Stacy Davidson, History and Continuing Education, was one of 28 recipients of a highly-selective Mellon/ACLS Community College Faculty Fellowship for 2021-2022. Fellows received up to $40,000 to advance their respective projects, which significantly expand humanistic study and knowledge.
Davidson’s project, “We Are For Egypt: The History, Culture, and Legacy of Egyptian Southern Illinois,” combines her expertise in Egyptology, American history, regional and local history, music, folklore, reception studies, and more into this interdisciplinary project. Southern Illinois has been known as “Egypt” and “Little Egypt” for nearly 200 years. Throughout the turbulent nineteenth century, Egyptian Illinoisans strengthened their regional cohesiveness in spite of and in response to internal and external political and social upheavals. Distinct from the rest of Illinois in dialect, superstitions, folk tales, and musical traditions, traces of this Egyptian identity still resonate in Southern Illinois today. “We Are For Egypt” integrates underrepresented voices into an inclusive history of the region, generates a handbook for educators to incorporate local history into their curricula, and produces musical recordings that bridge the past and present artistic heritage of Egyptian Illinois.
Explore the “We Are For Egypt” Digital Exhibit
The “We Are For Egypt” Digital Exhibit is accessible through the SCRC Virtual Museum at Southern Illinois University’s Morris Library. Watch videos and read commentary on each of the songs from Project Creator Stacy Davidson and Album Producer Jenny Pape. The lyrics to each song are available as are links to listen to the album online. Many thanks to Dr. Anne Marie Hamilton-Brehm for formatting the online exhibit.
Read: “We Are For Egypt” Educational Handbook
The “We Are For Egypt” Educational Handbook is intended for anyone with an interest in the history of “Egypt, Illinois” and what exactly is “Egyptian” about it. This PDF handbook includes information on ancient Egypt, “Egypt, Illinois,” writing and activity prompts, and coloring pages.
Listen: “We Are For Egypt” Digital Streaming
The album “We Are For Egypt” is now available for streaming on Spotify and Bandcamp.
About the cover design: I did not want to include an overtly Egyptian cover image like a detail from the Sentinel Building in Centralia, Illinois, or an obelisk or pyramid. I met with my Producer Jenny Pape in downtown Carbondale, and, as I was leaving, I looked down and saw that the brick-lined streets included several bricks stamped “Egyptian.” There were variations in the designs, condition, and accompanying text, but here was an emblem representing this underlying “Egyptian” identity—right under my feet! The bricks were made in the early 20th century by the Murphysboro Paving Brick Company, and you can still see them lining old brick streets or being used as paving stones or decorative elements—providing a foundation, if you will, that still supports the region. After explaining this concept and what I was looking for, Jen Haselhorst and Nate Graham were able to make this vision a cover photo reality.
Album Update: Late Fall 2022
We are pleased to announce that the We Are For Egypt album will have an in-person launch! Join us on Sunday, 27 November 2022, at Route 51 Brewery, 18967 N US Hwy 51, Elkville, IL 62932. We’re releasing new and traditional songs about Southern Illinois from some of our finest songwriters: Banjo Joe and Danielle, Mila Maring, John Reimbold, the Kitchen Table Crew, and Miss Jenny and the Howdy Boys. Get your tickets now at missjennymusic.com! $15. Doors open at 5pm. Show starts at 6pm. Tickets not needed for kids 12 and under (but must be accompanied by a guardian).
Producer Jenny Pape was featured on WSIU’s “InFocus: With “We Are For Egypt,” local songwriters tell tales of southern Illinois” which aired on 23 Nov 2022. You can listen here.
Learn more about album from Producer Jenny Pape of Miss Jenny and the Howdy Boys in these Instagram reels:
Album Update: Fall 2022
Recording, mixing, mastering are completed. The album artwork and liner notes are finished, and the “We are For Egypt” album has gone to print.
Recording Update: Spring 2022
Recording has begun on the musical component of Stacy Davidson’s Mellon/ACLS Community College Faculty Fellowship project, We Are For Egypt: The History, Culture, and Legacy of Egyptian Southern Illinois. The album includes five traditional ballads from Southern Illinois and five newly-commissioned works inspired by the people, places, and events of Egypt, Illinois. The album serves as bridge between the rich, multicultural musical heritage of the region and the vibrant musical scene of today—with an ear towards inclusivity and community. It features solo artists and ensembles of various genres with ties to Southern Illinois. Producer and Engineer Professor Jenny Pape of Miss Jenny and the Howdy Boys brings her incomparable musical training and her extensive grounding in the ballads of Southern Illinois to the recording studio. Acoustic bluesman and international performer, Rip Lee Pryor, son of world-renowned harmonica player, Snooky Pryor, was given the honor of laying the first track in a Carbondale, IL, studio.
Scribe's Palette 