Forgetting and the Forgotten

The writing of history and the creation of collective memories and identities is often about power—those who have it and those who do not. Michael C. Batinski’s Forgetting and the Forgotten shows how constructions of past are made—both traditional narrative and the counter narratives that challenge many of their assumptions and assertions by members of communities that have had different experiences.” - Terry A. Barnhart, author of Albert Taylor Bledsoe: Defender of the Old South and Architect of the Lost Cause“This is an exquisitely crafted study that highlights the ways that local pastkeepers in Jackson County, Illinois, marginalized and silenced Native American, African American, and working-class experiences and stories.” - Sean Farrell, coauthor of The Irish in Illinois

Michael C. Batinski is a professor emeritus of history at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He first expressed his interest in historical consciousness in small places by writing Pastkeepers in a Small Place: Five Centuries in Deerfield, Massachusetts. He is also the author of two books on early American politics, The New Jersey Assembly, 1738–1775: The Making of a Legislative Community and Jonathan Belcher: Colonial Governor.