Love, Loss, and Annoying Coworkers
People from the past really weren’t that different at heart. Yes, they lived in another environment and therefore made choices that we find strange today. But when it comes to the things that really matter in life – love, loss, and how to deal with really obnoxious people – we can look across the gulf of time and think, “Yes, I completely understand.”… Continue reading Love, Loss, and Annoying Coworkers
Le Grand Derangement: 250 Years of Acadian History in Louisiana
In September of 1755, England, a political world power began one of history’s largest mass movements of people united by their Catholic faith. Acadians of Nova Scotia were dispersed throughout English lands without benefit of property, family ties or compassion. Their holdings were torched, as they were loaded on to barely seaworthy ships, on which… Continue reading Le Grand Derangement: 250 Years of Acadian History in Louisiana
Museum Advocacy Day
National polling data shows broad-spectrum support for museums. In the contentious political climate in the United States, one of the few things we agree on is the need for increased support for museums. This is worth mentioning to every elected official at every level. … Continue reading Museum Advocacy Day
On the Program Relevance of Slavery
African culture was a particularly major component in the development of southern U.S. culture as well as American culture as a whole. In interpreting American and largely southern history, it is so easy to slip into saying how certain great and wealthy men built this and grew that, when in reality much of what is spoken of was not only done by the labor of enslaved African Americans, but were also accomplished through the skill and knowledge of these people. These skills were passed from generation to generation and have often carried forward to today.… Continue reading On the Program Relevance of Slavery
Finding Fuel for the Fire in 18th-Century Pennsylvania
Finding Fuel for the Fire in 18th-Century Pennsylvania
Today, we assume that wood was plentiful in the 18th century, and there were few concerns about firewood. If you lived in a city, however, fuel was expensive and could be hard to get. … Continue reading Finding Fuel for the Fire in 18th-Century Pennsylvania
It’s Not the Jewish Christmas: An Introduction to Jewish Holidays and Their Observance in North America, Part II
For most non-Jews, Hanukkah along with Passover, is probably the most familiar of the Jewish holidays. Other than that Hanukkah is celebrated around the same time of year, it has absolutely no relationship to Christmas: it commemorates a great military victory and a great miracle.… Continue reading It’s Not the Jewish Christmas: An Introduction to Jewish Holidays and Their Observance in North America, Part II
