The Wynds of History: 4/18/10

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Front Page News - March 12, 1770

Tony Nauroth, a columnist with the Express Times newspaper in the Lehigh Valley, has put out a call for information on a March 12, 1770 Boston Gazette Country Journal front page article foreshadowing the Dec 16 1773 Boston Tea Party. The newspaper clipping is now owned by Ruth Gainer of Moore Township, left to her by her late husband, Glenn, whose last request was for Ruth to find out more about the clipping, originally found by in a drawer in his grandmother's house in Elizabethtown, PA when he was in high school. (Glenn died last July, age 90.)

Kudos to the Express Times for two different history-focused features this Sunday morning.

News: Saucon Valley Conservancy and the Heller Homestead

Congratulations to the Saucon Valley Conservancy on the nomination of the Michael and Margaret Heller House (Heller Homestead) to the National Register of Historic Places. The property was approved for nomination by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission this month. Next step is a final review by the National Park Service. Read the press release here. Also featured in this morning's Express Times.

If you are looking for something to do next Saturday, April 24th, head to Hellertown, PA in Northampton County for the 3rd Annual Saucon Valley History Day. Tour one of three historic buildings, participate in hands-on activities, and learn about the early days of Hellertown and the Saucon Valley.

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From the age of seven, when I first "met" Elizabeth Blackwell, my fascination with people and places has led me to ask questions - who were they? where did they live? what did they think? how did they feel? how was she different from me?

I read every biography about a woman my elementary school had to offer, searching for those answers. I wasn't satisfied with the books that started with what someone had accomplished - her "famous moment" so to speak. I loved one specific series that started with a heroine's childhood and told a narrative story about her entire life.

While I now look first to primary documents and objects for answers, I'm still asking questions. While I still search to place an individual within a specific context and deduce motivations, I also now search for answers on how to share that information with others, in ways that spark spark imaginations and trigger more questions. I am simultaneously committed to preserving the stories, objects, and locations that give me and others a tangible, direct link to the lives we study.