You're only an Hour away from History

You're only an Hour away from History 

Because of that hour and all the hours that proceeded it, history is not normally our top priority.  But it is interesting to think about, however briefly.  Some of us are closer to history because of our hobbies, reading, art and music interests.  I doubt however that we really think about the fact that the history contained in the subject.

I’ve been mulling over questions about when people first become interested in history and why for the past several months.  So finally I decided to ask the various staff members at the Harbor History Museum four basic questions.  If i could, I would also like to ask each of your readers the same questions.  

1. How did you first become interested in history?
2. What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?
3. Does everyone interpret history the same way?
4. How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

All of the answers to those questions follow in the person’s own words.  I have not edited their words in any way.  All are anonymous,.

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?  

“I was an art history major in college and loved it although oddly I never found regular history that interesting. When I started working at the museum I was fascinated with the families who settled here and that their roots are still deep in the community.  Coming from Los Angeles, no one has local roots as they all come from somewhere else.

2.  What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

“I love doing searches on the internet and find Ancestry.com a wonderful tool when doing research for my exhibits. It's fun to jump love into the "rabbit hole" and find interesting topics to share that I call "Did You Know..."  I had 6 or so in "The Netsheds" and had about 20 in "Fitting In" from corsets to women drivers and plan to do more for the November exhibit "An Excellent Little Bay: the First 100 Years." It's a huge project but shaping together nicely.

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

“Who knows how history will be recorded in the future? Look how much technology has advanced in our life time. From radio to television to streaming and storing data in a "cloud."

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“How did you first become interested in history?  

“8th grade history class, Civil War History/Colonial Williamsburg.  Took a vacation with my dad to all Civil War Battlefields on East Coast summer of 9th grade.

What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics 

that intrigued you the most?  

“Visiting the actual Battlefields, seeing with my own eyes. Tour guides at museums.

Does everyone interpret history the same?  

“I would say “no” as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and like art, everyone has their own taste.

How do you think history will be recorded in the future?  

digitally archived.”

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“1.  How did you first become interested in history? 

“

I had a fantastic US history teacher when I was a junior in high school back in 1970.  Before that, I just wasn't that interested. I think when people see a correlation between the past and how it effects their lives, they get interested. The 60s and 70s were a volatile  time in American history. This teacher helped me to understand how the Vietnam war was more than a conflict necessary to stop the spread of communism, the events that staged the war happened decades ago.

I began talking to my father who was a world war II vet and we talked about the war and other historical events the rest of his life. 

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most? 

“One on one  talking to people who have lived through a significant event or era. I also love historical fiction, and Museums.

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

No, just like people who have witnessed the same event but saw it in another way.

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future? Much the same way it's recorded now. “

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“1.  How did you first become interested in history?

     In all honesty I cannot remember a time that I was not interested in history. I have always enjoyed reading autobiographies, visiting historical sites, and look through old photo albums to name a few. 

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

      I like to read up on a place before I visit, that way I maximize my time there. So I suppose light research and then visiting the location or viewing an item from that time period works best for me. 

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

     I don’t think everyone interprets history in the same way. This for me, is an opportunity to be creative in the distribution of a certain subject.  

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

     I think currently, most humans see the importance of leaving behind a paper trail for the future, that even the minute could be viewed as interesting, and of course the oversaturation of taking photographs.  Between social media and the Cloud I think there will be more history being secured for future generation than ever before.”

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?

“I first became interested in history as a middle school student - probably around 12 years old. I was homeschooled, and my teacher aka "Mom," felt it was important to incorporate as much history - local, state, regional, national, worldwide, etc., to our curriculum, and she did that through lots of field trips and encouraging us to read, research, and write about our findings. I loved it, and looked forward to every trip to a museum, battlefield, historic site, cultural center, etc. I took that passion to college and pursued a career in museums, history, and research. I love coming into work - everyday, exposed to some form of history.

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most? 

“I feel that I have had the opportunity to be in a really key point in history per the learning of the subject. The internet wasn't available as a resource to me as a young researcher, and in fact, as an undergrad, we were not permitted to use online resources to conduct or support our research. It was so new, and we were all learning about its use, accuracy, and validity, that we were still directed to conduct "traditional," resources. There didn't even seem to be a decided upon way to cite sources one found online. So, my first round of higher education, I learned the traditional way - books, encyclopedias, primary sources, archives, libraries, courthouse documents......all in hard copy. However, when I got to graduate school, it was the complete opposite - online resources were the way to go. I feel that living during this time of huge technological transition has given me a great understanding (and practical knowledge) of conducting historical research, and being aware of and familiar to all forms of source discovery. 

It is really hard to pick a favorite topic to study, but one that I have been working on recently is on Scandanavian culture, ancestry and genealogy. I don't speak Swedish fluently, so it's been a challenge for me to translate primary source documents. I have had to teach myself and stumble through use of translation apps. The greatest resource I found in my search for getting the information I needed has been Facebook (to my surprise). I have joined a few Swedish genealogy groups, and asked for their assistance in translation, and also accessing some of the Scandinavian records repository services like ArkivDigital that I do not have access to. The members of these groups have been thoroughly helpful and enthusiastic in leading me to materials and information I have been seeking. I literally feel like doors that had been locked forever, have suddenly opened to sunlight on the other side! It has been very exciting, and I never thought I would find those resources on Facebook, of all places! 

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way? 

“No! Just like each person has their own distinct personality, we all have our own way of researching and interpreting history. Some base their interpretations on factual, primary source, written material, while others rely on memory. Both are important in the interpretation of history, and both are necessary. We as historians though, must use our logical thought process plus documentation to effectively (and accurately) tell a story. We also have to be open to the fact that someone may find another source that will prove that our interpretation is incorrect, and we need to take that in stride. 

Although, there are always exceptions to the rule! Think of Ellis Island. Thousands of immigrants came into the united States daily. Each of them met with a clerk who wrote down their name in a ledger. Some of the immigrants were illiterate and had never spelled their names before, so could not offer the correct spelling to the clerk. The clerk jotted down the phonetic spelling. Hence, Bandzack became Banzik, Bandchuck, and Bendzik (my Gr Grandfather) on a variety of vital records. Now, as I research them, I have to look at all documents, analyze what I can, and attempt to locate foreign vital records, learn from family memory, and make my deduction based upon all the sources I locate. I may still even make a mistake in that process. 

Historical research is all about using your thinking and deduction skills to their full potential! 

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future? 

“I think that every generation is always going to produce scholars and historians who's purpose and mission will be to record and teach an accurate form of history. They, just like today, will not always agree with each other, and the opportunity for clarity or to disprove will always be there - that's what keeps historians in business. That being said, I do feel like the method of record has already shifted to an electronic documentation system (which I will never fully accept as I have a sense of security in hard copy materials). However, the archives we currently have access to around the world - 500 year old medical textbooks, DaVinci's scientific analysis, a Sandborn map from 1890 - are not going anywhere. Those items will be preserved, however, method of access will be more likely, electronic. We will (I think) never stop collecting. It's human nature. We will always have a place to go to turn the pages of history (literally).

We will also still value primary source documents, but the various musings, theories, and personal accounts of authors who write blogs, social media posts, and even create "history" memes, will always need to be viewed them with some form of analytic skepticism. However, historians already know that. It's part of the fun. 

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?

I have been interested in history as long as I can remember. All the books that I read when I was little were historical fiction and although I studied literature and languages in school, my interest in them always had a historical angle to them: how people lived, what their lives were like, and how they saw the world. 

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

For me, reading fiction has been a great way to learn about specific historical topics. A well-researched historical fiction novel can rival even the best non-fiction book in factual accuracy, plus novels often do a better job of delving into the actual experience of daily life. Of course, I also love a good field trip to a historical site! Being in a place tells you so much about the history of it. 

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

No, we all have our own interpretations of history. Everyone views the world through their own unique perspective and that perspective always informs how we interpret things. That is why it is so important when studying history to seek multiple sources in your research, and then share your ideas with others and get their input. You never know what you will learn!

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

That is a great question! There is no way to know for sure. Digitization may be the wave of the future for historical records, but I think it is equally important to have strong traditional archival practices in order to provide additional security.

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?

On family trips to New York City and Washington, DC during my childhood involving visits to the American Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian, Civil War battlefields etc. I grew up in upstate New York where history "lived" all around us in the old buildings, street/location names, Revolutionary War battle sites, etc.

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

As a child (in the stone age!) it was the library and visits to historical sites where I enjoyed historical re-enactments. Now, of course, the internet/Google and visiting specific historical venues.

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

I think we all have our own perspectives which color our interpretations. 

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

Probably electronically and/or in ways I can't imagine!

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1. How did you first become interested in history?

“ My family moved to Washington D.C. shortly after Kennedy's assassination.  As a young teenager I would ride the bus from our home in Alexandria, into Washington and go through the Museums.  I would spend most of my weekends for the four years we lived there going to monuments, galleries and museums.  In school, history was a subject every year, and we would take field trips to historical sites, such as Mt. Vernon, Gettysburg, etc.  

2. What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

“ Going to the sites where the history happened.  I felt the haunt at Gettysburg, though too young to really know what the odd feeling was.  I felt it at Custer's Last Stand and again in Pearl Harbor.  I believe seeing where a historical event has happened is the most significant way to learn and feel history.  Museums are a great way to learn history, although only a slice of the pie.  After I was hired at this museum, I realize that if a family doesn't donate their story, then they go unrecorded.  Too many stories are lost because people are unaware of this.  

3. Does everyone interpret history the same way?

“ Absolutely not.  History is interpreted by each person's own perspective.  Look at how our presidents histories are rewritten after their term in office.  Some who have been just plain dogs in office are put on pedestals.

4. How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

“ With all the visual equipment available, probably with much more accuracy.  Almost the entire population has a recording device of some sort with their phone, either audibly or visually.  I think there is a growing keen interest in peoples own histories with the companies for DNA.  My uncle traipsed all over Europe and East Coast cemeteries filling in his family tree, now it is on line.   

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?

When I got a book about World War 2.

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

Read all kinds of books and look at websites.

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

No

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

I think that they will use computers to record.

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1.  How did you first become interested in history?

- early 20's in search of the source of civilization and prior human associations.

2.   What did you discover to be the most significant way to learn the specific history topics that intrigued you the most?

- associations to other facts/events of the topic drawing new perspectives.

3.  Does everyone interpret history the same way?

- cosmology , traditions and experiences tints current and future conditions.

4.  How do you think history will be recorded in the future?

- thoughts transferred to an amorphous cloud bank in multiple locations.

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Now, dear Readers, should you feel like answering those simple questions please go to the comment section of this blog.  There you can record your answers.  Rather than just being a silly Q&A game it does, in the form of the questions and especially from the answers, inform and help people in the museum world better understand their public.  

If you feel your answers are to lengthy to put in the comment section of the blog, you can go to Harbor History Museum, and on the right hand side, click on ABOUT, then on CONTACT US.  That will open the contact information so that you can either drop us a line, or click on contact us here and send us your answers.  Or any other comments regarding the Harbor History Museum. 

Thank you!

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