Bridgewater College professor Stephen Longenecker to speak about new Civil War book

Dr. Stephen Longenecker, the Edwin L. Turner Distinguished Professor of History at Bridgewater College, will speak about his book, Gettysburg Religion: Refinement, Diversity, and Race in the Antebellum and Civil War Border North, at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 19, in the Carter Center for Worship and Music at Bridgewater College.

In Gettysburg Religion, Longenecker explores the religious history of antebellum and Civil War era Gettysburg, shedding light on the diversity of American religion and the intricate ways it interacted with the broader culture.

“The book is important,” Longenecker said, “because it explores parts of America’s past that remain relevant, especially diversity, race and middle class life.”

Longenecker has written five other books, including Shenandoah Religion: Outsiders and the Mainstream, 1716-1865 and The Brethren During the Age of World War: The Church of the Brethren Encounter with Modernization, 1914-1950: A Source Book.

Sponsored by the Anna B. Mow Lecture Series, the event is free and open to the public.

Bridgewater College is a private, four-year liberal arts college, located in the Central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Founded in 1880, it was the state’s first private, coeducational college. Today, Bridgewater College is home to approximately 1,800 undergraduate students.