When History and Science Meet

This past week, I attended an event at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center here in New Hampshire that marked the 30th anniversary of the space shuttle Challenger disaster . On January 28th, 1986, the space shuttle exploded just 73 seconds into its mission. Concord, New Hampshire resident Christa McAuliffe was chosen for this mission to be the first teacher in space, but was killed during the tragedy.

McAuliffe inspired us all with a spirit of adventure, discovery and purpose."I touch the future, I teach" has become a mantra to all those who follow in her footsteps as educators. To me. the memory of McAuliffe, a social studies teacher, emphasizes the importance of tying our past to our future. Today, grounded in history and inspired by ideas related to STEM and new 21st century Science standards, we may support our children by guiding them to ignite their passions, satisfy their curiosities about from where they come, and use new tools for the betterment of their world. In fact, when we look at our stars, we should realize that science and history are very closely related, indeed.

Challenger victims remembers at McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center. NECN.

Running through History

Runners took to the streets of Manchester, New Hampshire today to do a little run through history. Runner's Alley, a popular store in my area for all things run related, organized the event around the hobby of one of its employees. When taking locals for training, he would begin to talk about this town in which he grew up. I overheard one runner this morning who said, "It's nice because he did all the talking on our group runs. We just ran and didn't have to say a thing." As a life-time runner myself. I was intrigued by the idea of running from place to place and stopping to hear a little history, combining two of my passions. I was not disappointed. My knowledge of the area was boosted with a little local color, personal stories, and reminiscences. I began to think about how this concept could be applied to teaching and to boosting interest in cultural heritage institutions.

We started on the steps of City Hall. Our large group of runners were engaged from the start and immediately started to ask questions.

We talked about the age of our city and settlers. Our famous Revolutionary General, was a central part of our running route. Stark's words, "Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils," were the inspiration for our state motto. 

As a former archivist in the city of Waltham, Massachusetts, I was excited to learn a bit more about the mills of Manchester, built by those who had moved up the river away from the birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution...From the mill girls to the canals to trains to the mill owners to the work of making cloth, the stories are embedded in the re-purposed buildings and grounds we saw today. I think all mill towns should consider running tours to boost local pride and tourism. Their set up is perfect for such tours. (Hear me Waltham?)

I was brought to overlooks I had never seen, though I've lived here for 18 years. The Merrimack River, which so many take for granted, has a rich history and tucked away spots with hidden stories. It was nice to stop and consider with the group how the river helped mold our home. I learned that we were following a route of a heritage trail in Manchester. Despite my interest in history and my professional background, I had no idea that there was a heritage trail here. 

We stopped at a former rail station, called "Governor's station" that was built for a powerful man who wanted a station convenient for him. It is now a home tucked below the end of a dead end street, right along the railroad track, which is still here today. I never would have ventured here on my own, despite my curious nature that often takes me off the beaten track.

 

Our run took us to Stark Park. Where we again admired the foundation that this war hero laid for our state and country.

I liked the contrast of the running shoes on what remained of the Stark homestead.I enjoyed thinking about the very different shoes our forebearers must have worn when they stepped on this exact spot.

I ended my tour at the John Stark house that was purportedly saved by the DAR in the 1960s. My running tour group continued on to the library and Victory park where they were going to explore a more modern history. The part of the tour in which I participated covered 5 miles in about an hour-and-a-half, with frequent stopping to discuss the sites and a much desirable water break on this hot day. People of many different abilities and ages joined us. The youngest was in a stroller. The youngest runner was about ten-years-old and the oldest runners were in their 60s.

I am hoping to develop a similar run for the running club at my school in our own town. I think this is a great way to interest  teens in history outside of the classroom. A bicycle tour, scooter ride, or another fun means of getting place-to-place can help kids focus and participate in something that works their mind and body. I have been to history open houses that involve driving or bus tours throughout a town. Why not sponsor a person-powered tour? Museum, archives and libraries, team up with your local running store or running association. Offer runners water while they learn about your institution. Give runners a pouch for their run where they can tuck goodies such as a history passport book, keychains and pens. Better yet, offer running items such as water bottles with your organization's name, headbands, etc. Be creative. Have a library card sign up in front of your building so each runner, biker or person on a scooter can leave with a card if they don't already have one. Give free passes to the inside of your institution so when the group is showered, they can come back to explore your facility more deeply.

This is one more way for cultural heritage organizations to expand our audience.

Storytelling and the Power of the Object in Education

Torah Dedication

When Mom told me about her Synagogue's Torah dedication, I knew immediately that it was something I wanted to share. As a student of heritage and material culture, I am always on the lookout for objects that best exemplify the stories of humanity. This object is exemplary for its significance to the Jewish people and its importance to this culture cannot be overestimated.

I remember back to my childhood. Mom would tell me stories about my family history using the items in her jewelry box as launching points. We would light the menorah, play dreidel, and watch a new husband break a glass under his foot at a wedding.  The objects that told the stories of my heritage and of Judaism made a strong impression. 

But it is the Torah -- the book of Jewish laws --  that was revered. It symbolized the vitality of our community. I remember sitting in Synagogue at a young age and watching the removal of the Torah from the ark. There was a sense of tradition, celebration, solemnity, and togetherness in the room.  This object was held dear by everyone present. It embodied the reason for our connection. Every single person in the room felt that link implicitly when the door to the ark was opened and the blue cloth covered scroll was revealed.

Each Torah is created by hand for a community that commissions it. "Every letter in a Torah Scroll is vital, for if one letter is missing, the scroll is invalid." To be able to afford this special item, that is carefully constructed with faith and love, the community bands together to raise funds. When the object is completed, a celebration is held. (It is celebrations such as this that help bond communities and these objects that help legacies and traditions live on.) 

I was given the opportunity in a history class this month to talk about the history of Judaism as part of an introduction to religions of the world. I spoke about the people who molded the Jewish faith and carried on its traditions throughout history and how this faith fit alongside others. I talked about the Jewish culture in terms of its dances, foods, beliefs, and songs. I showed pictures of the Horah and breaking Challah bread. I talked about my childhood memories of "stealing" the afikomen and other rituals that bonded the young people in the household. I reflected on my neighborhood and how my Catholic neighbors shared their traditions with the Jews and vice-versa. I got to put up a Christmas tree with my Italian neighbors and partake in traditional Easter foods with my Russian Orthodox friends.

In class, I passed around the dedication pamphlet that I asked Mom to send me. The brilliant blue cloth pinned to the paper is soft. Students could touch it and conjure in their minds how it must have been for a young Ms. Mannon to watch her Dad kiss his Tallit (prayer shawl) and touch it to the object as it was carried around the room for the congregation. Within that little blue square is the spark to a story, a key to understanding, and the roots of our humanity. I saw its power to make my stories come to life in the eyes of my students and in their inquisitive questions.

Online is More than Fine, but History is Still More Magical Hands-on

A recent article in the Guardian called "Online is Fine, but History is Best Hands On" seems to be generating a lot of controversy. Based on the article's comments, I think some of this is a reaction to the writer and not what was written. (I am unfamiliar with this gentleman, so I had no knee jerk reaction either way.) Or, perhaps he should have titled his article "Online is More Than Fine, but History is Still More Magical Hands-on"

The author acknowledges the value of the "ubiquity of history," but points out that there is nothing like the excitement of accessing original documents. I agree wholeheartedly with both views. Providing online access to the information contained in original sources builds bridges for Archives to larger audiences. This kind of access helps spread a wealth of knowledge to those who would not otherwise be able to see the resources containing this information. Yet, anyone who has had the good fortune to work with actual original resources can hardly disagree that the original does indeed offer us opportunities for a better understanding of the "mystery of history." I wouldn't shake with excitement when I saw a letter by Thomas Jefferson reproduced online (or in a book for that matter,) but I did shake with excitement when I held such a letter in my hand.

I think many of the people who have responded to the Guardian article have mistakenly assumed that this is an either or proposition. I don't think that is what the article author intended it to be. Maybe I am mistaken about that. There is a place for online research and there is a place for in-person research too when we can do it.

Here's a case in point: I am currently working on a project to find more information about a diary I found in a local antique shop. Yesterday, I intended to drive to Maine to do original research, but decided that I would check online first to make sure I wouldn't spend time accessing in person things that could be accessed satisfactorily online. I ended up spending the day at home because thanks to Google I had access to business directories and newspapers that had valuable information. In fact, the newspapers were very welcome because I had spent some time with them in a microfilm version in Maine a couple of weeks ago. The film was scratched and the machine was temperamental. The online version was much more comfortable on the eyes. Yet, not everything I need is online AND I am hoping to find some resources down the road that fall into the "mystery" category. My diary covers 6 months in a man's life. Maybe he wrote more diaries and I can find them somewhere. I would love to see that in person to compare handwriting, ink color and marginalia. I would just like to hold the other one so that I can feel more a part of this man's life.

And here's another case in point: A few weeks ago the love letters of Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn were made available online. I was terribly excited to see a copy of one of these digital letters because of a lifelong interest I've had in this particular royal. My very next thought was, "I hope that I can see the original one day."

I am lucky that I live close to Maine so I can explore the original sources for my diary project. Letters from London, especially those held by elite institutions, would be harder for me to access for my research if there were not some remote way to do it.

The wonder of the original is not easily explained. I think Archives in general should do a better job of making the original sources more readily available so people can experience this wonder for themselves. There is no good reason why local history original resources can't be made more accessible to their communities. These resources should not just be important to people who are undergoing projects like mine. They should be important to local citizens. Children should be brought to Archives as many are brought to museums to experience the past. Show a kid the diary of someone who lived a hundred years ago. Show him the type of pen he used to write it. Show him the desk at which this person sat....these artifacts make a difference in making the past seem more real and tangible. An experience with an original would then make a remote experience more valuable too. Once someone sees, touches, and examines an original, they have a better context for their understanding of digital versions of historical documents.

We are living in an age where we can have the best of both worlds - remote access and access to originals. Don't water down the importance of either.

More Finds at the Local Antique Shop - More Romanticism of the Female Portrait Photograph

Last night I was watching the show American Pickers and was struck by a photo. The episode called "Danielle Goes Picking," which originally aired on the History Channel in December 2010, included the find of a portrait photo of a beautiful woman. Regular readers of this blog know the hold that these types of photos have over me. My photo find to the left is an example of a similar type of image to the one that appeared on the show. Like me, the pickers "oohed" and "aahed" over the image. I am on a mission to put into words why these images capture us and I hope that you have some input into the matter to add to the comment section.

In general, I prefer the caught in the moment action image. I like the informal glimpse into the life of the photographed as if they don't know that they are being caught on film. I like the idea of catching "A Life in Context" and I think that this is generally best done in snapshot type photos. However, there is something about the image of a woman dressed in her finery that I find alluring. It pulls my imagination back into another time and place faster than most other types of images. Posed in sumptuous dress with attention given to her setting, whether a Victorian, flapper, or 40s belle, the subject of a formal portrait like the one to the left is highly feminine and nationalistic.

Dress, hairstyle, pose, and environment are staged by the photographer to make these women look their best. Soft focus and carefully crafted lighting also helps to create a mood based in a bygone era. The women of these portraits are an American (or Western) ideal that is perhaps best expressed through the art of photography. These portraits show a "feminine" quality that promotes an envisaged view of the perfect woman. The women of these portraits display a dreamy quality. They can be said to reflect what many women want to be and the qualities that many men want their partners to have. They display a comfortable lifestyle and contentedness that we wish for ourselves and our fellow citizens. The prevalence of these images reflects the role of the female experience in shaping society and in developing our sense of history. They provide both insight into a woman's sense of personal identity, while also showing the context and collective molding of a national identity. This picture is what it means to be a successful American to many, many people.

Yes, I realize this is a narrow and somewhat flawed view of our society, leaving big gaping holes for stereotypes, chauvinism and other negatives to leak through. I realize that there are many potential arguments against idealizing this kind of display of wealth and this sort of objectification of women. The allure of the idea that we might all be able to get closer to this world of "perfection" by identifying with a portrait is at least in part fantasy, but I think it hits a sentimental button much like the Disney princess phenomenon. There are good points and bad points to the stereotype, yet there is still an attraction to it.

Nonetheless, I love these images for their beauty and sentimentalism despite any negative connotations that can be conjured from them. In the context of American life, these images tell a lot about our values and our history as a community. They tie themselves to an American dream that is evident in other forms of visual arts from the late nineteenth, early twentieth century period and in our literature from those times. As "orphan" photographs, these posed images ground the unidentified woman in a culture that forms a large piece of the American narrative. As items from the world of archives, they document the lives our foremothers led and reflect an image toward which we have been taught to strive.

***

Looking for more about women in portraiture? please see

More Finds at the Local Antique Shop: The Profile Image in Context

Interested in more images of women? Here are a few great resources from archival repositories:

Harvard University Library Open Collections Program Women Working 

Library of Congress Women's History Picture Pathfinder

Women's History Photos on Flickr from the Smithsonian

Brooklyn Public Library Women's History Photo Gallery

Teaching Our Kids the Value of History

I have written about teaching kids the value of history in the following articles and posts:
Don't Know (or Care) Much About History
Making the Past Seem Real to Children Part I
Making the Past Seem Real to Children Part II
Passing Stories Through Generations
...but my colleague and co-presenter for A Life in Context workshop recently wrote to me that she thought it would be useful for me to write about how I teach my daughter the value of history for our Life in Context Facebook page. The question of how to get younger generations engaged with the past has come up a couple of times during our workshops. This has encouraged me to write this blog post that discusses some  specific things I do everyday to instill my child's appreciation for a subject that I see as vital to a well-rounded education.

MANTRA - I repeat the mantra "Everything has a history!" No matter what interests us (or our youngsters) there is a history behind it. That history is almost always available to us in some format to discover and share. Dancing, art, soccer, building blocks...there is a story behind it all. Repeat: "That has a really interesting history!"

SEEKING INFORMATION TOGETHER - We constantly seek information related to our current interests. I am a former public librarian, but I do not limit us to that venue or a book format. We go to the library. We go to bookstores - old, new, local, online. We browse the Internet. We look for videos on You tube (a big favorite.) It's all good.

ANTIQUING - I also like to frequent antique shops hunting for information and "old" things. My daughter didn't enjoy this at first, but I kept relating things we found to things she likes. For example, my father-in-law often talks about New York City, where he lived for most of his adult life. To my daughter, it sounds like some kind of magical place. We stumbled across postcards of New York in an antique shop. This piqued her interest. She seemed to like looking at pictures, so I sought out older images for her. I found a stereoscope and bought it for us. It's now a fun game to find old images for our stereoscope together. She has branched out and started finding things on her own. Old paper dolls are a favorite for her. We have even started going to yard sales together and she suggests that we wake up early to do it! Frequenting garage sales isn't always about history, but I make sure she knows when we find something 'historical."

MY CHILDHOOD - History does not mean ancient history. History is also your history. My daughter likes to hear stories about the way things were when I was a kid. (It was that time before we used computers in our everyday lives and when phones were attached to walls. Whoa!) History is also grandma and grandpa's childhoods. I like to point out how things have changed and try to relate stories about a specific area of history. For example, one favorite story is about when grandma was not allowed into her school and got sent home in the snow for wearing pants instead of a skirt. She had pants in her schoolbag, but they would not let her in the building to change. Things were not like that for me, but I have related stories. My daughter's favorite is about the time my sister and I were told that our team would be disqualified from an invitational track meet if we tried to run in a steeplechase event because it was reserved for boys. There was no equivalent for girls.... I make sure to tell her that all of this is HISTORY.

VISITING MUSEUMS - At first, museum visiting was boring for my daughter and frustrating for me. We went once in awhile. We spent a lot of time in the kids' areas where my daughter could draw pictures and play games. We spent very little time looking at exhibits, but we kept going. She learned to like the gift shop. I kept going. She liked running outside in a big field at the living history museum. I kept going. She discovered a printing press and equated it with her love for books. She learned about Mary Cassatt at school. We went to the museum to look for a Cassatt. She found a video at the MFA that told her how to build a book shelf. She loved it and spent last weekend with my husband building a little picture cube out of wood. I think we've now instilled how museums have lot to offer. She can wander and seek out what interests her. She appreciates what interests me, but knows that it does not have to be HER main interest.

JINGLES - I have found that jingles have been a great way to get my daughter interested in the past. Out of the blue, my husband and I sometimes start quoting old commercials and remembering the jingles associated with them. (I think this new habit of recalling jingles might be related to a mid-life crisis, but that's okay. Our daughter doesn't mind and we'll get through it.)We'll then run to YouTube to find that old commercial. My daughter compares the products to the ones she knows now. It gets her thinking about the past, how things change and how they stay the same.

FACTS AND FIGURES - My genius moment was when I made a timeline for my daughter for American Girl and compared it to a timeline for our family. American Girl is a fabulous way to teach girls about history. They seem to make great pains to be historically accurate. Their stories and characters are engaging. As my daughter read their books and learned about the colonial era, Victorian etc. I added girls to the line in their proper chronological spots. I then added my parents right after American Girl "Molly" and myself right after American Girl "Julie." For three years now, I have referred back to that timeline to explain history to my daughter. How the world has changed, how American life has changed, and how the role of women has changed. Facts and figures are based around fiction stories my daughter adores. I try to hammer home the difference between truth and fiction and discuss the way her books make imaginative stories more wonderful with a history backdrop. (An online friend and I have been lamenting that they need a similarly engaging series for boys.)

REINFORCEMENT - Learning at school, going to a museum, talking about my childhood, looking at old pictures, etc.,etc. It all reinforces everything else we do that surrounds the "study" of history. The more exposure a child has to ideas of history the better. The more often we point to something in the present and relate it to the past, the more a child understand and learns to love history. Here's another example: Hello Kitty just celebrated her 35th anniversary and my daughter got a special celebration doll from a birthday party recently. I turned it into a short history lesson. "Well, I was five then and Hello Kitty wasn't popular with me yet, but I liked Holly Hobby...let's go read about her and let's see what else was  happening in the world then...let's go ask grandma what toys she played with as a kid...I wonder what they played with one hundred years earlier in American Girl Kirsten's time..."

Make it fun. Be imaginative. They really will get it and appreciate the past.