September 2022
The Place of the Urban Past before “Public History,” 1850-1960
Historians that have studied the experience of modernity have often looked to periods of industrialisation and urbanisation in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Many approaches and definitions of modernity co-exist, but, in general, an element of rupture – a distinctive and often conscious break with the past – has dominated. Yet ‘the past’ did not necessarily disappear with urban transformations. Both the historic environment, and civic understandings of history within that space, could be used as a way to…
Details »New Approaches for an Expansive 250th Commemoration
Annual Meeting: Right Here, Right Now, The Power of Place Revolutionary Narratives: New Approaches for an Expansive 250th Commemoration Idea Studio This session invites public historians of diverse backgrounds, including those working outside the traditional temporal and spatial boundaries of the American Revolution, to discuss research and interpretation in relation to the approaching US semiquincentennial. Attendees will work to develop new approaches to research, curation, and interpretation for an inclusive commemoration.
Details »October 2022
George Washington’s Places: Touring Alexandria and South Fairfax County
Using the new guidebook, A History Lover’s Guide to Alexandria and South Fairfax County, historian and writer Laura A. Macaluso will take participants on a tour of the places that preserve and remember the life and legacy of the general and president. Follow the tour from Old Town Alexandria, along the George Washington Parkway, to Mount Vernon and beyond. Starting in the Port City, visit Carlyle House, the scene from which Gen. Edward Braddock led an ill-fated campaign to Fort…
Details »June 2023
The Museum of the Street: CETA murals, placemaking, and urban revitalization
This project documents the impact of a mural-making program in the late 1970s, a time of social unrest, the degradation of American cities, and differing attempts by politicians and community groups to address severe inequities. A special program which channeled funds to cities began in 1976 -- the year of the American Bicentennial (the 200th founding of the nation-state) allowing localities such as mayoral and city council administrations to devote funds across social and cultural projects in an attempt to…
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