Christopher Davidson, State Archivist and Assistant Vice Chancellor, Dr. Tristan Denley, Executive Vice Chancellor, from the University System of Georgia, in addition to Dr. Toby Graham, Chair, Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council (GHRAC), and the entire GHRAC board, recognized the GHRAC Award winners during the nineteenth annual awards ceremony, held virtually, on Tuesday, October 26, 2021. The GHRAC Awards recognizes outstanding efforts in archives and records work in Georgia. 

2021 GHRAC Award Winners  

Award for Advocacy  

Andrew Feiler, for the book A Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and 4,978 Schools That Changed America. 

Cliff Landis and Christine Wiseman, for the project Mapping Georgia's Natural, Cultural and Historic Organizations for Disaster Response. 

Award for Local History Advocacy 

Jon Sizemore, for the Ray City History Blog. 

Adam M. Ware, PhD, for the transformation of the Bandy Heritage Center for Northwest Georgia. 

Evans County African American Archive Museum, for the establishment and development of the Evans County African American Archive Museum.   

Award for Excellence in Archival Program Development by a State Institution 

Columbus State University Archives and Special Collections, for facility improvements, outreach, and a robust internship program. 

Award for Excellence in Archival Program Development by a Historical Repository 

William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum, for increased access to the Esther and Herbert Taylor Oral History Collection. 

Award for Excellence in Archival Program Development by a Private Institution 

Lolita Rowe, of the Emory University Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library, for, Rose Library Presents, a suite of podcasts designed to explore what archivists do, how collections are essential, and advocate for archival work. 

Award for Excellence in Documenting Georgia’s History 

E. Culpepper Clark, PhD, for the book The Birth of a New South: Sherman, Grady, and the Making of Atlanta.  

Kaye Lanning Minchew, for the book Jimmy Carter: Citizen of the South.  

Sandra E. Godwin, PhD, and Helen Matthews Lewis, PhD, for the book A White Liberal College President in the Jim Crow South: Guy Herbert Wells and the YWCA at Georgia State College for Women, 1934-1953.  

Dan White and Robert Judson, for the documentary A President in Our Midst: Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Georgia.

Derek Mosley, Angela Stanley, and Tamika Strong, for the Atlanta African American Funeral Programs Digitization Project. 

Florentine Films, for the documentary East Lake Meadows: A Public Housing Story.  

 Award for Excellence in Research Using the Holdings of Archives 

Adam J. Pratt, PhD, for the book Toward Cherokee Removal: Land, Violence, and the White Man's Chance.  

Wendy Venet, PhD, for the book Gone but Not Forgotten: Atlantans Commemorate the Civil War.   

Kenneth Wheeler, PhD, for the book Modern Cronies: Southern Industrialism from Gold Rush to Convict Labor, 1829-1894. 

Award for Excellence in Student Research Using Historical Records, Grades 9-12 

Eva Cheraisi and Mary McCoy from Columbus High School in Columbus, for the documentary The Soul of People Who are Darker than Blue.

Aanika Eragam from Milton High School in Alpharetta, for the paper “Hate the War: How John Hersey's ‘Hiroshima’ Reframed the Ending of World War II.”

Award for Excellence in Student Research Using Historical Records, Grades 6-8 

Jonathan Dorminy from Sola Fide Home School, in McDonough, for the performance “Japanese Coded Communications in World War II, the Key to Understanding the Pacific Theater.” 

Lifetime Achievement Award 

Loretta Parrish Cato, for contributions to the development of the Genealogical Research Center, Washington County Historical Society. 

John Inscoe, PhD, for contributions through teaching, publishing, and working to establish the New Georgia Encyclopedia.  

John S. Lupold, PhD, for contributions through teaching, publishing, working to make historical records accessible, and for the establishment of the Columbus State University Archives.  

Marilyn Somers, for contributions to collecting and preservation work, and for the project Georgia Tech’s Living History Program. 

GHRAC works to promote the educational use of Georgia’s documentary heritage and to support efforts to improve the condition of records statewide. The Board is charged with advising the Chancellor and the Georgia Archives on records and policy issues. Nominations for the 2022 Awards will be accepted beginning February 1, 2022, and they must be postmarked by June 1, 2022. More information is available from the Georgia Archives website https://www.georgiaarchives.org/ghrac/awards_program