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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251210T173000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251210T190000
DTSTAMP:20260225T102607Z
CREATED:20260209T143302Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T102607Z
UID:9178-1765387800-1765393200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Christmas with the Puritans: A Festive Program at the Congregational Library & Archives
DESCRIPTION:This program celebrated the Christmas season by exploring the history of puritan objections to this holiday. Puritans famously banned Christmas in Massachusetts in 1659\, and they are often portrayed as joyless\, solemn\, and severe. However\, we don’t often hear a nuanced explanation of their grievances with Christmas or the more complicated history of their influence on early American culture. \nDid seventeenth-century puritans really hate holiday fun\, or are they misunderstood? In this talk and collections tour\, Dr. Tricia Peone examined rare manuscripts and books in the CLA’s collection and discussed how Christmas was celebrated (and not celebrated) in early New England. Attendees learned more about Christmas in seventeenth-century New England and the evolution of the holiday into the one we know today. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. Her scholarship focuses on early New England\, particularly the history of magic and witchcraft\, and her work on these subjects has appeared in journals\, books\, blogs\, and on radio and television. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/christmas-puritans
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Congregational Story,Public Programs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/XmasPuritansCarousel-NEW400.png
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251203T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251203T140000
DTSTAMP:20260225T102054Z
CREATED:20260209T165259Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T102054Z
UID:9483-1764766800-1764770400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Newport Gardner’s Anthem: A Story of Slavery\, Struggle\, and Survival in Early America
DESCRIPTION:This virtual book talk with Dr. Edward E. Andrews focused on his new book that explores the remarkable life of Occramer Marycoo\, an enslaved African who went on to become one of early America’s most important Black leaders. \nIn the mid-eighteenth century\, Marycoo was taken from West Africa to Newport\, Rhode Island\, where he was forced into racial bondage and given a name that symbolized the power that his new city and new enslaver held over him: Newport Gardner. In this powerful book\, Edward E. Andrews pieces together newspaper articles\, church records\, letters\, and Gardner’s own writings to tell the story of his life. \nAfter acquiring his freedom via a winning lottery ticket in 1791\, Gardner became a kind of Founding Father for Newport’s free Black community. He established and led several Black benevolent organizations that helped the community navigate the complicated waters of freedom as Rhode Island slowly began the process of emancipation. He became a popular educator to young Black Newporters\, and also emerged as a key religious figure\, serving as a long-standing pillar of Newport’s First Congregational Church and later founding an independent Black church in the 1820s. His final act was leading a group of about three dozen Black New Englanders to Liberia\, in hopes that a new start in Africa would be better than the discrimination they faced in America. \nA richly textured account\, Newport Gardner’s Anthem tells the story of a forgotten Black leader while exploring the new\, but tragically limited\, opportunities for formerly enslaved people in the post-Revolutionary world. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Edward E. Andrews is Professor in The Department of History and Classics at Providence College. A scholar of early American history\, his work focuses on questions of race\, religion\, and slavery in early America and the Atlantic World.  His first book\, Native Apostles: Black and Indian Missionaries in the British Atlantic World\, was published by Harvard University Press in 2013. His new biography\, Newport Gardner’s Anthem: A Story of Slavery\, Struggle\, and Survival in Early America\, was recently released by Cornell University Press.  It tells the story of an important but forgotten African leader in early New England.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/newport-gardners-anthem
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Book Talks,CLA Research Fellows,Diverse Voices
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/NewportGardnerCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251119T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251119T140000
DTSTAMP:20260226T101811Z
CREATED:20260209T142915Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T101811Z
UID:9170-1763557200-1763560800@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:“The Just and Good Governor of the World:” John Hancock’s Congregationalist Roots and Religious Commitment
DESCRIPTION:This talk was given by Dr. Jeffrey M. Griffith\, editor of the upcoming multi-volume Papers of John Hancock\, a publication of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts\, as well as the curator of thousands of letters authored and received by John Hancock on the publication’s companion website\, JohnHancockPapers.com. \nIn his talk\, Dr. Griffith focused on John Hancock’s Congregational roots and how he invoked religious traditions throughout his life. The Governor’s grandfather\, father\, and uncle were all Congregational ministers and – until tragedy befell the family – the third generation John Hancock would likely also have been a town minister. \nAfter John’s uncle and aunt adopted him\, the burgeoning social leader built upon their life-long commitment to various meetinghouses. Whereas his guardians fulfilled specific needs for individual congregations\, John envisioned his contributions on a scale that impacted entire communities. By providing land\, bells\, and building materials\, meetinghouses across New England emerged and stood as a testament of Hancock’s devotion to religion. \nAs Hancock emerged as a political leader on the local and continental stage\, he promoted and participated in religious traditions ranging from Election Day Sermons\, to Days of Fasting\, and Days of Thanksgiving. Each of these events anchor current events that sought to tout God’s role in both his personal life and the community’s circumstances and efforts. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Jeffrey Griffith wrote his dissertation on Massachusetts Election Sermons from 1763-1793\, which studied how ministers used the annual tradition to interpret the events that pushed Massachusetts from a loyal colony to a free-and-independent Commonwealth. Named the editor of The Colonial Society of Massachusetts’s upcoming multi-volume Papers of John Hancock publications\, which will curate thousands of letters authored and received by John Hancock across four decades\, and which are currently spread across over dozens of repositories and collections.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/just-good-governor
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/JGGovernorCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251113T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251113T180000
DTSTAMP:20260226T101552Z
CREATED:20260209T142724Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T101552Z
UID:9168-1763053200-1763056800@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Sacred Rebellion Virtual Exhibition Tour
DESCRIPTION:Back by popular demand\, this encore virtual tour of the Congregational Library & Archives’ new in-person exhibition\, Sacred Rebellion\, was hosted by Executive Director Dr. Kyle Roberts and New England’s Hidden Histories Project Director and Sacred Rebellion curator Dr. Tricia Peone. \nBy the time the American Revolution began\, many Congregationalists had embraced a theological justification for war and revolution. They believed that God favored them and that their cause was a morally justified\, sacred rebellion. Through sermons\, books\, poems\, songs\, and letters\, Congregationalists shared their stories\, reflected on their moral obligations to each other\, and debated questions of liberty and loyalty. But consensus was elusive\, and implementation proved difficult and unsatisfactory to many\, especially those on the margins. \nThe interactive tour was hosted on Zoom\, with registration limited to a small group of attendees. Participants viewed Revolutionary-era treasures from the collections; heard stories about how Congregationalists experienced the period leading up to\, during\, and immediately following the war; had opportunities to ask questions; and reflected on what this pivotal event means 250 years later. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science. \n  \nFunded by the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/sacred-rebellion-virtual-exhibition-tour-f25
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Revolutionary Stories,Sacred Rebellion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SRVirtualTourF25Carousel400_0.jpeg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251112T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251112T140000
DTSTAMP:20260226T101019Z
CREATED:20260209T142517Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T101019Z
UID:9166-1762952400-1762956000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Armenian Congregationalism: Past\, Present\, and Future
DESCRIPTION:In this virtual talk\, Rev. Dr. Haroutune Selimian explored the historical and theological foundations of Armenian Congregationalism\, with particular focus on how the community has persevered through crisis. Drawing from church archives\, the Armenian Evangelical press of the 19th and 20th centuries\, and his own experience as pastor of the Bethel Church in Aleppo\, Selimian reflected on the enduring convictions that have shaped Armenian identity: congregational polity\, the authority of Scripture\, local witness\, and the call to faithful resilience. \nArmenian churches have walked through genocide\, exile\, war\, and systemic marginalization. Yet\, the values at the heart of their Congregational tradition\, freedom of conscience\, covenantal fellowship\, and Christ-centered service\, have not only survived but deepened. Selimian shared how these values continue to sustain his ministry in Syria today\, especially amid the overlapping crises of displacement\, economic collapse\, and regional instability. \nThis talk also looked forward. How can a small\, war-torn church continue to be a living theology of presence? How can they remain rooted in their biblical convictions while adapting to the future needs of their people and region? Selimian hoped to offer not only historical insights\, but also a theological framework and practical testimony that resonate with Congregationalists around the world. \nThis event was co-sponsored by the Theological Commission of the International Congregational Fellowship. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nRev. Dr. Haroutune Selimian is a scholar-pastor who has led the Armenian Evangelical Bethel Church of Aleppo since 1993. He serves as President of the Armenian Protestant Community in Syria and holds a PhD in historical sciences from Yerevan State University. His academic work focuses on the 19th-century Armenian Evangelical movement\, and he actively engages in interfaith and ecumenical dialogue across the region. A graduate of Near East School of Theology and McCormick Theological Seminary\, he is Moderator of the International Congregational Fellowship and a key voice for peace building\, theological reflection\, and bridge-building amid displacement and crisis.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/armenian-congregationalism
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Congregational Story,Contemporary Congregationalism,Diverse Voices
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ArmenianCongCarousel400_1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251107T093000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251107T140000
DTSTAMP:20260226T100739Z
CREATED:20260209T142337Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T100739Z
UID:9164-1762507800-1762524000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:The Archives Edit: A Workshop in Arranging Your Church’s Archive
DESCRIPTION:One of the core principles of archival theory is arrangement\, the process by which archivists create physical and intellectual order out of a collection. Led by the CLA’s archivists\, Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy\, this workshop introduced participants to the concepts of physically and intellectually arranging a church’s archive through a combination of instruction\, demonstration\, and hands-on activities. \nWhile intellectual and physical arrangement are separate tasks with different outcomes\, they are inextricably linked together and form the backbone of archival processing and accessibility. Physical arrangement is the process of safely housing\, labeling\, and ordering physical materials\, while intellectual arrangement is the process of creating an inventory that maintains connections among objects and logically orders them into a hierarchical list. \nThe workshop was designed for those tasked with keeping\, preserving\, and making accessible a church’s valuable records. Zachary and Billy discussed core archival principles in detail and give examples of how those concepts may be applied to church records collections of all shapes and sizes. Topics covered included how to arrange a collection of seemingly disparate materials into useful broad categories\, how to identify relationships among various items in your collection\, and how to identify or recreate a collection’s original order. \nParticipants left the workshop with an understanding of the principles of arrangement and concrete next steps for how they may apply those principles to their own collections. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past virtual workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/archives-edit-f25
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Archives,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/ArchivesEditF25Carousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251029T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251029T200000
DTSTAMP:20260414T125440Z
CREATED:20260209T142134Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260414T125440Z
UID:9162-1761764400-1761768000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:NEHH@20: Re-Examining Stories from New England Communities Digital Exhibition Launch
DESCRIPTION:ACCESS VIDEO TRANSCRIPT + RESOURCES \nFor twenty years\, the New England’s Hidden Histories project at the Congregational Library & Archives has been digitizing\, transcribing\, and providing free online access to early New England Congregational church records. Since 2005\, this landmark project has grown into a digital archive with 130\,000 images and over 26\,000 pages of transcription\, representing collections from 160 historic New England churches. Working in partnership with libraries\, archives\, museums\, churches\, and other cultural institutions\, the project team has uncovered valuable\, and too often overlooked\, firsthand accounts that preserve the voices of early New Englanders. \nIn this virtual event\, curators Dr. Richard Boles\, Associate Professor of History and the Interim Director of Religious Studies at Oklahoma State University\, and Dr. Tricia Peone\, Project Director of New England’s Hidden Histories\, launched a new online exhibition to celebrate the project’s milestone anniversary. NEHH@20: Re-Examining Stories from New England Communities showcases the work of scholars\, church historians\, and transcribers who have contributed to the project and uncovered new histories in the process. The exhibition explores the important research that has come from this archive and its impact on community histories of New England. Learn more about the making of the online exhibition\, the history and evolution of the NEHH project\, and the curators’ favorite stories from the archives. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Richard Boles is an Associate Professor of History and the Interim Director of Religious Studies at Oklahoma State University. His first book\, Dividing the Faith: The Rise of Segregated Churches in the Early American North\, was published by New York University Press. It examines the transition from racially diverse churches during the early eighteenth century to separate African American and Native American congregations by the early nineteenth century in the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions. His most recent publication appears in the just-released Routledge History of Religion and Politics in the United States Since 1775. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. Her scholarship focuses on early New England\, particularly the history of magic and witchcraft\, and her work on these subjects has appeared in journals\, books\, blogs\, and on radio and television. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/nehh20-virtual-launch
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:NEHH,NEHH@20
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/NEHH20LaunchCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251021T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251021T140000
DTSTAMP:20260301T114255Z
CREATED:20260209T141709Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260301T114255Z
UID:9159-1761051600-1761055200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:The Bicentennial of the American Unitarian Association and Congregational History
DESCRIPTION:ACCESS VIDEO TRANSCRIPT + RESOURCES\nOn the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the founding of the American Unitarian Association\, Dr. Dan McKanan\, Ralph Waldo Emerson Unitarian Universalist Senior Lecturer at Harvard Divinity School and editor of A Documentary History of Unitarian Universalism (Skinner House Books\, 2017)\, joined us for this fascinating virtual talk. \nThe founding of the American Unitarian Association in 1825 was the culmination of a generations-long family quarrel within the Congregational churches of Massachusetts. Many Unitarian Universalists today remember it as the beginning of a theological journey that would lead away from both Congregationalism and Christianity as a whole. But the Unitarian founders understood themselves as custodians of the best traditions of their puritan forebears. They hoped to spread the puritan values of learned ministry and congregational independence across the United States\, while paring away the excesses of Calvinism and revivalism. \nAnd even as their theology diverged\, their organizational habits ran in parallel with those of their more orthodox siblings. Both groups were prolific founders of schools and reform societies that transformed their nation\, even as both groups lagged behind their Baptist and Methodist cousins in the struggle for hearts and minds. This bicentennial is thus an opportunity to reflect on the shared legacies of Congregationalism. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Dan McKanan is the Emerson Senior Lecturer at Harvard Divinity School\, where he works closely with students preparing for Unitarian Universalist ministry and with scholars of Unitarian Universalism from around the world. He is the author of six books\, including Prophetic Encounters: Religion and the American Radical Tradition\, and the editor of the two-volume Documentary History of Unitarian Universalism.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/aua-bicentennial
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Congregational Story
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/AUABicentennialCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251015T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251015T140000
DTSTAMP:20260526T085941Z
CREATED:20260209T141506Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260526T085941Z
UID:9155-1760533200-1760536800@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Finding an Archival Home:  Understanding the Accessioning Process
DESCRIPTION:ACCESS VIDEO TRANSCRIPT + RESOURCES \nChurches\, both active and engaged in the legacy process\, may find themselves needing to partner with external repositories to properly steward their important historical records. \nThe process of working with repositories to donate materials can be surprisingly complex and time intensive for both the donor and repository. Every archive\, library\, and museum has their own unique accessioning workflow and rules for collecting\, so when the stewards of church records understand the overall process\, they are able to set realistic expectations when working with both repositories and church administrators. \nThis virtual workshop with the CLA’s archivists\, Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy\, explored the accessioning process from start to finish with an eye towards setting expectations for donors and best practices to follow when working with external repositories. Zachary and Billy will also discussed the gift agreement\, a document that legally transfers physical ownership; explored how to talk about copyright and other legal rights with a repository; and offered a peak behind the curtain at the CLA’s accessioning procedures. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/finding-archival-home
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/ArchivalHome400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251014T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251014T140000
DTSTAMP:20260227T113555Z
CREATED:20260227T113328Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T113555Z
UID:12813-1760446800-1760450400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Spirits in the Stacks: A Ghostly Virtual Tour
DESCRIPTION:Feeling spooky? This program\, offered both in-person and via Zoom\, featured chilling tales of the macabre as NEHH Project Director Dr. Tricia Peone guided guests through the haunted history of the Congregational Library & Archives. \nAttendees heard ghost stories drawn from the 400-year history of Congregationalism and learned why the CLA has collected occult literature. They viewed rare books and manuscripts from the CLA’s collections\, including seventeenth-century books on ghosts and witchcraft\, nineteenth-century pamphlets on vampires and seances\, and twentieth-century haunted house sermons. \nThis interactive tour began with a discussion of puritan belief in ghosts and the invisible world\, including works by Boston ministers Increase and Cotton Mather that continue to shape the way people understand these topics. Dr. Peone explored the legacy of New England’s supernatural landscape and how this history continues to affect us today. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. Her scholarship focuses on early New England\, particularly the history of magic and witchcraft\, and her work on these subjects has appeared in journals\, books\, blogs\, and on radio and television. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/spirits-stacks-virtual
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Public Programs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/NEWSpiritsStacksCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251008T173000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251008T190000
DTSTAMP:20260227T113127Z
CREATED:20260209T141248Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T113127Z
UID:9150-1759944600-1759950000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Spirits in the Stacks: A Ghostly Tour at the Congregational Library & Archives
DESCRIPTION:Feeling spooky? This program\, offered both in-person and via Zoom\, featured chilling tales of the macabre as NEHH Project Director Dr. Tricia Peone guided guests through the haunted history of the Congregational Library & Archives. \nAttendees heard ghost stories drawn from the 400-year history of Congregationalism and learned why the CLA has collected occult literature. They viewed rare books and manuscripts from the CLA’s collections\, including seventeenth-century books on ghosts and witchcraft\, nineteenth-century pamphlets on vampires and seances\, and twentieth-century haunted house sermons. \nThis interactive tour began with a discussion of puritan belief in ghosts and the invisible world\, including works by Boston ministers Increase and Cotton Mather that continue to shape the way people understand these topics. Dr. Peone explored the legacy of New England’s supernatural landscape and how this history continues to affect us today. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. Her scholarship focuses on early New England\, particularly the history of magic and witchcraft\, and her work on these subjects has appeared in journals\, books\, blogs\, and on radio and television. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/spirits-stacks
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Public Programs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/NEWSpiritsStacksCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251001T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251001T140000
DTSTAMP:20260227T112734Z
CREATED:20260209T140732Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T112734Z
UID:9148-1759323600-1759327200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Gathered Into a Church: Indigenous-English Congregationalism in Woodland New England
DESCRIPTION:This virtual book talk featured Dr. Lori Rogers-Stokes discussing her important new book on Indigenous-English Congregationalism in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the decades around the turn of the eighteenth century\, a period bookended by King Philip’s War and the First Great Awakening. \nPuritans in the American colonies created Congregationalism\, a Protestant denomination where power rested in each congregation rather than a larger central body. As has often been told\, the official puritan mission included outreach to Indigenous people. This may appear as nothing more than forced conversion under colonization\, but church records from Massachusetts—digitized and made public for the first time—reveal the authenticity of this Indigenous religious experience\, as evidenced by commonalities between the Congregational way and some aspects of local Native American cultures. The records also show how the decentralized churches stood in contrast to a growing civil government in the colonies. \nWith church records now available\, Rogers-Stokes revealed a more realistic picture of diverse congregations and contrasts their internal workings—which show inherent flexibility and a focus on a shared creation of community—with a developing civil government focused on consolidating power around white landowners. The result is a story that can expand how scholars write about this period\, this region\, and these communities\, both settler and Indigenous. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Lori Rogers-Stokes is an independent scholar\, public historian\, and contributing editor for New England’s Hidden Histories\, a digital history project of the Congregational Library & Archives. She is the author of Gathered into a Church: Indigenous-English Congregationalism in Woodland New England\, out in September 2025 from the University of Massachusetts Press\, and Records of Trial from Thomas Shepard’s Church in Cambridge\, 1638–49: Heroic Souls (Palgrave Macmillan\, 2020). Lori studies the history of Woodland New England\, where Indigenous people and English colonizers took actions that continue to shape our lives today.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/gathered-church
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Book Talks,Congregational Story,Diverse Voices
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/GatheredChurchCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250927T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250927T170000
DTSTAMP:20260228T104544Z
CREATED:20260209T164227Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T104544Z
UID:9458-1758960000-1758992400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Religions of Revolution Symposium
DESCRIPTION:This spotlight symposium on the religious thinkers and ideas that shaped the American Revolution was co-sponsored by The New England Quarterly and the Congregational Library & Archives. \nAs we approached the 250th anniversary of the American founding\, we welcomed the opportunity for new perspectives on this global event. Using the CLA’s Religion of Revolution digital exhibition as a springboard\, we put Congregationalism—once Massachusetts’ established religion—in wider conversation with the many faiths of that era. \nFor more information\, please see the conference webpage.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/religions-revolution-symposium
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Conferences,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/RoRSym-RegCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250918T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250918T140000
DTSTAMP:20260227T224204Z
CREATED:20260209T140520Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T224204Z
UID:9146-1758200400-1758204000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America
DESCRIPTION:In this virtual book talk\, Dr. Karin Wulf spoke about her new book on the power of genealogy in shaping Early America–and American society today. \nLineage tells the story of genealogy’s attraction and power\, for individuals\, families\, and institutions alike\, in eighteenth-century British America. In early America\, people produced a profusion of information about their family connections\, often because they were moved to write or create genealogies but also because they were required to by their church or their local government or a court. They created all manner of textual genealogies on sheets and scraps of bound and loose paper\, in account books and in the blank pages and margins of printed books\, but also in images and material form. \nThe power in family connections was governmental\, legal\, and religious\, as well as cultural and social\, echoing the structures of Britain itself—but in the American context it also structured slavery and freedom in which\, despite the patriarchy of law and society\, children’s status was determined by their mother’s. The twin forces of intimate meaning and instrumental purpose made genealogy in British America distinctly potent. \nWhile the American Revolution wrought changes in American society\, it did not disrupt the signal importance of genealogy or the powerful cultural logic of lineage—a legacy from the colonial period that would continue to mark the United States beyond its early history. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Karin Wulf is the Director and Librarian of the John Carter Brown Library\, and Professor of History at Brown University. A historian of early America focused on gender\, family\, and politics\, she writes widely for both public and academic audiences about history\, the worlds of scholarship and scholarly publishing\, and libraries and archives. Her new book is Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in 18th Century British America. She serves on a variety of non-profit boards and is an incoming Vice-President of the American Historical Association.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/lineage
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Book Talks
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/LineageCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250903T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250903T130000
DTSTAMP:20260227T223819Z
CREATED:20260209T140307Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T223819Z
UID:9144-1756900800-1756904400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Editing Cotton Mather's Biblia Americana (1693-1728): America’s First Bible Commentary and Storehouse of Early Modern Learning
DESCRIPTION:In this hybrid lunch and learn at the Congregational Library & Archives\, Dr. Jan Stieverman and Dr. Theodore Delwiche discussed their most recent volume of Cotton Mather’s Biblia Americana and the work of creating critical editions of important religious texts more generally. \nThis volume of the Biblia Americana (1693-1728) contains Cotton Mather’s annotations on the gospels of Matthew\, Mark\, and Luke. A mixture of pious explications and historical-textual criticism\, the annotations are a treasure-trove for scholars interested in the development of Reformed theology and biblical exegesis during a decisive period of intellectual change in the early modern Atlantic world. \nDrs. Stieverman and Delwiche reflected on the opportunities and challenges of creating this critical edition\, part of a ten-volume series begun in the early 2000s to make Mather’s important unpublished 4\,500-page manuscript accessible. One of the most significant untapped sources in American religious and intellectual history\, Mather’s commentary not only reflects the growing influence of Enlightenment thought and the rise of the transatlantic evangelical awakening\, it also marks the beginning of historical criticism of the Bible as text in New England. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Jan Stievermann is Professor of the History of Christianity in the US at Heidelberg University. He has written books and essays on a broad range of topics in the fields of American religious history\, culture\, and literature\, including a comprehensive study of the theology and aesthetics of Ralph Waldo Emerson (in German; Schoeningh\, 2007) and Prophecy\, Piety\, and the Problem of Historicity: Interpreting the Hebrew Scriptures in Cotton Mather’s Biblia Americana (Mohr Siebeck\, 2016). In the scholarly edition of the Biblia Americana manuscript\, he is responsible for volumes 5\, 10\, and 7 (2015; 2023; forthcoming in 2026)\, and serves as the executive editor of the whole project. His articles have been published in leading journals\, including William and Mary\, Early American Literature\, Church History\, and Religion and American Culture. Among other multi-authored volumes\, he co-edited A Peculiar Mixture: German-Language Cultures and Identities in Eighteenth-Century North America (Pennsylvania State University Press\, 2013)\, Religion and the Marketplace in the United States (Oxford\, 2014)\, the Oxford Handbook of Jonathan Edwards (2021)\, The Bible in Early Transatlantic Pietism and Evangelicalism (Penn State University Press\, 2022)\, and two volumes forthcoming with Oxford on James W.C. Pennington\, one a critical anthology of Pennington’s writings\, the other a collection of essays on his life and work. \nDr. Theodore (Teddy) Delwiche is a post-doc at the Heidelberg Center for American Studies. He earned his doctorate in early American history at Yale\, his master’s in early modern European history at the University of Groningen (the Netherlands)\, and his bachelor’s in classics at Harvard. His research interests lie at the intersection of early modern European intellectual history\, colonial America\, and classical reception studies. He is the author of roughly 20 different articles\, reviews\, and chapters on\, among other topics\, early modern shorthand\, the culture of the classics in early America\, and the history of alchemy. In addition to serving as a co-editor of a forthcoming volume of Cotton Mather’s Biblia Americana\, he is revising his first monograph on classical education in colonial America and plotting his next book-length project on the history of Americans studying abroad.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/editing-mathers-biblia-americana
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Book Talks,Lunch & Learn
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/EditingBibliaCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250807T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250807T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T131441Z
CREATED:20260228T131416Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T131441Z
UID:13312-1754571600-1754575200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Church Stewardship Initiative Summer Camp
DESCRIPTION:This was the last of five class sessions. \nThe Congregational Library & Archives was excited to host our first annual CSI Summer Camp in 2025. \nArchivists Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy led attendees through the steps needed to successfully begin archiving their church’s important records and valuable memories. This multi-session online program\, hosted on Zoom\, provided guidance and instruction on the archival process\, keeping in mind attendees’ specific collections and locations. \nOver the course of five sessions\, Zachary and Billy provided hands-on and in-depth instruction about how to begin tackling the seemingly mountainous task of properly archiving a church’s collection. Between sessions\, there were exercises to complete at attendees’ own pace that reinforced lessons and set them up for the next session. Sessions included time for instructions\, group discussions\, and Q&A. Sessions were focused on the following four topics: gathering your collection\, identifying materials\, organizing records\, and crafting finding aids. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/csi-summer-camp-5
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,Class,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/CSISummerCampCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250729T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250729T180000
DTSTAMP:20260228T123000Z
CREATED:20260209T163930Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T123000Z
UID:9455-1753804800-1753812000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:NACCC Ministers & Members Reception 2025
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/naccc-reception-25
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250729T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250729T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T125818Z
CREATED:20260228T125155Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T125818Z
UID:13279-1753794000-1753797600@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Researching the Revolution Using New England’s Hidden Histories
DESCRIPTION:This was the last of five class sessions. \nIn summer 2025\, the CLA presented a new way to explore the American Revolution at its 250th anniversary. In a five-week online class hosted on Zoom\, participants learned about the history of Congregationalists in the American Revolution and conduct research into a related project of their choosing with expert guidance from the instructors. The class used the CLA’s two new exhibitions\, Religion of Revolution and Sacred Rebellion\, along with the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive to examine the relationship between Congregationalism and the creation of the United States. \nThe class was led by Dr. Kyle Roberts (CLA Executive Director) and Dr. Tricia Peone (NEHH Project Director). Course topics included an introduction to researching with church records on a digital platform\, overviews of the American Revolution and Congregational history\, uncovering the histories of marginalized New Englanders\, and information about how to craft a research project. \nEach week participants discussed and interpret primary source documents and learn about religious life during the Revolutionary era. The course concluded with participants sharing a small research project of their own design. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/researching-revolution-5
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Class,NEHH,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ResearchingRevolutionCarousel400_1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250724T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250724T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T131150Z
CREATED:20260228T131124Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T131150Z
UID:13309-1753362000-1753365600@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Church Stewardship Initiative Summer Camp
DESCRIPTION:This was the fourth of five class sessions. \nThe Congregational Library & Archives was excited to host our first annual CSI Summer Camp in 2025. \nArchivists Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy led attendees through the steps needed to successfully begin archiving their church’s important records and valuable memories. This multi-session online program\, hosted on Zoom\, provided guidance and instruction on the archival process\, keeping in mind attendees’ specific collections and locations. \nOver the course of five sessions\, Zachary and Billy provided hands-on and in-depth instruction about how to begin tackling the seemingly mountainous task of properly archiving a church’s collection. Between sessions\, there were exercises to complete at attendees’ own pace that reinforced lessons and set them up for the next session. Sessions included time for instructions\, group discussions\, and Q&A. Sessions were focused on the following four topics: gathering your collection\, identifying materials\, organizing records\, and crafting finding aids. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/csi-summer-camp-4
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,Class,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/CSISummerCampCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250722T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250722T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T125746Z
CREATED:20260228T124956Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T125746Z
UID:13274-1753189200-1753192800@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Researching the Revolution Using New England’s Hidden Histories
DESCRIPTION:This was the fourth of five class sessions. \nIn summer 2025\, the CLA presented a new way to explore the American Revolution at its 250th anniversary. In a five-week online class hosted on Zoom\, participants learned about the history of Congregationalists in the American Revolution and conduct research into a related project of their choosing with expert guidance from the instructors. The class used the CLA’s two new exhibitions\, Religion of Revolution and Sacred Rebellion\, along with the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive to examine the relationship between Congregationalism and the creation of the United States. \nThe class was led by Dr. Kyle Roberts (CLA Executive Director) and Dr. Tricia Peone (NEHH Project Director). Course topics included an introduction to researching with church records on a digital platform\, overviews of the American Revolution and Congregational history\, uncovering the histories of marginalized New Englanders\, and information about how to craft a research project. \nEach week participants discussed and interpret primary source documents and learn about religious life during the Revolutionary era. The course concluded with participants sharing a small research project of their own design. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/researching-revolution-4
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Class,NEHH,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ResearchingRevolutionCarousel400_1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250718T093000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250718T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T123330Z
CREATED:20260209T140054Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T123330Z
UID:9142-1752831000-1752847200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:The Archives Edit: A Workshop in Arranging Your Church’s Archive
DESCRIPTION:One of the core principles of archival theory is arrangement\, the process by which archivists create physical and intellectual order out of a collection. Led by the CLA’s archivists\, Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy\, this workshop introduced participants to the concepts of physically and intellectually arranging a church’s archive through a combination of instruction\, demonstration\, and hands-on activities. \nWhile intellectual and physical arrangement are separate tasks with different outcomes\, they are inextricably linked together and form the backbone of archival processing and accessibility. Physical arrangement is the process of safely housing\, labeling\, and ordering physical materials\, while intellectual arrangement is the process of creating an inventory that maintains connections among objects and logically orders them into a hierarchical list. \nThe workshop was designed for those tasked with keeping\, preserving\, and making accessible a church’s valuable records. Zachary and Billy discussed core archival principles in detail and give examples of how those concepts may be applied to church records collections of all shapes and sizes. Topics covered included how to arrange a collection of seemingly disparate materials into useful broad categories\, how to identify relationships among various items in your collection\, and how to identify or recreate a collection’s original order. \nParticipants left the workshop with an understanding of the principles of arrangement and concrete next steps for how they may apply those principles to their own collections. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past virtual workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/archives-edit-25
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:Archives,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ArchivesEdit25Carousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250715T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250715T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T125622Z
CREATED:20260228T124749Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T125622Z
UID:13266-1752584400-1752588000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Researching the Revolution Using New England’s Hidden Histories
DESCRIPTION:This was the third of five class sessions. \nIn summer 2025\, the CLA presented a new way to explore the American Revolution at its 250th anniversary. In a five-week online class hosted on Zoom\, participants learned about the history of Congregationalists in the American Revolution and conduct research into a related project of their choosing with expert guidance from the instructors. The class used the CLA’s two new exhibitions\, Religion of Revolution and Sacred Rebellion\, along with the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive to examine the relationship between Congregationalism and the creation of the United States. \nThe class was led by Dr. Kyle Roberts (CLA Executive Director) and Dr. Tricia Peone (NEHH Project Director). Course topics included an introduction to researching with church records on a digital platform\, overviews of the American Revolution and Congregational history\, uncovering the histories of marginalized New Englanders\, and information about how to craft a research project. \nEach week participants discussed and interpret primary source documents and learn about religious life during the Revolutionary era. The course concluded with participants sharing a small research project of their own design. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/researching-revolution-3
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Class,NEHH,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ResearchingRevolutionCarousel400_1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250711T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250711T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T123545Z
CREATED:20260209T135658Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T123545Z
UID:9140-1752228000-1752242400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Voices from the Past: Working with Records from the New England’s Hidden Histories Project
DESCRIPTION:A small group of church historians\, family history researchers\, and individuals interested in early New England Congregational history (1620-1820) and what it can reveal about the past came together for this in-person workshop on finding and interpreting church records at the Congregational Library & Archives. \nParticipants learned how to use the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive and other resources at the CLA; what different types of records are created by churches; how to use church records to research family history; how to find marginalized voices in church records; and how to connect information from church records to other historical resources. \nThe workshop was led by Dr. Tricia Peone\, New England’s Hidden Histories Project Director. New England’s Hidden Histories is a digital project of the Congregational Library & Archives that digitizes\, transcribes\, and provides access to early New England Congregational church records. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/voices-past-25
LOCATION:Congregational Library & Archives\, 14 Beacon Street\, Boston\, MA\, 02108\, United States
CATEGORIES:NEHH
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/VoicesPastCarousel25-400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250710T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250710T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T130803Z
CREATED:20260228T130719Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T130803Z
UID:13303-1752152400-1752156000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Church Stewardship Initiative Summer Camp
DESCRIPTION:This was the third of five class sessions. \nThe Congregational Library & Archives was excited to host our first annual CSI Summer Camp in 2025. \nArchivists Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy led attendees through the steps needed to successfully begin archiving their church’s important records and valuable memories. This multi-session online program\, hosted on Zoom\, provided guidance and instruction on the archival process\, keeping in mind attendees’ specific collections and locations. \nOver the course of five sessions\, Zachary and Billy provided hands-on and in-depth instruction about how to begin tackling the seemingly mountainous task of properly archiving a church’s collection. Between sessions\, there were exercises to complete at attendees’ own pace that reinforced lessons and set them up for the next session. Sessions included time for instructions\, group discussions\, and Q&A. Sessions were focused on the following four topics: gathering your collection\, identifying materials\, organizing records\, and crafting finding aids. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/csi-summer-camp-3
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,Class,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/CSISummerCampCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250708T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250708T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T125721Z
CREATED:20260228T124554Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T125721Z
UID:13257-1751979600-1751983200@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Researching the Revolution Using New England’s Hidden Histories
DESCRIPTION:This was the second of five class sessions. \nIn summer 2025\, the CLA presented a new way to explore the American Revolution at its 250th anniversary. In a five-week online class hosted on Zoom\, participants learned about the history of Congregationalists in the American Revolution and conduct research into a related project of their choosing with expert guidance from the instructors. The class used the CLA’s two new exhibitions\, Religion of Revolution and Sacred Rebellion\, along with the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive to examine the relationship between Congregationalism and the creation of the United States. \nThe class was led by Dr. Kyle Roberts (CLA Executive Director) and Dr. Tricia Peone (NEHH Project Director). Course topics included an introduction to researching with church records on a digital platform\, overviews of the American Revolution and Congregational history\, uncovering the histories of marginalized New Englanders\, and information about how to craft a research project. \nEach week participants discussed and interpret primary source documents and learn about religious life during the Revolutionary era. The course concluded with participants sharing a small research project of their own design. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/researching-revolution-2
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Class,NEHH,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ResearchingRevolutionCarousel400_1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250701T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250701T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T125658Z
CREATED:20260209T135515Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T125658Z
UID:9129-1751374800-1751378400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Researching the Revolution Using New England’s Hidden Histories
DESCRIPTION:This was the first of five class sessions. \nIn summer 2025\, the CLA presented a new way to explore the American Revolution at its 250th anniversary. In a five-week online class hosted on Zoom\, participants learned about the history of Congregationalists in the American Revolution and conduct research into a related project of their choosing with expert guidance from the instructors. The class used the CLA’s two new exhibitions\, Religion of Revolution and Sacred Rebellion\, along with the New England’s Hidden Histories digital archive to examine the relationship between Congregationalism and the creation of the United States. \nThe class was led by Dr. Kyle Roberts (CLA Executive Director) and Dr. Tricia Peone (NEHH Project Director). Course topics included an introduction to researching with church records on a digital platform\, overviews of the American Revolution and Congregational history\, uncovering the histories of marginalized New Englanders\, and information about how to craft a research project. \nEach week participants discussed and interpret primary source documents and learn about religious life during the Revolutionary era. The course concluded with participants sharing a small research project of their own design. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nDr. Kyle Roberts was appointed the Executive Director of the Congregational Library & Archives in 2022. He received his BA in American Studies from Williams College and his PhD in History from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to the CLA\, he was Associate Director of Library & Museum Programming at the American Philosophical Society and Associate Professor of Public History and New Media and Director of the Center for Textual Studies and Digital Humanities at Loyola University Chicago. \nA scholar of Atlantic World religion\, print\, and library history\, he is the author of Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City\, 1783-1860 (Chicago\, 2016)\, the co-editor\, with Stephen Schloesser\, of Crossings and Dwellings: Restored Jesuits\, Women Religious\, American Experience 1814-2014 (Brill\, 2017) and\, with Mark Towsey\, of Before the Public Library: Reading\, Community\, and Identity in the Atlantic World\, 1650-1850 (Brill\, 2017). \nKyle is an accomplished public historian and digital humanist whose collaborative projects include the Jesuit Libraries Provenance Project\, the Maryland Loyalism Project\, and Dissenting Academies Online: Virtual Library System. In addition to being the consultant for numerous digital and public history projects\, he sits on the executive committees of the American Catholic Historical Association\, the New England Historical Association\, the Urban History Association He is on the editorial and advisory boards for American Catholic Studies\, Early American Studies\, and portal. \nDr. Tricia Peone joined the CLA in 2022 as the Project Director for New England’s Hidden Histories. Prior to joining the CLA\, she was a research scholar at Historic New England for the Recovering New England’s Voices project. She has also previously worked as the public programs director at New Hampshire Humanities\, a university lecturer teaching classes on the Salem witch trials\, early New England\, and public history\, and as a researcher for cultural heritage organizations. She holds a PhD in history from the University of New Hampshire with a specialization in the early modern Atlantic world and history of science.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/researching-revolution
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Class,NEHH,Revolutionary Stories
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ResearchingRevolutionCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250626T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250626T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T130853Z
CREATED:20260228T130529Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T130853Z
UID:13297-1750942800-1750946400@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Church Stewardship Initiative Summer Camp
DESCRIPTION:This was the second of five class sessions. \nThe Congregational Library & Archives was excited to host our first annual CSI Summer Camp in 2025. \nArchivists Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy led attendees through the steps needed to successfully begin archiving their church’s important records and valuable memories. This multi-session online program\, hosted on Zoom\, provided guidance and instruction on the archival process\, keeping in mind attendees’ specific collections and locations. \nOver the course of five sessions\, Zachary and Billy provided hands-on and in-depth instruction about how to begin tackling the seemingly mountainous task of properly archiving a church’s collection. Between sessions\, there were exercises to complete at attendees’ own pace that reinforced lessons and set them up for the next session. Sessions included time for instructions\, group discussions\, and Q&A. Sessions were focused on the following four topics: gathering your collection\, identifying materials\, organizing records\, and crafting finding aids. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/csi-summer-camp-2
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,Class,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/CSISummerCampCarousel400_0.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250619T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250619T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T132841Z
CREATED:20260209T134945Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T132841Z
UID:9118-1750338000-1750341600@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Insensible of Boundaries: Studies in Mary Ann Shadd Cary
DESCRIPTION:Our 2025 Juneteenth Lecture focused on Mary Ann Shadd Cary (1823–1893) the trailblazing Black feminist\, activist\, journalist\, and educator whose achievements can be traced across Canada and the United States. \nBorn in a border state in the antebellum era\, Shadd Cary taught in schools in New York\, New Jersey\, and Pennsylvania before becoming a strong advocate for immigration to Canada in her early adulthood. Once she moved to Ontario in the mid-1850s\, she dove headfirst into early Black Canadian debates. She fought to integrate schools in the States and Canada and became\, as the editor of the Provincial Freeman\, the first Black woman to edit a newspaper in North America. \nDespite her achievements and impact on Black life in North America\, Shadd Cary is a relatively little-known figure outside of the continent. Insensible of Boundaries is the first collection of essays published on this thinker. Kristin Moriah discussed what went into creating this pathbreaking volume on this important figure. \n  \nSPEAKER BIO \nDr. Kristin Moriah is an Associate Professor of African American Literary Studies at Queen’s University in Kingston\, Ontario. She is the editor of Insensible of Boundaries: Studies in Mary Ann Shadd Cary\, the first collection of scholarly essays about radical Black feminist editor and activist Mary Ann Shadd Cary. Her work has been supported by fellowships from the Social Sciences and Research Council of Canada\, the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia\, and the Harry Ransom Center. Her work has appeared in American Quarterly\, TDR\, PAJ\, Early American Literature\, Theatre Research in Canada\, Performance Matters\, and Sounding Out.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/insensible-boundaries
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Book Talks,Diverse Voices,Women's Voices
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/InsensibleBoundariesCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250612T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250612T140000
DTSTAMP:20260228T130305Z
CREATED:20260209T135310Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T130305Z
UID:9124-1749733200-1749736800@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Church Stewardship Initiative Summer Camp
DESCRIPTION:This was the first of five class sessions. \nThe Congregational Library & Archives was excited to host our first annual CSI Summer Camp in 2025. \nArchivists Zachary Bodnar and Billy McCarthy led attendees through the steps needed to successfully begin archiving their church’s important records and valuable memories. This multi-session online program\, hosted on Zoom\, provided guidance and instruction on the archival process\, keeping in mind attendees’ specific collections and locations. \nOver the course of five sessions\, Zachary and Billy provided hands-on and in-depth instruction about how to begin tackling the seemingly mountainous task of properly archiving a church’s collection. Between sessions\, there were exercises to complete at attendees’ own pace that reinforced lessons and set them up for the next session. Sessions included time for instructions\, group discussions\, and Q&A. Sessions were focused on the following four topics: gathering your collection\, identifying materials\, organizing records\, and crafting finding aids. \nThis program was part of our Church Stewardship Initiative (CSI). Find the videos of past workshops and free resources on our CSI webpage. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nZachary Bodnar graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science from Simmons University\, with a concentration in archives management\, in 2018. Prior to his work at the CLA\, Zachary worked at the Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden archive\, the Vassar College Special Collections\, the Harvard Law School Library\, and the Harvard Botany Libraries. Zachary joined the CLA as an Archives Assistant in 2017\, helping to prepare materials for digitization through the New England’s Hidden Histories program. In 2018\, he took on the title of Archivist. His professional interests include metadata collection and management\, digital archiving\, audio/visual preservation\, and archives management. \nBilly McCarthy graduated with a Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at Simmons University with a concentration in Archival Management. He started working at the CLA through a graduate internship and was hired full-time as an Archivist in 2018. Billy is the Head of Reader Services\, helping the CLA’s visitors with reference requests and facilitating in-person research. Billy also serves as the collection manager for the archives\, working with CLA’s offsite vendor to protect and maintain the organization’s archival records. Some of his professional interests include increasing access\, collection management\, processing of complex materials\, and facilitating research.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/csi-summer-camp
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Archives,Class,CSI
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/CSISummerCampCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250609T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250609T130000
DTSTAMP:20260228T132600Z
CREATED:20260209T134701Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260228T132600Z
UID:9116-1749470400-1749474000@congregationallibrary.org
SUMMARY:Library Behind the Scenes: The Print Inventory Project
DESCRIPTION:Do you have a list of every book on your shelves? What if your shelves were full of books collected over 170 years that had not always been well documented? Would you know how to find the books you wanted\, or would you even know what you were looking for? \nIn this hybrid lunch and learn program\, Collection Accessibility Project Specialist Téa Belog discussed her work on the inventory of the CLA’s print collection\, which is part of a two-year initiative launched in January 2025 under the guidance of Librarian Meaghan Wright to complete an inventory for the entire print collection. \nAs the CLA looks to reconcile its catalog records with what is actually on the shelf\, Téa discussed her work reviewing every print item to identify gaps\, determine the number of uncatalogued books\, and assess longstanding issues and organizational inconsistencies. She also shared how her work on this project will offer a more complete and thorough understanding of the CLA’s collections and facilitate easier access for future researchers. \n  \nSPEAKER BIOS \nTéa Belog is an MLIS student at Simmons University. Her love of history\, books\, and organization coalesces into her current project at the Congregational Library & Archives as she tackles years of uncatalogued books.
URL:https://congregationallibrary.org/events/library-behind-scenes
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:CLA History,Lunch & Learn
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://congregationallibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/June25LLCarousel400.png
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR