris County, Texas Cemeteries (1822-2001).” Reference Material, n.d. Genealogy Collection. Houston History Research Center.

Bruines, Myron. “Walter Allen Ford.” Funeral Program. McCoy & Harrison Funeral Home: 4918 Martin Luther King Boulevard, Houston (Tex.), 77021; Jones Memorial United Methodist Church: 2504 Almeda Genoa Road, Houston (Tex.), 77047; Houston Memorial Gardens: 2426 Cullen Boulevard, Pearland (Tex.), 77581, April 14, 2016. African American Funeral Programs. Houston Public Library Digital Archives.

Houston Mural Map. https://houstonmuralmap.com/.

Najarro, Ileana. “Black Funeral Homes in Danger in Some U.S., Houston Communities.” Houston Chronicle, January 23, 2019.

“Our History - McCoy & Harrison Funeral Home,” June 11, 2018.

Wilson, Ezell. “Third Ward, Steeped in Tradition of Self-Reliance and Achievement.” Houston History, April 18, 2011.

All check out the amazing collections at the African American History Research Center at the Gregory Campus.

Oral Histories conducted by Miranda Ruzinsky:

Dickson, Pastor Donald, Interview, March 9, 2024.

McCoy Abernathy, Helen. Interview, February 24, 2024.

Music courtesy of:

Freesound.org

"remix of 45145__hammerklavier__GOSPEL_INTRO_TRADITIONAL_even_BRIGHTER_reverbed.wav" by Timbre. CC BY-NC 4.0.

"Street Gospel Hip Hip Piano - 75bpm - Bbmaj" by nnaudio. CC BY 4.0.

Freemusicarchive.org

"Little Wooden Church" by The Trumpeteers. PDM 1.0.

"Free Spacy Organ (F 003)" by Lobo Loco. CC BY-SA 4.0.

https://sarah-bereza.com/hymn-accompaniments/

The Center for Public History at the University of Houston. https://uh.edu/class/cph

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All over the United States, communities and individuals banded together to support the country during the Second World War. Houston’s Third Ward was no different in this respect. In this special episode, UH graduate students Austin Lee and James Burke weave together accounts originally documented in the African American newspaper, The Houston Informer. From the men and women in the armed forces to the merchant marine sailing supply ships and the volunteers on the home front, Third Ward residents supported their country even amid segregation and racism. After the war, many of these same volunteers returned to their community and gave back in the form of long careers serving their neighbors.

This episode was written and recorded by Austin Lee and James Burke for the Center for Public History at the University of Houston.

An archive of the Houston Informer can be found at the African American History Research Center at the Gregory School, a part of the Houston Public Library system.

Music courtesy of:
OpenMusicArchive.org
Don’t Go ‘Way Nobody performed by George Lewis & His New Orleans Stompers and written by Buddy Bolden. PDM.
In The Dark-Flashes performed by Jess Stacy and written by Bix Beiderbeck. PDM.

freemusicarchive.org/
“Taboret,” “Rate Sheet,” “Lacquer Groove,” “The Coil Winds,” and “Ray Gun – FasterFasterBrighter” by Blue Dot Sessions. CC BY-NC 4.0.

https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/
Anchor's Away. Performed by Navy Band.

Sound Effects by:
Freesound.org
S17-10 Depth charge with water sounds.wav by craigsmith. CC0 1.0.
old typewriter sounds by Grauda 1982. CC0 1.0.
06 Warsaw Długa street in february 2012 about 3 PM.wav by MaciekKubera. CC0 1.0.
Waves by Bittermelonheart. CC0 1.0.

Day of Infamy Speech courtesy of the National Archives:
President Franklin Roosevelt’s “Day of Infamy” Speech. John G. Bradley. PDM.

The Center for Public History at the University of Houston. https://uh.edu/class/cph