Apr 11, 2013 2 min read

Peters Township Public Library will host “Civil War 150,” a three-part national public programming initiative designed to encourage public exploration of the transformative impact and contested meanings of the American Civil War, beginning in May.

The program is being presented by the Library of America in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and is supported by a grant from National Endowment for the Humanities. A selection of primary documents drawn from the four-volume series, “The Civil War: Told by Those Who Lived It,” will be provided free to registered participants before the May and June programs.

The discussion series will be facilitated by Dr. Elaine Frantz Parsons, Civil War scholar and associate professor of history at Duquesne University. All programs will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. as follows:

• May 5 – “Civil War Readers: Secession and Union and Reckoning with the War.” The program is limited to 25 participants. Reading materials will be distributed to before the program.

• June 9- “Civil War Readers: The Experience of Battle and From Slavery to Freedom.” The program is limited to 25 participants. Reading materials will be distributed before the program.

• July 18 – “Why did the Klan Wear Bizarre Costumes?” The program is open to 80 participants. Parsons is compiling a book about the Ku Klux Klan, “Constructing the Kuklux: The Ku Klux Klan and the Modernization of the Reconstruction-Era South.”

Patrons can participate in any or all of the programs. However, separate registration is required for each. Register to attend by emailing programs@ptlibrary.org with the desired program dates or call 724-941-9430.