Take me down the Shenandoah...

First of all, I would like to apologize to my faithful readership for such a long hiatus. I've been busy and I'm trying to get a green light from my current place of employment to do more current stories, but the summer busy-ness has stalled that for the time being, so I am going into my previous experiences and origins to productively use the interim until I can write more current content.

I was first introduced to the concept of Public History when I went to get my Master's degree. My original intention was to teach at the collegiate level, because everyone expects you to teach if you have a history degree. What else is there to do? At some point, someone pointed me to Dr. Raymond Rast at California State University Fullerton, where my degree was in process. I had previously heard about Public History at the orientation for Grads when I first started, but it didn't appeal to me. The conversation I had with him helped me decide that Public History was actually more in line with what I really wanted to do.

In teaching, it's a student first, content second approach. I need to deal with the person (all 40 of them) and their needs while trying to get them interested in my content. Public History is almost the opposite. My love and passion for the content motivates me to connect with the person. I'm living or demonstrating the content first, and then meeting the person. I draw them in with my content and they take or leave me as they wish.

I took Dr. Rast's Intro to Public History class in fall of 2009. I really had no clue these jobs were available to me as a student of history: Culture Resource Management, Park Rangers, Museum Curators, Data Analysts, Researchers, the list goes on and on. I really latched on the being a National Park Ranger because it seemed ideal for me. I could use my degree, I could live my passion, and I could be decently paid for it. In fall of 2009, those things were important to me, and are important to me now, so I switched my Master route from Thesis to Public History Project. I was sold!

I am on the left, looking awesome

I think what sold me was that this was something I was already doing. I had been a Civil War Living Historian since 1996 and was accustomed to living history first and third person interpretation. I generally don't like self applying the term "reenactor". I prefer "living historian" because I tend to take this a little bit more seriously than the themed camping and mock battle variety out there. But I was already doing public history, so to speak, without even realizing it and to be able to do something I have training, experience, and knowledge in and make a living from it seemed to be a natural transition for me.

That Spring I was taking more in-depth topics like Public History Semester and American Visual and Material History. Both classes were with Dr. Ben Cawthra, who ended up chairing my Thesis board. By then, I was absolutely certain Public History was for me. As part of my Master's route, I needed an internship and I made two applications. In retrospect, I should have done more than two but as it happened, I was contacted by Catherine Bragaw of Harpers Ferry National Historic Park in West Virginia to be part of the Education Department intern staff for the summer. Needless to say, I was super excited!

Road Trip Cabin Fever sets in

I had visited Harpers Ferry only briefly when I and my reenacting comrades stayed at the historic Hilltop House Hotel as part of our accommodations before and after Antietam/Sharpsburg 140th Anniversary Reenactment Battle. It was a spectacular hotel and I am saddened by its present indefinite closure. But what I saw from the car window as we blew through the park on the way to the reenactment was amazing to me; I had never seen anything like a convincing 19th century town in all my travels thus far. Now I had the opportunity to teach in the very streets where history had happened. Thus, when my semester was done and all other arrangements had been made, my wife and I set out on our first road trip across the country.




Harpers Ferry Lower Town

It was a great summer. I got to work with incredible people and learned and grew a lot as an interpreter. My experience working in camping ministries had really prepared me for the summer. I led family and youth programs, held debates about the John Brown, taught dancing and soldier's drill, and led tours of the town highlighting the significance of the town of Harpers Ferry and what it meant to America in the 19th century. We were able to live across the street from the Murphy Farm, a part of the park where Confederate General A.P. Hill's flank attack sealed the surrender of Union forces occupying Harpers Ferry. More than 12,000 prisoners of war were captured, making it the largest surrender of US troops during the war which was a feat that would stand until WWII. It was simply across the street and I would gaze upon its dewy fields as I ate my breakfast each morning.

The Murphy Farm

I was there. I was where history happened.

Ryan, c. Summer 2010

The on-the-job training and help from the Ranger staff was tremendous; they shared their time and wisdom with me, and I have been very grateful for their guidance. Looking back on it, I don't think I ever complained about going into work. The personal and group projects and reading were so instrumental in building me as an interpreter, like learning to stand so that my visitors didn't have to stare into the sun, trying to chase the shade as much as possible, and using props and different learning styles to get everyone involved. The biggest impression on me was the amount and emphasis on participation, demonstration, and immersion. One of the programming series was called "Hands on History" but really, most of it was hands on, even so far as to dress up and make history live for the visitors. As part of our training, we got a lot of our theoretical training done with Epply Institute at Indiana University. It is also a tremendous resource and really gave me the tools to make my time at Harpers Ferry effective. It was a great time and one of the best summers I can recall, even if it was so humid that I had to peel my clothing off and sit in front of the air conditioner every day after work. I considered the humidity training too for when I make it back east!

The 2010 Harpers Ferry Education Dept. staff

But alas, it was only for a summer. I think my biggest regret was not staying there. I would start my Public History Project based on a program I was working on at Harpers Ferry. It was possible to still be enrolled at CSUF and work remotely with Dr. Cawthra for my thesis project. However, Karen wanted to get back to her job back home in California that she had landed working at a tutorial center at an elementary school. It was a decent job and was paying well. How were we to know that they would cut her job at the end of that school year? Nevertheless, I decided that I would try to get back into the National Parks and have since worked at another historic site. But that's for a later blog.

The summer of 2010 was fuel on my newfound Public History campfire. It has since been the source of many fond memories, friendships, networking connections, and inspiration to keep going and working to get in. I'm not there yet, but I like to think that I keep chipping away at the defenses that are keeping me out. The tenacity of my attempts to get into the National Parks has been the source of inspiration in others to chase their goals and dreams and to set their eyes on something and work toward it. Harpers Ferry was a great start, and I aim to continue to work towards my goal of getting into the National Parks permanently.