Civil Rights Heritage Center facts for kids
The Civil Rights Heritage Center (CRHC) is a special place created by Indiana University South Bend. It was started because students and teachers wanted to study and keep records of local civil rights history. Many people from the community, along with students and teachers, worked together. They wanted to fix up an old public building that was known for treating African Americans unfairly. They wanted it to become a center for civil rights studies.
Today, the CRHC is located in the former Engman Public Natatorium. This was South Bend's first public swimming pool. For almost thirty years, this pool did not allow African Americans to swim there, or made them swim separately. The CRHC now works to keep the memory of the Civil Rights Movement alive. It also shares the history of how different races and groups have gotten along in the South Bend area. The center provides education, supports research, and hosts discussions. It helps us understand human rights and how to make things better for everyone in the future.
The Engman Natatorium is in the West Washington National Historic Register District. It opened in 1922 as a public swimming pool. At first, only white people were allowed to use it. It was not fully open to everyone until 1950. The Natatorium closed in 1978. It was empty and falling apart for many years. Thanks to the hard work of students and teachers from Indiana University South Bend, the City of South Bend, the South Bend Heritage Foundation, and the Indiana University Foundation, the building was completely fixed up and made new. Now, it is the home of the Civil Rights Heritage Center.
History of the Center
The Indiana University South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center began in 2000. It was started because students at IU South Bend took a class called Freedom Summer.
Freedom Summer Trip
On May 14, 2000, sixteen IU South Bend students, teachers, and staff from the South Bend Tribune took a tour bus. For 15 days, they studied the Civil Rights Movement in the Southern United States. Their goal was to feel history as if it were happening now. They wanted to understand its power in a way that goes beyond books and classroom lessons. These students walked where civil rights leaders walked. They ate where they ate. They also talked with more than twenty people who were part of this very important time in American history.
Creating the Center
When these students returned from Freedom Summer 2000, they founded the Civil Rights Heritage Center. They wanted to record, save, and highlight the hard work and successes of people who wanted fairness for everyone. Their studies helped them learn more about the former Engman Public Natatorium. This was South Bend's first city swimming pool. At the time, it was an empty and abandoned building. The students led the effort to turn this building into a new home for the Center.
A New Home for History
In May 2010, the Engman Natatorium was officially opened as the IU South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center. This was possible thanks to kind donations from local people and groups. It also received support from the College of Liberal Arts and Science at IU South Bend. This special new life for the old swimming pool was recognized when South Bend was named an All-America City in 2011. It also received a Freedom Award in 2014 at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Indiana Statehouse Celebration. The center now honors the civil rights efforts of local citizens. It shows a history of determination and success. It stands as a symbol of justice won in a community working to heal its past.
