Edward Tabor ("Ed") Linenthal (born 1947) is an American academic who specializes in

religious Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

and

American studies American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, history, society, and culture. It traditionally incorporates literary criticism, historiography and critical theory. Schol ...

, and particularly

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of ...

s and other sacred spaces.

Biography and scholarship

Linenthal received his A.B. from

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

in 1969, his M.Div. from the Pacific School of Religion in 1973, and his Ph.D. from the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

in 1979. He worked for 25 years at the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh, in religious studies and completed his career with the

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

history department. Now retired, Linenthal now resides in Virginia. In his youth, Linenthal played drums for a rock band called The Thyme who often opened for well known acts such as

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage presence. ...

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

, and MC5 at the Grande Ballroom (where The Thyme served as a house band) and The Union Street Station among other locations. Linenthal is the author of four scholarly

monograph A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject. In library cataloging, ''monogra ...

s, and has served as the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

of ''

The Journal of American History ''The Journal of American History'' is the official academic journal of the Organization of American Historians. It covers the field of American history and was established in 1914 as the ''Mississippi Valley Historical Review'', the official jo ...

''. One of his research interests is "sacred ground", that is, the places that are sanctified by sacrifice of one sort of another (and later frequently commercialized)--this is the topic of his ''Sacred Ground'', an interest which led to an involvement with the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. He is a consultant with the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

, and has worked on such memorials as the

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust h ...

; his ''Preserving Memory'' (first published 1995) describes various controversies and debates pertaining to the planning and building of the museum.

Books

Authored

*''The Unfinished Bombing: Oklahoma City in American Memory'' (New York:

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

, 2001) *''Preserving Memory: The Struggle to Create America’s Holocaust Museum'' (2nd ed, New York:

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fie ...

, 2001) *''Sacred Ground: Americans and Their Battlefields'' (2nd ed, Champaign:

University of Illinois Press The University of Illinois Press (UIP) is an American university press and is part of the University of Illinois system. Founded in 1918, the press publishes some 120 new books each year, plus 33 scholarly journals, and several electronic proje ...

, 1993) *''Symbolic Defense: the Cultural Significance of the Strategic Defense Initiative'' (Champaign: University of Illinois Press, 1989)

Edited

*With Jonathan Hyman and Christiane Gruber, ''The Landscapes of 9/11: A Photographer's Journey'' (Austin:

University of Texas Press The University of Texas Press (or UT Press) is a university press that is part of the University of Texas at Austin. Established in 1950, the Press publishes scholarly books and journals in several areas, including Latin American studies, Te ...

, 2013) *With Tom Engelhardt, ''History Wars: The Enola Gay and Other Battles for the American Past.'' New York: Metropolitan Books (1996) *With David Chidester, ''American Sacred Space'' (Bloomington:

Indiana University Press Indiana University Press, also known as IU Press, is an academic publisher founded in 1950 at Indiana University that specializes in the humanities and social sciences. Its headquarters are located in Bloomington, Indiana. IU Press publishes 140 ...

, 1995)

References

External links

Faculty page
at Indiana University {{DEFAULTSORT:Linenthal, Edward Living people 1947 births University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh faculty Indiana University faculty 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers Historians of the United States University of California, Santa Barbara alumni American editors Academic journal editors Western Michigan University alumni Pacific School of Religion alumni American rock drummers American male drummers American male non-fiction writers