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Past Informs The Future


January 24 Conversation Discusses Council’s Past & Future Role
Little Cities of Black Diamonds Council members and interested local citizens are asked to gather on Saturday morning, January 24, 2009 at Dunkle’s Hall for an important conversation about setting a fresh vision for the Council beyond the already planned activities for 2009. Though forward looking, the conversation will also reflect upon the Council’s past and current activity to inform the future. This article begins that reflection.
The Little Cities Council formed in 1996, organized by Sunday Creek Associates, the non-profit organization that still serves as its sponsor today. SCA began collecting oral histories, organizing history groups and writing history publications with groups of older citizens in the Perry County mining towns of Corning, Shawnee, Rendville and New Straitsville during the early and mid-1990’s. The Council was organized to get representatives from these communities together to talk about their common history and to encourage similar mining towns in Athens, Hocking and Morgan Counties to become involved.
Sunday Creek Associates’ organizing mission was and is to promote community redevelopment in southern Perry County. SCA undertook its history collecting efforts based on the belief that it is important to know where you’ve been, as you embark upon planning for where you want to go. The local history movement of the 1990’s did that, and more. It not only resulted in numerous publications, exhibits and events that shared the history of the mining towns of southern Perry County, it also resulted in a renewed sense of caring for community life in many of the towns involved in the effort.
The early years of the Council’s activity followed a participatory leadership strategy where lengthy meetings of volunteers hammered out the details of events and projects. Though this process built strong ownership, it was also exhausting to many volunteers and avoided by others due to its complexity. Regardless, the diverse efforts of events, publications, and involvement of educational institutions that took place was impactful. Some believe that these efforts have slowly redefined the image of the coal towns of the region from icons of poverty and decay to a more interesting image of being a series of communities with a rich and provocative history of national significance.
By the early years of the new century the Council had emerged as a regional grass roots organization with an office opening in Shawnee and part time paid staff. Lengthy monthly Council meetings were replaced with quarterly potlucks of the membership with educational programs and the opportunity for fellowship among members. Contract workers joined volunteer committees and work groups to undertake various projects ranging from events and guided tours to souvenir development and theatrical interpretation of the story. This myriad of activity has led to the term “Little Cities of Black Diamonds” gradually becoming a household word in the region, a term identifying a special sense of place.
From the various community history initiatives and Council’s efforts has come a wealth of information and action which has enriched the microregion’s cultural atmosphere with events, interpretation, publications and restoration centered around the microregion’s common history. The effort has identified two clear assets for redevelopment: our rich history and our natural environment. This process has informed SCA’s current focus on protecting and sharing the microregion’s cultural heritage and natural resource assets as part of a geotourism strategy coined “Little Cities As A Destination.”
The Little Cities of the Forest Collaborative was launched in 2007, with SCA and Council’s support, as a sister effort to provide stewardship and appropriate geotourism development of the area’s natural assets including being home to Ohio’s only national forest, inspiring watershed restoration projects, and the North Country National Scenic Trail.
Just as the unearthing of the microregion’s rich history has informed community redevelopment and the adoption of a geotourism strategy in the region, understanding the Council’s thirteen year history can inform its future role.
After reflection upon past and current Council activity, the upcoming conversation will ask: How can the Council remain true to understanding, sharing and promoting the region’s rich history? How does the Council best contribute to a greater geotourism strategy in the microregion, interacting with other key players? What resources are available to sustain and improve upon the Council’s efforts? Many of the projects of the Council are set for 2009. The bigger planning task is to take a longer view of the Council’s role to see if the work being completed by part time contact staff and volunteers is consistent with the organizational vision and the circumstance of the times. The Council invites all members and interested citizens to join us on Saturday, January 24, 2009 at Dunkle Hall in downtown New Straitsville from 10AM to 2PM for a conversation about the past, present and future work of the Council. Complimentary lunch will be provided at noon. Please RSVP via e-mail at lcbd@ohiohills.com or via phone at 740-394-3011 so that a count can be taken for seating and lunches.