April 2011 – Page 7 – Applied History

Public Historians

This first website is a blog off of a Public Historian themed WordPress. It is an interesting analysis of how twittering is similar to telegrams and the trend of twitting historical diaries. It has some links to interesting sites like Massachusetts Historical Society’s John Quincy Adams twitter project. It is a fun short read that connects public history with the tech world. Just read the first blog entry.

http://publichistorian.wordpress.com/

The second site is my favorite! I would encourage exploring the whole site. It is devoted to jobs as a public historian. It includes “Views from the Field” under the Employment tab which interviewed a variety of public historians. (Similar to what we did in class) It gives ample definitions of what it means to be a public historian under the About Public History in “What is it?” The link I provided will take you directly to the Public History Employment section and gives description of jobs in public history. Do not be distracted by the “View Current Job Openings” link. It appears the website may have gone back into hibernation (see their “history” under the about PHRC tab). Although a lot of the information is older, it has great ideas and is very optimistic about the field of public history.

http://www.publichistory.org/employment/index.asp

Recommended: Interactive maps of Idaho’s Mining/Ghost Towns

I found three different websites on Idaho’s mining/ghost towns. All three have different types of interactive maps with icons for you to click on to view more information about each town.

www.idahoptv.org/outdoors/shows/ghosttowns/map.cfm

This is from Outdoor Idaho and has several of Idaho’s mining towns on their interactive map. Each link to the towns have a lot of information and both historical and modern day photos.

www.ghosttowns.com

This interactive map has ghost/mining towns from all over the country. You can click on the “states” tab and then click on “Idaho” to see all of Idaho’s towns. You can either click on a county or click on the list of towns or list of counties. Each link has information about the town but there are no pics. Hope you like banjo music!

www.ghosttowngallery.com

This is another interactive map used Google maps. It has towns from all over the west including about 7 from Idaho. You can click on the Google icon to see the towns. Has some information and lots of modern day photos but no historical ones.

After going through all three you should be ready to go strike it rich!

Heritage Tourism

I found the chapter on heritage tourism very interesting. When I was younger one of my dream summer jobs was to be a tour guide and I think this is perhaps one of my favorite approaches to public history. I thought it was really interesting that the book discussed not only creating and interpreting a historical narrative for visitors but also for residents as well. In my own work on my graduate project I have found that people who work at the WCA have no idea of the amazing things the organization did when it was the YWCA. Many of the employees are just as excited to read their history as the public. I think when you live somewhere; you take its history for granted. What to others may seem fascinating may be common place for you. What for them is the corner were a great battle took place, is for you the corner where you meet you friends to go to coffee. History is all a matter of how you relate to. That is another reason why I am happy to see the newer- “quirkier”- types of tours that have begun cropping up in the last decade. Sure history is about the formal record of a place, but it is also about the informal or less perfect side of a place as well.

New Solider Field losing its integrity

I can see how New Solider Field lost its integrity after Tyler’s explanation of the degrees and evaluation required for a building or site to be on the National Register. However, I do not think the renovations on New Solider Field were inappropriate. Further use of the facility is an up keep of its integrity and historical context. Now with more seating, which includes the original stadium, the public can enjoy sporting events where historical fights such as the famous Jack Dempsey-Gene Tunney.[i] I can see why it is no longer on the National Register, but it deserves an honorable mention as stadium that has housed historic sporting events and is still used for that purpose.

Historical charm sells. The economics of historical preservation is an interesting argument. In Chapter six Tyler touches on the six reasons to establish a historical district which include at least two, and arguably more, reasons that the help a district become more economically stable. Furthermore, chapter nine made valid points as to why development is inclusive of new development. Historical preservation sells. The Starbucks example is one of my favorites. When it comes to preservation a build you have to have a sells pitch explain how it is going to be economically viable to keep. Selling the atmosphere, like Starbucks, of the period is the best angle. The public’s approval is essential for historical preservation to link with economic value. Take the example of the Idaho Statehouse. Approving renovations for the Capitol building so that it could still be a functioning law house was difficult. The people would have to pay for the project and the only sell was that it was preserving our Idaho history. However, with its recent completion the economic value is evident. Idaho’s capitol is one of few that are still used for the law making process. During the first months of each year when the congress is in session it draws hundreds of people to the historical downtown area of Boise. These people come from all over the state as congressmen, lobbyists, and concerned citizens. This people need to eat, have a place to stay, park, and enjoy themselves. This is all available within a short walking distance from the capitol with restaurants, shopping, music venues, coffee shops, parking garages, and hotels. The Idaho Statesmen reported 30 businesses closed in 2010, but 33 opened. This can be attributed to not only the law making process that makes place in the heart of downtown, but tourism that the building creates as a large open facility that has a history and still makes law. Had the capitol project not had the support of the public to support their heritage, it is possible that down towns economic growth would not be as stabilized.

[i] Norman Tyler, Ted J. Ligibel, and Ilene R. Tyler, Historical Preservation: An Introduction to its History, Principles, and Practice, (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2009), 153.

I judged this book by it’s 12 minute cover…

While waiting for my train, I stumbled upon this little gem in the iTunes store. I may be a bit bias, being from Massachusetts with family who campaigned for JFK, but in only watching this 12 minute clip, I’m already extremely excited about watching this series. It’s produced by the Harvard Kennedy School (of Government), and is in celebration of the 50th anniversary of his inauguration. I was lucky enough to go to the JFK Library and Museum and see a wonderful exhibit, and this tops off the experience.

It’s free on iTunes… (just type ‘JFK50’ in the search while in the iTunes store)

JFK50 – Let The Word Go Forth

Downtown Ann Arbor Historical Street Exhibits Program

I found the discussion of Heritage Interpretation and the Downtown Ann Arbor Historical Street exhibits Program pretty fascinating, considering that it is “the first of its kind in the nation” (324). According to the program’s website (http://aastreets.aadl.org/) the first exhibit was installed in 1999. This is pretty striking to me, considering that the basic premise of the program is fairly simple – interpretive signage with historic photographs of the sites. I think that making the signs transparent so you can project your view onto the actual sites is pretty amazing. I’d encourage everyone to check out the website. There is a great video on the main page that describes the program, and there is a gallery of the images used for the sites included in the program.

We have similar projects here in Boise, such as the Chinatown binoculars, and interpretive signs of this nature are more common today, and I can think of several places in Boise where interpretive displays like this could go. Nevertheless, I think that mobile tours and augmented reality are clearly picking up where projects like the one in Ann Arbor have left off.

How I Spent My Spring Vacation…

When my boyfriend and I planned our Spring Break trip to Colorado the reasons were not about historic preservation or historic districts, but that is what we got to experience in so many ways.

First, we attended a family wedding held at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. The hotel opened in 1909 and was built by F.O. Stanley and his wife, Flora, (Stanley Steamer automobiles) when they came to Colorado because he had tuberculosis. The hotel is a member of the National Trust’s Historic Hotels of America, in 1977 was entered into the National Register of Historic Places and was later designated an Historic District as its own entity, not as a section of a town.

The rooms were furnished with beautiful antiques. The most visible upgrades of modern living were things like telephones, table lamps, the sprinkler system, the bathrooms and flat-screen TVs. We were “treated” all day everyday to watching and hearing many ghost tours passing through the lobby and hallways. At night we encountered several paranormal investigators rigged out with digital voice recorders and night vision cameras…

One morning we drove up into the Rocky Mountain National Park where we saw the location of the Little Horseshoe Camp, the first CCC Camp west of the Mississippi which housed what was called the Woodpecker Army. They rode to their work sites in red sight-seeing vehicles. In Estes Park there was a small but really interesting museum about the Stanley family, the hotel and the Steamer automobiles.

Our other Colorado destination was back down the road in Boulder. We stayed at the Hotel Boulderado which also opened in 1909, has membership in the National Trust’s Historic Hotels of America and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located in Boulder’s Downtown Historic District. While my boyfriend attended a conference at the University of Colorado I got to wander around a couple of Boulder’s several Historic Districts which they started designating in 1976. According to a pamphlet I read that as early as 1980 Boulder won an award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the urban environmental design of their pedestrian mall.

The Pearl Street pedestrian mall centers on the 1930’s Art Deco County Courthouse. In that area I noticed that all the businesses were locally owned, no chains or nationally recognized names. When I did see a Starbuck’s I realized I was in a fringe area outside of the actual Historic District. The architecture of the store fronts was not all of one era, but everything was certainly well-maintained and newer buildings were not built higher than those with historic facades. There were signs here and there with historic information, lots of benches, some sculpture, a fountain where kids could play, and a large kiosk with visitor information pamphlets.

I walked around a residential neighborhood that had some highlighted homes and churches. Again there were all different styles of architecture. The churches all appeared to have additions or extra building, many with a modern look, but blending in with the older original buildings. Many of the houses looked from the outside like single-family homes, but had 2 or more mailboxes which led me to think lots of students from the university lived in the area. One of the oldest elementary schools in Boulder was in this area. It’s still used with many additions to the back of it.

On our way out of town before heading to the airport we stopped at the Boulder Historical Museum. It’s in an old house that was originally a vacation home for a family from the East Coast. It was fun to walk through and think about some of our discussions about museums. Their display on Native Americans started with the coming of white people. They had some very hands on exhibits about mining, but sparse explanations about how some of the equipment was used. Then in the next room it was totally hands OFF where the telephone switchboard, old radio and gramophone were concerned.

One thing I really liked especially about the Downtown Historic District of Boulder was that people did seem to realize what a treasure they had. All the people I talked to in stores, restaurants and the hotel seemed incredibly proud to work in such a unique part of their town.

Historic Preservation Part II

Once again I found the assigned chapters in Historic Preservation both interesting and informative. I specifically enjoyed chapter 11 with its discussion on heritage tourism and areas as well as cultural and natural landscapes. The case study on the Illinois & Michigan National Heritage Center was of particular interest to me with its explanation of a “hybrid model” in respect to “park development and management” (333). I think the idea of a cooperative agreement to manage a heritage site is integral to a sites success. It promotes participation from a number of agencies and people who offer a diverse set of skills. Additionally, it negates a narrow preservation or interpretative ideology. While the book provided an excellent example of how a partnership can excel, I would have liked a bit more discussion on what difficulties collaborations often face. Cooperative agreements require a great deal of patience and I can image not all achieve their ultimate goal. Furthermore, relationships might be strained or broken if an agreement took a turn for the worse.

On a different note, while I was delighted with most of the book’s content I was disappointed with its lack of footnotes on specific sections. Selfishly (for my thesis project), I would have liked references in chapter nine under the section of “Urban Growth Boundaries and Rural Preservation” and also in chapter 11 in respect to heritage interpretation associated with natural landscapes.

Efficient Preservation

After completing the reading I learned a great deal about how sites are designated for preservation and in which ways they are preserved. I also enjoyed learning more about land that is included in preservation, including; Civil War battlefields, parks, and gardens. When I’ve traveled and visited historic sites, I especially enjoy looking at the gardens, and grounds. The gardens at Mt. Vernon, Monticello, and the governor’s mansion at Colonial Williamsburg are all very beautiful. I think it is just as important to preserve the buildings as it is to preserve the grounds and the gardens.

I also found chapter 10 interesting, although it was not part of our reading. On page 308, an order of Catholic nuns, Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary decided to rehabilitate their compound as a “green” residence and offices for the two hundred nuns. The IHM Motherhouse in located in Monroe, Michigan. The renovation took 2 years, and outdated pluming, electrical, and living spaces were all improved and many items were recycled or re-used in the buildings. They installed a gray water recycling system, expanded the use of natural lighting, and reused windows, doors, marble, and many other building materials. The project was so energy efficient that they were recognized by several agencies and given several awards. One was from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency with three “Energy Star” awards in 2007.

I was so interested in their building that I also looked at their website. They also included the use of a geothermal system to heat and cool their 376,000 square feet building –the Motherhouse. Also, by using the gray water recycling system, they reduced their fresh water use by almost 50%. Their campus is also home to native trees over 100 years old and an endangered oak savanna ecosystem. They wanted to restore and improve their building, so as not to re-build somewhere else on the property and have to cut down any trees. They also have a 2 acre organic community garden. The garden provides educational opportunities to the community to get involved in environmental responsibility and healthy living.

http://www.ihmsisters.org/www/Sustainable_Community/Sustainable_Renovation/sustainrenovation.asp

http://www.ihmsisters.org/www/Sustainable_Community/garden.asp

“The greenest building…is the one that is already built.”

I enjoyed the chapters on preservation and I thought that the book did a great job giving concise explanations of everything and then providing relevant examples that exemplified different theories on historic preservation. When I finished chapter nine, and read that we were not going to look at chapter ten on preservationists partnering with environmental movements I was a little disappointed. I decided to read through it anyway because I found myself truly intrigued with the idea of re-purposing historical buildings. I believe that this is one of the most effective compromises between the need to preserve significant buildings and districts in our cities and towns without having wasted real estate. It also limits unnecessary urban sprawl and expansion by having the existing buildings evolve with the needs of the community. During my spring break travels I stopped at an old train depot with the facade intact, but the interior had been renovated to accommodate a Mexican Restaurant. I remembered the Starbucks discussion from the reading that mentioned adding value, and in this particular instance it went both ways. The restaurant had a great eclectic ambiance from the already existing structure and the old depot benefited from having a tenant the respected the historical value of the building and had an incentive to maintain it. I realize that there are many obstacles to maintaining a historical building or home, but it was nice to see a successful example. I would love to see more of this in Boise; there is something so compelling about blending historic architecture with newer businesses.