The path to a meaningful career doesn’t always require moving away or starting somewhere new. Sometimes, it begins right in your own community. At Youngstown State
When India Gatts applied for an internship at the Trumbull County Historical Society (TCHS) as a junior history and English double major, she just thought it would be good work experience. She then turned it into a two-year project on the Old Mahoning Ave. “Pioneer” Cemetery of cataloging, digitizing, mapping, and creating maps and indexes.
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When India Gatts applied for an internship at the Trumbull County Historical Society (TCHS) as a junior history and English double major, she just thought it would be good work experience. She then turned it into a two-year project on the Old Mahoning Ave. “Pioneer” Cemetery of cataloging, digitizing, mapping, and creating indexes.
Gatts landed the internship with TCHS through effective preparation from her history courses, specifically History Practicum which she took with Dr. Amy Fluker where they completed work on a cemetery project. This gave Gatts the background knowledge and experience to undertake the larger project of cataloging the Pioneer Cemetery.
“This internship allowed me to perfectly combine my two fields of study to complete the project. With the aid of 21st century technology, the project provides a historical database current and future generations can utilize. It also honors long buried, and sometimes forgotten, generations from the 18th and 19th centuries,” she stated.
She further brought the project to life through her graduate English course, Studies in Film, where she created a documentary film on the cemetery that is now included in the final project.
Gatts was able to dedicate the time needed to the project as she continued her studies at YSU through the English M.A. program as a graduate assistant. She is expected to complete her master’s in the spring 2027 semester.
The project involved many steps including:
She was able to collaborate with many YSU faculty on the project. John Bralich, a geography professor, assisted in mapping the cemetery. Dr. Matt O’Mansky, anthropology professor, provided and helped with the ground penetrating radar. Kate Pfouts, archivist at TCHS and anthropology graduate, collaborated as a part of the Pioneer team.
The final project can be found here.
