Category: Delaware

New Delaware Humanities Program: Becoming A History Detective

Adventures in Research or Becoming a History Detective is the title of a new program I offer through the Delaware Humanities Forum. Designed for either the classroom or a public lecture, the program examines how someone solves mysteries from long ago.  It blends actual tales of intriguing historical discovery with basic insights on conducting investigations. For anyone with a curiosity about the past, the program will be worthwhile as audiences learn about the nature of understanding our past, while accompanying me through a series of inquiries.

Depending on the groups interest, a stronger emphasis may be placed on a cluster of fascinating investigations, which helps develop an awareness and appreciation of the discipline that puts us in touch with the past. Or it may place more weight on the how-to-approach by focusing on practical suggestions for researching your own mystery in your backyard, community or family.

Blogging on Delmarva History

These days web 2.0 products make it so easy to publish just about anything and I make extensive use of some of them in my classroom.  I’m also starting to use them to publish local historycontent, which I think will be of interest to a wider audience.  In the blogosphere, I’ve set up two beyond that those that are dedicated to my classes.

I try to post to them regularly as I find informative information.  You may find them of interest so I’m adding the links here in case you want to check them out.

  1. Reflections on Delmarva Past – A blog focusing on the history and culture of the region.
  2. Window on Cecil County’s Past – Reflections on yesterday in the county at the top of the Chesapeake.

Delaware Humanities Offers New Programs

For nearly a decade, I have provided some very popular lectures sponsored by the Delaware Humanities Forum and I have had rewarding experiences conducting these programs.  Every few years the organization updates it catalog and I was informed yesterday that they are going to offer a few new humanities topics that I have developed.  The details will be up on their web site soon so visit www.dhf.org and look under the speaker’s bureau for details.

The programs are

  • Duck and Cover:  Remembering the Days of Fallout Shelters, Conalrad, and Sputnik —  This program examines Civil Defense from World War II to the time when planning for survival of an all out nuclear attack started fading into the past.  Opening with an examination of World War II era blackout drills, plane spotter stations, and air raid wardens, the program quickly moves to the era where the stakes became higher, the nuclear age.   This was a time when air raid sirens wailed out signaling practice drills, Conalrad interrupted radio programs, government officials planned for the worst, and people contemplated building family fallout shelters .  Vintage audio and video footage, such as Bert the Turtle telling schoolchildren to duck and cover, helps  engage the audience in the program.
  • The Mason Dixon Line:  The Stories Behind a Geographic Boundary  — Born as the result of a bitter territorial dispute over royal land grants, the Mason-Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 to settle the boundaries for Pennsylvania and Maryland.  After 1820, when the Missouri Compromise created political conditions which made the line important to the history of slavery, it became associated with the division between the free and slave states.  Today the line is still seen by many as a symbolic dividing line for regional attitudes and customs.   This program explores the story of the line, which runs through our land and our history, along with the perceptions that have developed about the boundary
  • Oral History — This program shows audiences how to do effective oral histories and collect the memories of a lifetime.

“Histories of Newark” Published

Sunday, I visited the Newark Historical Society’s Museum on Main Street to acquire a copy of a new title, Histories of Newark, 1758 – 2008, published by the Delaware Heritage Commission and the City of Newark. The attractive title will serve as a valuable reference and it is enjoyable to read.  By-the-way, if you’re on Main Street stop in and see the displays since they are informative.  It was a good weekend for acquiring research materials for my collection.