[437] May 5 Book Signing Features Popular 'Images Of America' Authors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 26, 2010
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919, or lrollins@mtsu.edu

MAY 5 BOOK SIGNING FEATURES POPULAR ‘IMAGES OF AMERICA’ AUTHORS
Authors Devora Butler & Carla Jones to Visit Murfreesboro’s Heritage Center May 5

(MURFREESBORO)—Book lovers and local history buffs will have an opportunity to meet two authors of Middle Tennessee history in May at the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County.
Devora E. Butler and Carla J. Jones have both published books in the popular Images of America series produced by Arcadia Publishing. Butler’s African Americans in Rutherford County debuted last October, while Jones’s African Americans of Giles County, which she co-authored with Tonya M. Hull, has just been released.
Beginning at 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 5, Jones and Butler will sign copies of their books, both of which will be for sale on site. Each title feature images of African Americans at school, at work and at leisure. African Americans in Rutherford County is divided into three sections: Education, the Military, and Faces and Places of Rutherford County. Among the highlights of African Americans of Giles County is its look at early farming, commerce and entrepreneurship.
“We are delighted to have both of these authors at the Heritage Center,” said Jennifer Butt, program assistant at the Heritage Center. “Their books are full of inspirational images and help round out the local history of two important Middle Tennessee counties.”
A native of Murfreesboro, Butler has an undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and graduate degrees from the University of London, England, and Belmont University. She is an educator, political activist and mother of three daughters. Her family’s Rutherford County farm is one of just four African-American Century Farms in Tennessee.
Jones was born and reared in Indianapolis, Ind., but her family’s roots are in Giles County. She is the president of the Matt Gardner Homestead Museum, which is located in the Elkton community.
Matt Gardner, the author’s great-great-grandfather, was a former slave who became a landowner and community leader. Dr. Carroll Van West, director of MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation, nominated Gardner’s 1896 house for the National Register of Historic Places. (West also wrote the foreword to African Americans of Giles County.)
Located just off the square at 225 West College St., the center is open 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Friday (excluding major holidays) and features local history exhibits and guided walking tours of the town square on the hour. Group tours are available Monday through Saturday by advance reservations. Admission is free.
The Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County is a joint venture between the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area, Main Street: Murfreesboro/ Rutherford County, the City of Murfreesboro and the CHP. Additional support comes from the Rutherford County government and State Farm Insurance.
For more information on programs at the Heritage Center, including the authors’ upcoming visit, please call 615-217-8013 or e-mail heritage@mtsu.edu.

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With three Nobel Prize winners among its alumni and former faculty, Middle Tennessee State University confers master’s degrees in 10 areas, the Specialist in Education degree, the Doctor of Arts degree and the Doctor of Philosophy degree. MTSU is ranked among the top 100 public universities in the nation in the Forbes “America’s Best Colleges” 2009 survey.