The Middletown Women's History Collection provides online access to archival materials documenting the experiences of women and women's organizations in Muncie, Indiana from the 1880s through the 1930s. It includes diaries, minutes, correspondence, photographs and other documents selected from the wealth of resources available in Ball State University Libraries Archives and Special Collections. These resources will expand research opportunities in women's studies and local history.

The organization of this online resource is based on the six areas used by Helen and Robert Lynd in their seminal sociological study of Muncie, or "Middletown," in the 1920s and 1930s. Click on the area below for more information on the resources included:

Getting a Living

Making a Home

Training the Young

Using Leisure

Engaging in Religious Practices

Engaging in Community Activities

It is also possible to browse all of the materials in the collections or search by archival collection, format, keyword and using other advanced searching techniques. Go to Advanced Search.

For more information on Middletown Studies, visit the Middletown Studies Collection website.