PRESS RELEASE- For Release 1/7/2026
Media Contact: Natalie Stewart
natalie.oslund@archives.alabama.gov
(334) 353-1881
FOOD FOR THOUGHT LUNCHTIME LECTURE AT THE ARCHIVES
THURSDAY, JANUARY 15 AT 12:00PM
THE PROOF IS IN
THE DOUGH: RURAL SOUTHERN WOMEN, EXTENSION, AND MAKING MONEY
PRESENTED BY KATHRYN BEASLEY
Montgomery, AL (1/7/2026) – The Alabama Department of Archives & History (ADAH) will continue its 2026 Food for Thought lunchtime lecture series on Thursday, January 15, at 12:00pm CT. Kathryn Beasley will present The Proof is in the Dough: Rural Southern Women, Extension, and Making Money. The program will be held in the ADAH’s Joseph M. Farley Alabama Power Auditorium in Montgomery. It will also be livestreamed on the ADAH’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Admission is FREE.
Kathryn L. Beasley received her Ph.D. in history from Florida State University. Her research focuses on agricultural and rural history, with an emphasis on women’s economic activity in the rural South. She received the Southern Association for Women Historians’ A. Elizabeth Taylor Prize for the best article in the field of southern women’s history. Her work has been published in The Alabama Review, Florida Historical Quarterly, Journal of the NACAA, Peanut Science, and White House Quarterly.
Drawing from her book, The Proof Is in the Dough, Beasley’s presentation will examine how rural white and African American women in Alabama and Florida used Cooperative Extension Service home demonstration programs between 1914 and 1929 to earn additional income. Her research highlights how these women applied domestic and agricultural skills to improve their economic circumstances, shaping household production and consumption while laying early foundations for financial independence before the economic challenges of the 1930s.
For additional information, contact Alex Colvin at alex.colvin@archives.alabama.gov or (334) 353-4689. A complete schedule of our 2026 lunchtime lecture series is available at archives.alabama.gov. Food for Thought 2026 is sponsored by the Friends of the Alabama Archives.
The Alabama Department of Archives and History is the state’s government-records repository, a special-collections library and research facility, and home to the Museum of Alabama, the state history museum. It is located in downtown Montgomery, directly across Washington Avenue from the State Capitol. The Museum of Alabama is open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 to 4:30. The EBSCO Research Room is open Tuesday through Saturday from 8:30 to 4:30. To learn more, visit www.archives.alabama.gov or call (334) 242-4364.
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