tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44006892956972492802024-03-17T09:40:51.638-04:00I'm Living HistoryFor some, history is a bore, for others an amusing pastime. For me it is a lifestyle.Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.comBlogger211125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-62860286986136141362017-03-29T16:30:00.000-04:002017-03-29T16:30:24.643-04:00Votes For Women<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjwLSupC5qJt4hUuUDjdVjLTxpgGcTotPs6wo70C7-AbdqXi6EoNou6ExlFtIRkRhhzBkeWphKR3x2-z9wg6rC-yGKdA3T9WC2arMlvCQs6JaHqoBcZyX7FCD8QONM6bo-3x9_n0BBnsLM/s1600/Suffrage+lineup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjwLSupC5qJt4hUuUDjdVjLTxpgGcTotPs6wo70C7-AbdqXi6EoNou6ExlFtIRkRhhzBkeWphKR3x2-z9wg6rC-yGKdA3T9WC2arMlvCQs6JaHqoBcZyX7FCD8QONM6bo-3x9_n0BBnsLM/s400/Suffrage+lineup.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Suffragists at Strawbery Banke 2016</td></tr>
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Last year in the month before SBM's first <a href="http://www.strawberybanke.org/events/july4.cfm" target="_blank">reenactor'stimeline</a> event I was looking at the lineup of military camp after military
camp, and at the concentrations of groups by time period and decided the event
desperately needed some women's history, especially representing the early 20th
century. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As a bit of a lark I put up a Facebook post asking if any
of my friends would be up to portraying a few good suffragists to help drum up
support for votes for women at the timeline. I got many good responses, some of
whom were actually quite serious about coming out on July 2nd, especially if I
could supply costuming. A quick conversation with the head of SBM's role
players confirmed that she would be happy to help with costumes (we have a 1908
house and a 1919 one) and would like to help with the group itself. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The group that came together was a fabulous mix of
feminists, reenactors, and friends. Not every one was a history nerd, not
everyone was comfortable portraying history in front of the public, but we all
felt it was really important to respect the women who stood up for our rights
by reminding museum goers of the struggle less than 100 years ago. In the few
weeks before the event I convinced my dad to go through his plywood collection
for some sign sized pieces, found some blank banners online, and even roped in
one of the SBM summer interns to make up some votes for women ribbons we could pin to our costumes. I
frantically painted signs and lettered banners, just enough for a small group
of women to be recognized as suffragists.</div>
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I saved the orchard next to SBM's 1919 house for our set
up, and in the week before the second I dug through my closet and went to the
local thrift shops to assemble my own outfit. I was going for 1908 for my
outfit. I already had the petticoats & walking skirt, but my early 20th century shirt is a
warm flannel one, and my hat is a winter wool one, so a new shirt and hat were
in order. Along with organizing a new event, and putting together the suffrage
group I unexpectedly spent a week in the hospital just before July. I had no
time to make anything, but I had a black straw hat, and found taffeta ribbon at
Michaels. I wrapped the entire spool of fluffy white net around the crown of
the hat to make it look like a massive (but light and airy) Edwardian hat. Then
at a local Portsmouth store I found a white cotton nightgown with the right
sort of details and collar. I didn't even bother to shorten the nightgown, just
tucked it into the skirts and wore it like a shirt. I knew I would not get to spend
a lot of time with the other suffragists, I'd be too busy managing the event.
But I really wanted to dress up; and a nice shirtwaist, walking skirt, and
straw hat were fine for this working girl.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtEO2rfcAh02S0fZGYR3krc8iGVRG-qsDN5XCiAYl0APl4R6XRK4SUqg8q_ZzqqSfczaotgQZ4Zdo7yM_4XNSkIB7aFqa32T-Ydbgb6ZEwukTSrpve2aZpX4XrQh4Hpw4Ezo359H_aGl-y/s1600/Adelaide.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtEO2rfcAh02S0fZGYR3krc8iGVRG-qsDN5XCiAYl0APl4R6XRK4SUqg8q_ZzqqSfczaotgQZ4Zdo7yM_4XNSkIB7aFqa32T-Ydbgb6ZEwukTSrpve2aZpX4XrQh4Hpw4Ezo359H_aGl-y/s320/Adelaide.JPG" width="240" /></a><o:p> </o:p></div>
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Early on the morning of the 2nd all us suffragists met in
the SBM costume storage rooms. Most of the ladies had not met each other
before, but they all quickly bonded while getting into new and interesting
costumes, and talked modern politics as well as historical. By the time I lead
them out to the orchard I knew they'd have have fun and well represent our
foremothers. During the day they figured out to let people try on the
"votes for women" sandwich board, visitors had a good time taking
photos of their friends carrying the signs. The women talked to visitors from
our modern perspective about why equal rights are still important today and
about the historical fight to vote. From all the feedback I heard only good
things about all the conversations they had. <o:p></o:p></div>
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By the end of the day they all agreed to come back next
year, and even maybe get together some other times too. We haven't done that
yet, but I've got plans. I think the group will be even bigger in 2017, but I'm
hoping it will be just as positive and just as much fun. I think I'll have a
cool new outfit too.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy drives Mama in a Model A. Probably a good idea to keep my eyes closed.</td></tr>
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-5224600369693932462017-03-15T15:59:00.000-04:002017-03-15T15:59:12.485-04:00Midwinter Mischief at Old Sturbridge VillageStephen and I went on a Midwinter Mischief tour at Old Sturbridge Village on February 4th. It was their first day of the special program. We went on an afternoon tour, but it was still the first day of a new program. The program was a semi-guided tour, with a meal included for $20 for non-members, which is a very decent price.<br />
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From the OSV visitor center we were lead by a costumed guide who walked us across the village to the Bullard Tavern. He stopped us halfway through to recite a verse about the experience we were about to have. He was very awkward, dropping his lines and struggling with the tempo and rhyme scheme of the verses. I got the impression this was not his idea of a good time. But when we were met at the tavern by “Mr. Bullard” he was enthusiastic in his acting. He encouraged us to eat first and assured us we’d get on a tour, but we declined since we’d eaten in the car on the way down. After using the restroom, we asked where we could catch our 1:45 tour, it turned out the 1:30 tour had not left yet so we jumped in on the end of the orientation for that tour.<br />
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The orientation was lead by the “town gossip” who was very good at making everyone laugh as she handed out cards to each person with the “role” we would be playing. Everyone got a nicely printed glossy card with a silhouette on one side and a paragraph about the role on the other. In the sitting room of the tavern another costumed person came in to tell us , in verse, about the peddler who spent last night at the tavern, ran up a tab he could not pay, and promised the tavern keep that he would return “with a tin cup overflowing with Gold”. The costumed person (who I’m told was supposed to be a tavern regular)told us the peddler then went to the Tinsmith shop, and we should go there to look for him. He did not follow us, but pointed the group in the right direction, we all walked ourselves (I think there were just under a dozen up is on this particular tour) over to the Tin Shop.<br />
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Inside the tin shop we were given some basic interpretations by the two men working in the tin shop, and one of them almost sounded like he was speaking in verse but it was so natural and interspersed with info on smithing and the history of peddlers that it was hard to tell. We spent about 10 minutes in the tin shop before they told us the peddler went on to the Parsonage, and we should look for him there. Over the course of the tour we visited:<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The Parsonage, grating chocolate with the parson’s daughter, getting a sermon on the evils of drink from the parson.<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>A house in the village, helping dip candles,<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The village store, learning about what was sold there and buying on credit,<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The schoolhouse, getting a lesson<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The pottery, doing some hands-on wheel work<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The barn, sawing some firewood<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The farmhouse kitchen, making sausages<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Another kitchen, baking pies<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The blacksmith shop, shoeing oxen<br />
-<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Outside visiting, with an oxen pair.<br />
All of these stops were roughly ten minutes in length, all involved some interpretation, at least one hands-on opportunity for someone in the group, plus a few verses of script about “that pesky Peddler.” Each stop felt like a pretty good length, with a good mix of learning and story. None of the walks between buildings were so long that they felt arduous, and even though most of the stops the group had to stand, there were enough sitting stops mixed in that the general visitor did not feel too worn out by the end. We almost bumped into the group before us twice, but both times they were coming out as we went in, and we never ended up waiting for them. We never ran into the group behind us. Nor did it feel like the interpreter/actors were watching the clock, or rushing us through, their timing was very good.<br />
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After the last stop, our visit with the oxen, we were met by the last actor, a skinny young man in a top hat who did even more verse speaking, heading back up to the tavern. He was dressed quite differently from the other interpreter/actors, and was a better actor than most of them. Halfway through the walk back toward the tavern he produced a tin cup, giving the first inkling that this was the peddler we’d been “looking for” during our tour. For a little while at the end of the tour it felt quite clever, how the script had worked our group around to “discovering” the peddler, but by the time we got inside the tavern the clever part felt pretty empty.<br />
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My takeaway as we sat eating our soup (they’d kept some warm for us when I’d refused to eat before our tour) was that the “Midwinter Mischief” was a cute gimmick to get people on to the grounds during the month of February. The OSV actor/interpreters were the museum’s regular staff, and while a few did a superb job most of them gave off a distinct air of silly. They were portraying silly town characters, reciting silly lines about a silly peddler. This tour was not something to be taken seriously. In the end, everyone knew the peddler would come out on top, the town was no worse off for his visit, and there was no effect on the lives of real people, real history.<br />
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I think that did an incredible disservice to the history that they were interpreting. Every visitor was given a lot of information about life in a New England town in the early 1800s on this tour, but since the script was so gimmicky, and the actors so obviously just reciting their lines and not portraying real people, I believe it was hard for the visitors to go away with any emotional investment in what they had learned. Mystic Seaport does an incredible job using engaging emotional content in their programs, as do some of SBM’s roleplayers, so I know it can be done. Midwinter Mischief’s plot was fairly weak, and definitely came off as an excuse to visit the best houses in the village, not as an interpretation method itself. This could be because OSV hired a theatre person instead of a history person to write and direct their program, but I’ve seen amazing theatre that is emotionally engaging, so that can’t entirely be it.<br />
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I think the most I can say about the program is that it is a cute gimmick to get people through the doors, and show off the best of OSV in a winter setting. The worst is that there was so much potential if they had put more emphasis on actual history, and if their staff running the program had felt more comfortable playing their parts.<br />
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-71981706539969318462017-03-01T15:11:00.000-05:002017-03-01T15:11:02.974-05:00Living History 2016 in Cute Baby Pictures – Summer EditionI’m a bit sad I did not post more in 2016, ah well. Trying to remedy that this year (sound familiar anyone?) But there are more cute toddler pictures on the way!<br />
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<b>American Lives</b><br />
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I manage the museum's 4th of July event, so that one deserves a post all to itself, and I’m going to try to do that. In the meanwhile I can talk about my family. My husband and parents are so supportive of what I do. They come out to just about every event that I manage at the museum. It helps that Stephen and my parents like history, they like Portsmouth, and almost all of the events I do are kid friendly. In fact, Percy was only 2 weeks old when we took him to his first Strawbery Banke event: An American Celebration on the 4th of July. I’m also really lucky that my boss loves kids and Percy in particular, so as long as things are going smoothly, and I have someone else to hand Percy off to I can have Percy time and museum time at the same time!<br />
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<b>Great Northeastern War</b><br />
Just like last year, I went up to Maine to my second SCA event of the year: Great Northeastern War. Stephen couldn’t go, he had to travel, but we’d agreed to teach classes so at least one of us had to. Percy slept most of the way up, and like always, got into his historical clothes without much fuss. We watched a battle, walked among the vendors, looked at the arts & sciences projects on display. I taught a class on the Renaissance Baby. I prepared a brief handout about clothing, and a much more extensive one about period approximate toys. If I re-find the handout I might put it up here (this totally is a trend!) The class was attended by mostly moms with kids, though a few ladies who hope to be moms someday did come as well. I shared around a lot of goldfish, and put all Percy’s toys on the table to let the kids run around and play with them. Good news, most of the toys worked for older kids too. I got fairly annoyed when one of the moms told everyone after I was done talking about how easy wool gowns are, that she recommended modern cotton tunics! But she liked my toys hand-out. Stephen’s talk was on Landsknecht, and though he was willing to talk about the culture, he figured the SCAdians in attendance would mostly want to talk about the clothes. He was right. He sent me up with a basket full of books and his clothing, which I spread out, and then asked folks what they hoped to get out of the talk. Only one male was there for more than the clothes, all of the females were there for their boyfriend’s clothes. I let them go through Stephen’s outfit, and made sure that they all knew that they would never get a proper fit out of cotton, that really the outfits had to be wool, and gave a bunch of the tips and tricks we have used over the years. There were almost no questions that I could not answer, which made me feel pretty good, though I do with Stephen had been there. When leaving one of the guys said he was hoping to get an SCA Landsknecht group going. He did not have a business card and with an increasingly tired Percy I was having trouble keeping names straight, but I gave him my business card and told him to let me know, because we always like to engage with people as Landsknecht. I never head back.<br />
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<b>Gatsby on the Isles</b><br />
My favorite event of the last few years has become Gatsby on the Isles. Getting Percy in a little sailor outfit, and Stephen in a summer suit, me in fancy hat and shoes and getting on a boat! What could be better? This year we took not just one friend with us, we took two friends and my parents! My folks don’t really do the dress up thing, but my mom has nice linen dresses with no waist to them, and my dad has linen suits. They both enjoy the Isles of Shoals, picnics, and will do just about anything to spend time with their kids and grandkid. We all met on the docks, and watched the dapper gents and fancy ladies line up to get on the boat. Such amazing outfits! Such gorgeous luggage! When everyone is wearing hats, it really does feel more like a proper outing.<br />
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We had more of an idea what to expect this year, so we brought our big basket cooler, some bathing things, and blankets for the picnic. I also brought a bunch of Percy’s toys. This year he was old enough to figure out we were on a boat, and to enjoy the sensation of a new mode of transportation. He loved having his grandparents there, and being able to play in the sun and the water. He is always our ice breaker, we made new friends because he is so darn cute people like to take his picture, ask us questions, and generally enter into conversations in ways they might not normally.<br />
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On the island we tucked ourselves into the shadow of the big hotel, and dug in to all the food we’d brought with us. I think only half of what we brought got eaten, and we pretty much ate all afternoon. We listened to the music, strolled through the hotel and on the porch, played with Percy on the playground. We definitely played it cool, and did not exert ourselves all that much. I had brought Percy’s swim trunks, and made myself a kid-of 20s bathing suit, so we brought his watering can and wooden boat down to the water to splash for a bit. Percy’s grandpa took him around to the other side of the island to the other beach too. And before we knew it, it was time to pack up and go. In 2017 I hope to bring more people, and maybe even stay overnight at the hotel.<br />
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<b>Trip to Scotland</b><br />
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Just after my busiest event of the year, just before the CT Renfaire, Stephen and I went a little crazy and took a vacation to Scotland! Of course we brought along Percy, even if he’d just started potty training not two weeks before! Now I won’t go into tons of details of our vacation, but we saw a ton of castles, some ancient mounds, and event got to see a small reenactment. My favorite part was definitely the island of Islay (pronounced I-la.) where the villages looked exactly like they were supposed to, and we got to visit an artist’s colony with huge community type garden, and a still operating woolen mill. Yes, I bought fabric. I can’t wait to make something (hopefully two things) out of it. Plus we got tons of cute Percy pictures.<br />
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<b>Connecticut Renaissance Faire</b><br />
CT Faire is still our biggest LH event of the year. We’re out there for 5 weekends: living in camp, making food, caring for the kids, holding demonstrations, interacting with our whole group, and being as close as we can (in the middle of a renaissance faire) to the 16th Century. I missed the first weekend and the first day of the second weekend, then all of the final weekend because of work stuff. It is a good thing I love my work, because I sorely missed being there. This year Percy was clingy, but did not try to kill himself with every camp implement. I could do very little without him being attached to me, but he was fine playing with his historical toys as long as I was playing with him, or very close by.<br />
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The best day for me was the day that there were 4 kids in camp. Four kids! We had Percy, and a boy 4 months younger, then we had a four year old and an eight year old. Percy and the 4 year old have been playing together since before Percy could even play. He wears all her historical hand-me-downs. When they get together it is just like cousins, they seem able to pick up where they left off. Since Lilly kept Percy amused, I could sit nearby and do my own thing, instead of having to constantly interact with him, and with Percy to play with that kept Lilly out of the way of all the other women who were working hard. I wish I could say I was a help with all of the kids, but the youngest is fast and motivated, he was a full time job all on his own.<br />
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After Faire was over I had to throw myself right back into work, so didn’t get to go out in costume again. But I felt pretty good about all the living history that did happen over 2016. And we got so many cute pictures out of it!<br />
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-47567678238707165332017-02-22T11:57:00.000-05:002017-02-22T11:59:03.317-05:00Living History 2016 in Cute Baby Pictures – Spring EditionAnother year has gone by. Another one full of dressing up, learning, and having fun in history. What I learned this year is that there is a history themed event going on within 3 hours of my house every single weekend, though only a few of them are kid-friendly. Also, that I have very high expectations of what a history-themed event should include. Here is the highlight post.<br />
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<b>Birka</b><br />
Our very local-est of events is a winter time marketplace SCA event in Manchester, NH. In 2015 I could not go because of a snowstorm, and I missed it this year (2017) due to stomach bug, but we did get to go last year! It is mostly a chance to see a lot of old friends in the middle of the winter, since the items for sale are varied and either not in our period (16th Century) or not historical enough for us. But the chance to get out of the house, dress up, and hang out with friends in the winter is always appreciated.<br />
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<b>Early Modern Muster of Arms</b><br />
This past year there were only two of us who went out to Fort Wayne, Indiana. I actually left Percy and Stephen at home! There was too much drinking and not enough history for everyone else to come out, but since I stayed in the kitchen most of the weekend, I had plenty of history and very little drinking. I actually had more interesting history experiences on the way out and the way back than actually at the event itself.<br />
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My companion this year was incredibly agreeable, so on the way out we stopped in Seneca Falls at the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/wori/index.htm" target="_blank">Women’s Rights National Historical Park</a>, which is run by the National Park Service. The building where the first national women’s suffrage convention took place is still standing, but not in the same form as it was in 1840 (its last function was an auto repair garage) but still, you can go inside and sit in the space. The museum next door was quite good, geared towards both those that already had a background in American Women’s Suffrage, and those who are new to the history. As a pilgrimage site, I’m very glad that we went.<br />
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On Sunday we left the event early, because one of the most well known Living History museums (at least among academic circles) is in Indiana, and since I was pretty sure this was my last year going out to this event this was my last chance to go see it. Yes, it was several hours out of our way, but when you’re on a road trip… We went to <a href="http://www.connerprairie.org/" target="_blank">Conner Prairie.</a> What a big site! There was no Greeter or introduction video, we just got our map with our tickets and fumbled our way through for the next few hours.<br />
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We went to three distinct areas: the 1830s village, the Civil War village, and the original house. The 1836 Prairietown is the part that I had read about in school, and heard about at conferences. It is a “village” of moved-in houses where everyone is first person, and representing early life on the prairie. I was hoping for meaningful conversations, but we did not get a single person off their well rehearsed script and onto more in-depth topics. Nobody felt real, they all felt like they were acting. I know it can be better than that.<br />
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The Civil War village was interesting because it incorporated video and audio, the whole area was telling one unified story of a confederate raid. There was a script, and an order to which you should tour the buildings, and it was mostly well rehearsed. The volunteers at the end of the tour were annoying, but I thought the rest was very well done, as long as you were content with the info they were giving you. The Conner Homestead also felt newly reinterpreted, not just a static display in the historic house, but really informative panels and hands-on activities in every room. I am very glad we stopped, because it was a lovely day and I can say I’ve been there. I had high expectations, really probably too high, but I did have a nice time anyways.<br />
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<b>Watch City Steampunk Festival</b><br />
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Steampunk isn't real history. Also, we're totally late to the party. But anything that is history inspired where I get to wear my historical clothes, and possibly make contacts for work is worth the outing. I raided my 1870s clothing bin and wore my pink silk corset, and matching pink ruffled petticoat <i>totally exposed </i>beneath my black wool maid's outfit. Stephen pulled out his wild west stuff along with a lovely coat made by friends of ours: <a href="http://www.chrononautmercantile.com/" target="_blank">Chrononaut Merchantile</a>. A few weeks before I was perusing our local kid's used clothing store and found a little tuxedo! I'm sure it was originally worn to a wedding, and probably only worn once. Steampunk is fluid in time, and Percy is cute in just about anything, so he wore a tux.<br />
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We arrived just at the beginning of a dreary sort of day, took a turn through the vendors and decided the only thing we had any interest in was the food (which is generally the case at renfaires too.) The music was actually quite good, and the people watching was fun. I reconnected with the NH Wheelmen who used to come to a lot of the Museum events, and we chatted for a long time with a reenactment group that was portraying Zouaves because they also do earlier times: pike and shot like we do, and many of their members have interest in armor just like Stephen. We ran out of time to do any of the local museums, or indoor activities so I guess we'll have to go back again.<br />
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<b>NH Renaissance Faire</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMVCNB3mAmU0sbh-7plkviPlmSjU86A3oqe9OXWCP5jPEo3v80_aQSiUyQMDF5KGpjl4ZXjBosKbKbE28HJhJ1-1Sgo3MTvDWcuNBaJrquGsmv7QmIOsb_rpJjv0cPTRdyL93rx9hU-y5/s1600/Percy+NH+RenFaire.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMVCNB3mAmU0sbh-7plkviPlmSjU86A3oqe9OXWCP5jPEo3v80_aQSiUyQMDF5KGpjl4ZXjBosKbKbE28HJhJ1-1Sgo3MTvDWcuNBaJrquGsmv7QmIOsb_rpJjv0cPTRdyL93rx9hU-y5/s320/Percy+NH+RenFaire.JPG" width="240" /></a>The spring of 2016 was about Percy and I going on historical adventures, just the two of us. Our first such foray was to the NH Renaissance faire, just two towns over from where we live. I forget why Stephen could not come, He was traveling, or sick or something, so Percy and I set off on our own. No big deal, we have so many friends at the NH Faire that if we had needed assistance we could have asked for it. As it was we did just fine walking around, talking with friends, eating faire food, listening to music. I passed out business cards to musicians who I thought would be good additions to Candlelight Stroll, basically anyone who performed historical music and did not mind being outside in all weather. It was hot so I stripped Percy down to his historical underwear and he charmed everyone by playing with his historical toys. As a small renfaire it was more about dressing up and hanging with friends than anything historical, which puts it on the “maybe” list instead of the “definitely go again” for 2017.<br />
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<b>Massachusetts WWII weekend</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My co-worker says this is our Grapes of Wrath look.</td></tr>
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I am interested in all sorts of living history. If it is an event where I get to dress up and will see history in action, I want to be a part of it. So Percy and I drove out to far central, almost Western Mass. to the Massachusetts WWII weekend . There were a lot of tanks. A lot. Percy has fairly sensitive hearing, so the shooting and the flame throwers were not his cup of tea. But he thought the (Modern) helicopter was a ton of fun. We walked around the different reenactment groups, and sat in some of the jeeps. The groups that had the most interesting set up, from a non-participant perspective were definitely the German camps. They had good signage, talked about food and shelter, did quite a bit of interacting with the public. The other groups mostly talked amongst themselves, they let you look at their equipment but did not bother trying to engage; even with folks in costume, even after remarking on how adorable Percy was in his sailor suit. I got a few business cards out of the trip, but most of the groups that seemed at all interested in an event at a museum in New Hampshire were the folks in their 50s and up who would not mind bringing out their cars. I’ve got an antique car group already. Before I left I asked about an APO dance in the evening, and if they might be interested in that next year. I guess they had done one the year before and found the interest to be mediocre in holding another. I did get a very nice photo of Percy and I inside one of the jeeps, and I got a better idea of what WWII events are expected (by their participants) to be.<br />
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<b>Immersion Weekend</b><br />
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Like 2015 we planned a weekend to spend in the woods behind our house totally in character with no modern intrusions. We came up with a different scenario for 2016: visiting a small shrine after a victorious battle. Saturday was hot, and many of our guild members exhausted themselves building shelves into our trailer to better keep track of all the guild stuff, so we ended up staying inside in the air conditioning on Saturday night and just watching Tudor Monastery Farm, which counts as historical. Instead we went out on Sunday morning, did a bit of exploring, visited our makeshift shrine, and had a celebratory meal. It was not nearly as cool as the year before, but we also did not kill ourselves, and that is a good thing.<br />
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I feel like we were in custume way more than that, but last spring seems long ago now. I’m sure that we had guild workshops, and outings with friends where we did not dress up which only sort-of count. And I guess for the early reenactment season, with toddler in tow, that is really good enough. Summer and fall are coming in the next post!<br />
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<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-10521655755732480192016-04-27T16:00:00.003-04:002016-04-27T16:00:43.662-04:00The Conference that I BuiltI did something a little different earlier this month, I was the sole organizer of a professional conference.<br />
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There are professional organizations and conferences for just about everything! And that is true of Living History too. Stephen and I have attended three FPIPN Conferences, two of which I blogged about: <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2012/04/fpipn-2012.html" target="_blank">Here</a> and <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2014/02/vacation-for-my-role-playing-soul.html" target="_blank">Here,</a> and at the end of the last one the organizer asked if there was anyone who would be willing to host the next in two years. At the time I was pregnant, less than 6 months into my new job at the museum, and reluctant to take on any new projects, but even then I knew that I could do it, and that I probably would. Fast forward two years, and here we are, just a few weeks after the 2016 First Person Interpreter’s Retreat of which I was the organizer, communicator, decision maker and host. To say that I will be processing this for a while is an understatement, but I also want to get down some of my thoughts while they are still fresh.<br />
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The FPIPN Retreat is usually a two-day retreat, where members of our community help each other out, teach a few of our favorite tricks, commiserate about our tough experiences, and get re-inspired for the upcoming season. My friends and acquaintances, the FPIPN Facebook group, and the parent org’s newsletter shared the call for sessions, and I heard back from people I had never met as well as some of the usual suspects. I only asked pointedly a few people, and amazingly all of those that I tapped were happy to oblige. We got enough session proposals to fill up both Saturday and Sunday, and on an amazing variety of topics: working with kids, visitors, museum management, emotional topics, new programs, unknown historical figures, an abundance of resources, in all sorts of environments. We had a total of 19 different “sessions” or chances to learn about some aspect of first person interpretation.<br />
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I changed it up a little by starting on Friday afternoon with some in-character presentations, and a pizza party/Book Group. I am obsessed with finding all the books on Living History, which is still a relatively small number, and with sharing all these great books, so it was fun to pack up my LH library (one shelf in on the bigger history bookcase) into a tub (they all fit in one plastic tub!) and spread them out for conference goers to look through. <br />
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I also hired a keynote speaker. There was one at the first conference I attended in 2010 which had been very inspiring, and set the tone of the conference for me. I wanted to do the same this year, and I knew the tone that I wanted to set. I see these retreats as a chance to connect to other roleplayers, and I see my job as a roleplayer to connect my audience to history. I had met a woman out in Chicago who wrote a whole book about doing just that, and I’d seen her interact, she is good, and definitely articulate. I took a big risk, and invited a Renaissance Faire performer to share with all these serious museum folks the power of positive interactions. It turned out great! I heard plenty of good feedback about how A-E was putting into words things that some folks had been thinking about for years and been unable to articulate. Or even if they’d never thought about it, now they would! She added to the weekend’s feeling of comradery and positive learning.<br />
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Even before Friday night was over I heard from a Strawbery Banke colleague who came up to me and remarked that before that day she had not really thought of herself as belonging to a community, but this conference, in just the first few hours had shown her that there is a community of costumed history folks, and she is a part of it. The reenactors who attended told me they found it interesting, the museum people said they learned quite a bit. Event Stephen said he has new ideas for the upcoming year, some of which came up in the presentation that he lead, that he’d never thought about before! And many people remarked on how they had made quite a few new friends this weekend. I’m not sure it gets much better than that.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The crowd for our keynote.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out and about in Portsmouth. Having way too much fun. Photo by A_E Shapera.</td></tr>
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-2792542184576471052016-03-11T12:03:00.000-05:002016-03-11T12:03:47.203-05:00Living History in 2015 through Cute Baby PhotosWhat did I do in 2015 that was Living History related? I learned a heck of a lot. Mostly about what it is like to reenact with a baby, and about what I can do even in a low-energy year. in the early summer I shared a little bit about <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2015/05/clothing-renaissance-child-it-takes.html" target="_blank">Early Modern Muster of Arms</a>, and then a bit more about all the activities <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2015/07/variety-in-living-history.html" target="_blank">in June</a>, but then I lost blog writing momentum. I don’t want to bore anyone with event recaps, but I think it will be valuable to look back on last year and remember what mattered at the time. These are not necessarily in the order they took place, I admit the summer has rather blurred over the winter. With plenty of cute baby photos to keep you interested.<br />
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<b>Great Northeastern War</b><br />
For the past ten years I have mostly been a history event participant, and not an event attendee. Just attending an event with very little to do while there other than dress up, walk around and soak up the atmosphere drives Stephen batty, but in 2015 I’ve learned to enjoy it a little more. We went up to an <a href="http://www.sca.org/" target="_blank">SCA </a>event in Maine on a hot weekend this summer on my urging. I was hoping to meet more local history people. My history friends are scattered all over New England, and the travel is rough on Percy so on of my goals this past summer was to stick closer to home, but more importantly, make more history friends.<br />
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So we drove very far into Maine. Okay, not close to home but this is a big event for all those from New England who are members of the SCA, and I knew at least some of the attendants live pretty close to us. Since it was an SCA event everyone who attends is a participant, but we did not take part in the fighting, archery, displays, teaching classes. We did not spend much money in the shops, attend many classes, nor did we camp out. That was probably the biggest mistake, we should have camped which would have given us something to do and a base of operations. It also meant I missed the dancing in the evening, when we were back at the motel trying to get Percy to sleep. Stephen was fairly restless with all this walking around, sitting, and observing, but has agreed to try again this year if we set up our encampment with all of our usual camp activities to keep him (and us) occupied.<br />
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<b>Newport Illumination</b><br />
Another far away event! We drove down to Newport, RI to participate in a day-time event to celebrate the arrival of L’Hermione on the east coast. I wanted to do this one because it was hosted by a LH friend who has been doing a lot of good events, and because those in attendance have the reputation for being seriously good reenactors without taking themselves too seriously. There were about a dozen of us in a nice old building mostly interacting with people who came in off the street and had no idea what to expect. There were two kids plus Percy, who crawled around, played with toys, and did not manage to nap until an hour before the event ended. I learned quite a bit about French occupied Newport, RI and did make some contacts in the reenacting world. Plus I got some super cute photos of Percy, which is always important.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQIDW8E-PJlsygtVcFO2mfuddIOwm3GMNs_tA43AVaayVGnQBIuqd9KArLnwhr3Q3a_f6PAotjMYG-FsGGkLu1BfLMTzlAjMvtkYYvbRsruSRc7DnD2ZdSfPijY6jAE74JhaoHb6IYHLRs/s1600/colonial+Percy+and+mommy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQIDW8E-PJlsygtVcFO2mfuddIOwm3GMNs_tA43AVaayVGnQBIuqd9KArLnwhr3Q3a_f6PAotjMYG-FsGGkLu1BfLMTzlAjMvtkYYvbRsruSRc7DnD2ZdSfPijY6jAE74JhaoHb6IYHLRs/s320/colonial+Percy+and+mommy.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy says "We're celebrating Illumination!" <br />Photo from Newport Historical Society</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pvA1tPF_H73p5l4KAwQfgwfLsNfCVOwBP_aHgp-jhfmj9eF2RDax3qzEvFYMyNxvhF71NStRjiiuv-1BNA5kBwdYjoDt2gKSAPZsWB5-UGzSnCIxhETW4Mhzn5YJBAPZ7LBoB6xBHniU/s1600/Percy+sleeps+on+Daddy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pvA1tPF_H73p5l4KAwQfgwfLsNfCVOwBP_aHgp-jhfmj9eF2RDax3qzEvFYMyNxvhF71NStRjiiuv-1BNA5kBwdYjoDt2gKSAPZsWB5-UGzSnCIxhETW4Mhzn5YJBAPZ7LBoB6xBHniU/s320/Percy+sleeps+on+Daddy.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the end of the day, Daddy's shoulder is the best.<br />Photo from Newport Historical Society</td></tr>
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<b>Hillsboro Living History Event</b><br />
I’d been to this one before, <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2012/08/local-lh.html" target="_blank">some years ago</a> but not in costume. When preparing for my own events at the Museum I got in touch with the organizers, who were nice enough to invite me up to one of their meetings. This event is organized by a volunteer committee who were super nice, and very dedicated to the event. After they shared so much I thought the least I could do is enjoy myself at their event. Stephen had something else on his schedule, so I was joined by Kristina, my trusty companion in <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2013/05/intensive-immersive-weekend.html" target="_blank">historical adventures</a> and Percy came along too. Since this is a multiple time-period event Kris and I chose to pull out our regency dresses that we never get to wear. I found a little white dress for Percy at a thrift shop and he wore his medieval underclothes as the base. We got a ton of compliments from envious participants and volunteers as we strolled along looking regal (and cool) in our light dresses. This year I made a lot more contacts among the reenactors and performers. I even hired a few at the museum this past winter. Percy proved to be a great ice breaker. He wanted to play in every single water bucket we passed, and since most encampments had a fire, they almost all had buckets of water placed on the ground in the middle of their camps. We had many nice conversations with encampment inhabitants while Percy splashed around with his wooden spoon and horn bowl in their buckets. Then when Percy got tired, we headed out, no sense in tiring everyone out!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWf6nKzhiAD3Y9Pb_WmWvb4yq9D0ABEjYebLOUOk0brSL2k7gGiOpjdcdabyiq1XHFGKLrHkloyHT2ddVkMVInitBSFn2sUihbVeXA2OUWfAPxmiwohLyqBcGiRq0InrDO2ypTSW27JEOp/s1600/Kris+and+P+in+history+jail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWf6nKzhiAD3Y9Pb_WmWvb4yq9D0ABEjYebLOUOk0brSL2k7gGiOpjdcdabyiq1XHFGKLrHkloyHT2ddVkMVInitBSFn2sUihbVeXA2OUWfAPxmiwohLyqBcGiRq0InrDO2ypTSW27JEOp/s320/Kris+and+P+in+history+jail.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kris and Percy in History Jail<br />Photo by Alena Shellenbean</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9PLHoy8T9Lrm4VrB-i0Yy3am9XuldcmBpwGRws_AwszM38ldnZMdEU49b_UcUKffK7iyGfgX75csXt2Wm-QjxEb64DlYqvYAXP36QI0RSq-p4pkAjIbuvQ0Vzz6a9MWbFleQP0wPRXPl/s1600/Regency+Percy+and+Mom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9PLHoy8T9Lrm4VrB-i0Yy3am9XuldcmBpwGRws_AwszM38ldnZMdEU49b_UcUKffK7iyGfgX75csXt2Wm-QjxEb64DlYqvYAXP36QI0RSq-p4pkAjIbuvQ0Vzz6a9MWbFleQP0wPRXPl/s320/Regency+Percy+and+Mom.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the shade at a friendly encampment<br />Photo by Kris Skillin</td></tr>
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<b>Gatsby on the Isles</b><br />
I think the theme of this year was relaxed events were we dress up and have fun. This one fulfilled the theme admirably. Stephen got to wear one of his tailored suits, I actually managed to sew something, and Percy’s grandma stitched him up the cutest little sailor suit. We put on our spiffy duds, drove in to town, and took a lovely boat ride out to Star Island. There was picnic food, a jazz band, a turn of the century hotel, splashing in a little pool, and making new friends. I appreciated this event not just as a chance to dress up Percy, but also since it is right in my back yard I got to meet really local people who love history. We had never been out to the Isles of Shoals; being on the boat was fun and I got to check that item off my list of local things I had to do. Exploring the old hotel was great because unlike most hotels, this one really has not been modernized a lot. The rooms were small, with bathrooms at the end of the hall. No plush queen sized bends, but the twin beds were under windows of lacy curtains, with wash stands in each room and a feeling that they were totally real. We did not spend the night (baby and limited finances) but came back on the afternoon boat. We still had a lovely time, made new friends, and determined to bring more people next year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyJ9HRCne-f1Zrf9GZa9X7hBfNkVfQsuaw4T1Yj59SEdc0m8JbTn1OTyJcr466_VJSfOMrvIytSzEWBwh8ieYkzEllVSbexR8Nh33xEbhTrRmYUkHJtWbllVOCaMrdNpN5xw0XwOI8utuC/s1600/sailor+percy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyJ9HRCne-f1Zrf9GZa9X7hBfNkVfQsuaw4T1Yj59SEdc0m8JbTn1OTyJcr466_VJSfOMrvIytSzEWBwh8ieYkzEllVSbexR8Nh33xEbhTrRmYUkHJtWbllVOCaMrdNpN5xw0XwOI8utuC/s320/sailor+percy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy Sets Sail. Photo by Julie Stickler</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0GoK0fu_OKTzlSy0yaqrTN4ITIzDaW4K1eAdtp-FFbuzBZs3XEOyyFTf-Iy0r6D7JuPvKcMk_k77KAw6yTJGBJTgeYLvNg7RyVIPxPlLlYDkTbqxUNKq9AqRw_YtzK_Quuu_1zlYE2yP/s1600/Gatsby+picnic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0GoK0fu_OKTzlSy0yaqrTN4ITIzDaW4K1eAdtp-FFbuzBZs3XEOyyFTf-Iy0r6D7JuPvKcMk_k77KAw6yTJGBJTgeYLvNg7RyVIPxPlLlYDkTbqxUNKq9AqRw_YtzK_Quuu_1zlYE2yP/s320/Gatsby+picnic.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picnic on Star Island. Photo by Julie Stickler</td></tr>
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<b>New York Renaissance Faire</b><br />
2015 was the first year that the New York Renaissance Faire has had a group set up a Landsknecht encampment. The organizers of this <a href="http://guildofstlonginus.com/" target="_blank">new encampment</a> contacted us last year, and we were more than happy to share our knowledge, sense of humor, and even some of our hand-me-downs! We traveled out to New York for their opening and closing weekend to lend our support and experience. For opening weekend we brought with us some items we’ve upgraded that were still perfectly good: water pitchers, chamber pots, serving trays; and we gave them a box full of the modern “necessities” that we’ve used over the years: sun screen, travel clock, first aid kit, trash bags, duct tape, extra rope, so many useful things that we packed the little wooden box to bursting. During the day we worked our normal magic: welcoming faire patrons, going over the basics of life in the Renaissance, explaining what exactly is a Landsknecht. Since the folks forming the new guild had never done anything like this before they were finding their feet on everything: cooking, tent set-up, educating the public, sticking to a schedule. We could not help with everything, but we could be there in our cool clothes, answering questions and walking around with the cute babies.<br />
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We enjoyed ourselves so much we came back the last weekend too! Actually our main reason was our friends from the Bristol Renaissance Faire were going to be there, and since NYRF is practically in our back yard (hah, when did a 4.5 hour drive start feeling like noting?) at least compared to a trip to Milwaukee we went to visit both our old friends from Bristol and our new friends from NYRF. And dress up in a baby-friendly history environment.<br />
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<b>Connecticut Renaissance Faire</b><br />
I really did look forward to getting down to deeper history. I wanted to do some real education, and use all that I know, but I ended up feeling pretty detached again this year. The rest of the Guild had a great year, a number of new members stepped up, we got into religion quite a bit, and made our meal time in the middle of the day even more historical. We also had a ton more kids in camp. We’ve had one or two before but this year we had children aged: 1 year, 1.5 (Percy), 4, 6, 7, & 8. Not all at once, but having at least three kids running around under foot while the women cooked and cleaned, the men worked with weapons or gambled, etc. made the camp feel totally alive. The older kids played with toys, with each other and with visitors. I mostly chased Percy while he tried to run into the fire, drown himself in water buckets, choke on tent ropes, grab kitchen knives, eat black powder, knock over swords, and generally harm himself in the most historical ways imaginable. Sure I talked with visitors, but I never really felt like I was able to do more than half-heartedly answer the same old questions while mostly keeping Percy from damaging himself or others. Hopefully next year when he is a little older he’ll be a little less inclined to kill himself, and I might even have found a helper to keep an eye on him so I can get back to cooking, gossiping and pondering the historical subjects I like to ponder.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSuVbgsg2eO6CxKYa7vQhuKleW6xis2ENmlj19Jzhhd7RJPnygKPPqrPLH7fY5haCMbDDDR5z9YYBdAbNBWKfpnDt2qWjQjBOt4YqfO3GJolSQdEyArUsgr49QBZgB4jae2VrHyJEqwNTw/s1600/wheelbarrow+Percy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSuVbgsg2eO6CxKYa7vQhuKleW6xis2ENmlj19Jzhhd7RJPnygKPPqrPLH7fY5haCMbDDDR5z9YYBdAbNBWKfpnDt2qWjQjBOt4YqfO3GJolSQdEyArUsgr49QBZgB4jae2VrHyJEqwNTw/s320/wheelbarrow+Percy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy tries out the guild's new wheelbarrow. Photo by Julie Stickler</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqwBOBmDvopOIjQ7d35j3tDUiJVSdqU3ISk5KynRVGF06TBTAj90SrRydEsQO600gcknyd7ytsq9vYybV6R9W3c6j8sj4yXISBX-IM5Y5KE1teZlW8JRVK1e_5XEHRw1feJhUzdxlGhXeH/s1600/percy+in+straw.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqwBOBmDvopOIjQ7d35j3tDUiJVSdqU3ISk5KynRVGF06TBTAj90SrRydEsQO600gcknyd7ytsq9vYybV6R9W3c6j8sj4yXISBX-IM5Y5KE1teZlW8JRVK1e_5XEHRw1feJhUzdxlGhXeH/s320/percy+in+straw.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm not making a mess! Photo by Alena Shellenbean</td></tr>
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<b>In Conclusion</b><br />
What did I get out of Living History in 2015? An appreciation for the opportunities to just attend instead of being an organizer and doer. I missed getting deeper in to history, but I’d rather think about it as toddler-level history, and grow-up level networking. I’m laying the ground work for 2016 and beyond.<br />
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-31976661994608165482015-07-21T11:41:00.002-04:002015-07-21T11:41:32.961-04:00Learning Through MovementI am a big supporter of alternate methods of learning, especially when it comes to learning history. Lectures, static exhibits, and books have their place but I’m just tickled that my job allows me to think out of the box and plan for all the different ways people can learn history.<br />
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In my role as Manager of Special Events I’m in charge of the celebrations surrounding the 4th of July. When I came in to this position, July 4th was the only event that did not make money for the museum. It was a scattered sort of event, with dozens of random activities, the event needed a serious streamlining. Back in March I talked <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2015/03/a-reenactors-timeline-few-of-groups-im.html" target="_blank">on this blog </a>about some of the problems, and my first thought about making the event more cohesive. I did not get a full reenactor’s timeline off the ground this year, though having a few more reenactors join us, and a few more time periods represented was a really good start.<br />
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What I did manage to do was add two opportunities for folks to get up, move around, and connect to history by using their bodies: a swing dance for adults on Friday night, and an Old Fashioned Field Day for kids on Saturday the 4th. This post is about Friday’s dance, the next one will be about Saturday.<br />
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When stumping for the reenactor’s timeline I approached one of the active members of Portsmouth’s vintage community, and asked if he would get a picnic together for the 4th as part of the timeline. He wasn’t very interested in that, but suggested to me that Portsmouth did not have any swing dances, and that we might be ripe for a dance instead. After Adam told me there was nowhere to swing dance on the seacoast I did some research to ascertain if that was true. The only stuff I could find was a dance club at the University of New Hampshire (The Hepcats) and a defunct group on Facebook. I emailed the local dance studios, some of them sometimes offer swing lessons. Boston has a huge swing community, and we’re not that far away. I know they swing in Lowell, and in Manchester NH. Hmm.<br />
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Several months after Adam suggested SBM host a swing dance the new head of role-players here at the museum came up to me and asked if, as the events person, I could add a swing dance to one of my events. Well two different people asking for it, and enough interest in vintage outings in the area and no one else doing it, this swing dance was looking more likely.<br />
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It took a lot more than just that, The July 4th event went through several more incarnations: we almost hosted a strawberry festival, pancake breakfast, Barbeque, the curatorial team really wanted a pony (I’m not kidding.) but by the time we made it to June the dance was one of the only parts still standing. We scheduled it for Friday night, July 3rd, the same night as the Portsmouth Fireworks. I hired a big band, a tent with a dance floor, and a network of people to get the word out. We made posters, and I did a lot of posting on Facebook. I was so worried that no one would attend that I comped in a couple of dancers on the understanding that they would stay on the dance floor and drag out reluctant attendees too. I got a couple willing to do a dance lesson in the hour before the band played, and asked for their advice on hosting a dance (provide hand sanitizer and breath mints.)<br />
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We sold tickets online in advance, but sales were slow. I was a nervous wreck in the afternoon leading up to the dance with the usual July 4th stuff still scheduled to happen the next day, plus the dance was so brand new. The band arrived in plenty of time, the dance instructors, and plenty of SBM employees and volunteers showed up to help out. I supplied pizza to all the volunteers and employees who had agreed to work late (we all missed dinner because of the dance) and the first attendees started to arrive before we’d all finished our first slice. By the time the lesson was well under way the dance floor I’d ordered was nice and crowded.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOuJh072UXWOMved5MbKbIAjZ5IaMymZ6ejE1XuoNhKNPKFAie_2n2PdqvS1AJg8ZPbC3vnVYcMYsORCt-1tq9kN3e8ZU8Xtn-kI26xp5qM9SwvT2WCx6hvstQU6ZeTqNf7t0DEU9tXikK/s1600/Swing+dance+photo+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOuJh072UXWOMved5MbKbIAjZ5IaMymZ6ejE1XuoNhKNPKFAie_2n2PdqvS1AJg8ZPbC3vnVYcMYsORCt-1tq9kN3e8ZU8Xtn-kI26xp5qM9SwvT2WCx6hvstQU6ZeTqNf7t0DEU9tXikK/s640/Swing+dance+photo+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Folks of all ages, abilities fill the dance floor at Strawbery Banke on July 3rd.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0b5ddET0vbbDHrahiIalDQX4-UC2scFV-5tSTH1vkJ4ypIkL7i5UHqQ1HeAJEt0v9KKt17wZkPDkqU2-nLZdkTFyUVlrVrPkHihb2y2UvbFFktdO74Z-W48pil1x2PL4cVSrKxjr9NtrB/s1600/Swing+dance+photo+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0b5ddET0vbbDHrahiIalDQX4-UC2scFV-5tSTH1vkJ4ypIkL7i5UHqQ1HeAJEt0v9KKt17wZkPDkqU2-nLZdkTFyUVlrVrPkHihb2y2UvbFFktdO74Z-W48pil1x2PL4cVSrKxjr9NtrB/s640/Swing+dance+photo+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The crowd was swinging and the band was hopping at Strawbery Banke on July 3rd.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.seacoastonline.com/article/20150703/NEWS/150709623/0/SEARCH" target="_blank">And people danced! </a>The lesson was noisy with enthusiasm, and once the band started up people stayed on the dance floor. The dancers I’d invited did a great job of drawing people out who were reluctant, those that had taken part in the lesson tried out their moves. We attracted some more experienced folks as well including quite a few HepCats from UNH who were still around for the summer. A few attendees were even in their vintage best. I only made it out on the dance floor once, but I was so thrilled that everyone else seemed to be having a good time. When the dance ended just as dusk was falling, many folks made a point of coming up to me and telling me that I had to do it again next year.<br />
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My volunteers, the SB employees, and I cleaned up fast since it was late, and the tent would be used again first thing in the morning. The band cleared out quickly too and we almost managed to get everything done before the Portsmouth town fireworks started. We all went out on to the lawn to watch the display, which showed rather well over the trees. It was a lovely end to a successful evening, even if we all got stuck in fireworks traffic on the way home.<br />
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-23676533991990213022015-07-06T16:22:00.000-04:002015-07-06T16:22:32.908-04:00Variety in Living HistoryThere is no one Living History Experience<br />
Last month we had a lovely variety of LH experiences, and I’ve been reminded again how there is no such thing as a typical reenactment, if you keep your eyes peeled and your mind open.<br />
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<b>Medieval Talk Show: </b>A small group of us went to visit a middle school down in Connecticut, where we got to sit down with the kids, and they could ask us anything. Anything! And we would answer in period from our own experiences. How many people get to interview someone from the past? It was also great for us because we never know what they are going to ask, so it is a chance for us to think about parts of daily life we have never thought about before.<br />
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<b>Guild Day: </b>A week later we went back to the same school, but this time brought the whole guild, our tents and encampment furnishings, even Percy came for the day. The students divided up into groups and visited each “station” for a few minutes. Kristina and I talked about families living on the march, and the difference between soldier’s life and noble’s life. While we were talking as fast as we possibly could, we looked after both Percy and Lilly, a very well behaved 3 year old, the child of two other guild members. Both kids were looking adorable in their historical clothes, and were close to stealing our show, but in a good way. It was hot as heck that day, so I brought out a big copper basin and filled it with water, then gave the kids a few bowls and spoons. They splashed happily while Kris and I talked and talked. I wish we had gotten some photos, but I have not seen any yet.<br />
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<b>Workshop:</b> The next day everyone assembled at our house for a workshop in chopping wood. Okay, we did only a little splitting firewood, it was more about making tent pegs, and using natural forks to make spits, carving out some wooden mallets, generally playing with twigs and branches. This one was not in costume or in character, but it was so important to me, because it increased my knowledge about stuff that our characters would have known about. Just like today people know the difference between a sedan and a station wagon, folks in most time periods would have known the difference between oak and maple.<br />
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<b>Immersive Overnight:</b> From the workshop we climbed into our 16th Century clothes and marched out into the unknown. We spent the night in the woods in back of our house out of sight of civilization and completely in character. We had no modern amenities: the cell phones, flashlights, coolers, everything stayed at the house. Stephen had written up a scenario for us to follow: we were routed after a battle and had met up, us women and a very few of the soldiers, and were looking for a safe place to spend the night before making our way back to the lines in the morning. This was a completely new thing for us, we usually drive in to a site with a car full of stuff (in this case we only took what we could carry) and we usually drop character when the public leaves. It was hot, it was nerve wracking, and Percy was teething, but we made it through and I think we all learned a lot. I would definitely do it again, though probably not the day after an event.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting ready for an Immersive Overnight</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How to attach stuff to your Frau.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy and I get ready to head into the woods.</td></tr>
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<b>Armory day: </b>As if there was not enough from the week before, the next Friday we drove out to Western Mass. Percy and I spent Friday visiting a college friend of mine, then on Saturday while Stephen was being a mud beggar at the <a href="http://www.muttonandmead.org/" target="_blank">Mutton and Mead Renaissance Festival</a> we went to Springfield Mass, to the <a href="http://www.nps.gov/spar/index.htm" target="_blank">Springfield Armory</a>, a museum run by the National Park Service. They were having an “Armory Day” timeline event and I wanted to check it out sine I am hoping to host one next year. I wore my 1930s denim slacks from <a href="https://wearinghistory.clothing/product/smooth-sailing-trousers/" target="_blank">Wearing History</a>, and a cute blouse the fits in the first half of the 20th Century. I put my hair in a kerchief, and Percy in a button down and pair of “railroad” overalls. I don’t think we got a single photo of the two of us. We walked around to the different encampments, played in the grass, drank orange soda and ate a hot dog (the Boy Scouts were selling lunch) and were mostly ignored by the reenactors. I got a few ideas of what not to do: call it a timeline of munitions if only the Civil War Guys are firing, hire a dance troupe to “interpret” a certain historical time period; and a few more of what to do: invite the Signal Corps, the 1812 Marine, Boy Scouts.<br />
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<b>Renfaire:</b> Sunday found Percy and I washing up in the guild’s encampment at Mutton and Mead. It was a very different experience not being in charge. Stephen was there, but not in camp, he was being paid to be a mud beggar. I was only there on Sunday so I stayed out of the planning. The camp looked different, there was no set schedule, we all did our own things and interacted, I mostly watched Percy and tried not to droop in the massive humidity. I got to spend time with two of our camp’s new members and we all got asked a lot of really good questions. Western Mass is like that: a lot of very intelligent people, many of whom work at the local colleges, or went to those colleges and never left the area. They were happy to get some info, ask follow-up questions, understand the whys and wherefores of life with a marching army. Plus, I got to see a lot of people who used to work the Vermont Renaissance Faire, which is the one where I got my start and where Stephen and I met. So it was old-home day, with all the renfaire trappings, and a chance to dress up and educate the public.<br />
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Seriously, a lot of variety of Living History in a short amount of time.<br />
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<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-6513668804513520142015-05-04T13:15:00.000-04:002015-05-07T09:55:55.643-04:00Clothing the Renaissance Child: It Takes a Guild...<br />
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I feel like I need to apologize because I have had so little time to sew, craft and create historical stuff. What I can do is profusely thank all the wonderful people in my life who are making it possible for me to continue reenacting and participating in Living History as a family.<br />
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A few weeks ago Stephen, Percy and I went out to Ft Wayne, Indiana to a “Pike & Shot era” LH event. It roughly covers the 1500s through 1600, maybe a bit beyond. There are so few of us who do this time that we travel long distances to get a group of any size. This was my third year are the event (read about 2013 <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2013/05/intensive-immersive-weekend.html" target="_blank">here</a>) but the first year with Percy. We’ve been doing this long enough that Stephen and I have a fairly well established kit (i.e. our clothes, eating gear, bedding, personal items) but Percy had grown out of the stuff he wore at faire this past fall, and now needs toys and solid food, and shoes… he needs his own kit! I never would have had the energy to assemble a full (if very small) kit for another person, but lucky we have a guild full of friends who all chipped in without us even asking.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAjGtXRF_sy-DBGZXPWHnM2mLAu98YWhq4bsUBzox0iHxuvZe3Viq5iPsyqGOEK7RI4Arag16ZB2FHNYZP3WrHCJ0N8_I_Kpn15yQWsG7SuNRi7YvVHgogzSv9HtWW51yL8Ws92CAKq2cS/s1600/Percy's+clothes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAjGtXRF_sy-DBGZXPWHnM2mLAu98YWhq4bsUBzox0iHxuvZe3Viq5iPsyqGOEK7RI4Arag16ZB2FHNYZP3WrHCJ0N8_I_Kpn15yQWsG7SuNRi7YvVHgogzSv9HtWW51yL8Ws92CAKq2cS/s400/Percy's%2Bclothes.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the clothes made by my guild mates for little Landsknecht</td></tr>
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Tom and Amanda have a daughter who is about 4 years old now, who has been participating with us since she was born. Amanda made all the clothes for her daughter Lilly, and has since passed them down to us so Percy can wear them. Once Percy has grown out of them, we’ll pass them along to the next baby in our group. Tom and Amanda also gave us a lovely baby shower gift of a wooden box full of historical tidbits: a horn bowl and spoon, hand hemmed linen cloths for baby messes, a bag of marbles for when he is older, cloth covered pacifiers for when he is tired. Such a thoughtful gift, I am still discovering all the useful things packed into that box.<br />
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Along with the hand-me-down clothes was a fleece hood that Brittney made for Lilly. There was also a pair of little shoes that Brittney had gotten, slashed up the toes, and added little puffs of fabric to make baby-sized kumal shoes! Brittney and Marc had also given us a lovely little bowl they bought on their honeymoon in England. <br />
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Percy is rich in eating gear. Rhiannon, a newer member of our group, had gone to a paint-your-own pottery place and done up a lovely little bowl with historic motifs. We all think it is amazing but she was not as happy with the design, so she gave it to Percy; if he bangs it up or breaks it she does not mind. He was given a wooden spoon by my mother, and he was given a lovely reproduction pewter one (lead-free of course) that our friend Julie bought. She ordered the spoon hoping it would be one she could use, only it turned out to be a miniature spoon, way too small for an adult, but perfect for Percy! Rhiannon and Julie also helped out by allowing me to make repairs to my shirt during a recent sewing session: they amused Percy while I stitched furiously, and when he needed mommy time they picked up my shirt and finished the seams while I bounced or fed him.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBJoB4t9_HYJuP8AiDGHjKahcehuvObwKcSYxCVARXTUNQCo1UB2SHKuIC1doHRDo1u5MiPwoDhrANYILT38xRyVCG-WFLJm6J8veZoTvvCs4J8_CK4E6EIUSxLNxIfx4coF1ZRgBY5Q9/s1600/Percy's+Toys.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBJoB4t9_HYJuP8AiDGHjKahcehuvObwKcSYxCVARXTUNQCo1UB2SHKuIC1doHRDo1u5MiPwoDhrANYILT38xRyVCG-WFLJm6J8veZoTvvCs4J8_CK4E6EIUSxLNxIfx4coF1ZRgBY5Q9/s400/Percy's%2BToys.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bowls and spoons, toys for tots.</td></tr>
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My main concern for the weekend was toys to keep him amused. Amanda had given him some wooden beads to teeth on, and all the bowls and spoons are great fun, but he likes rattles. There are quite a few rattles in renaissance portraits, even one surviving silver one! I cannot afford to get Percy a silver rattle, but I did go out and buy little silver bells. I went to a hardware store and got a turned wood stair baluster that Stephen chopped down. Then I attached the bells to it using jump rings and staples. I was really pleased with the way it turned out, until I went to Pier One and found a red painted wand of bells that was much nicer than the one I had created. Ah well, now he has options.<br />
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I added a few other things to his kit, a wooden ball, a linen sling to carry him around, a wool blanket to wrap him up, a little ceramic pot of diaper cream. Plus all his modern diapers, bottles, wipes etc.. I packed it all in a pack basket that mom had given me many years ago, so I could sling it on my shoulder and carry it around the fort; if he needed a toy or a change I would have it all with me whether I was in our room, the yard, or the infirmary.<br />
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Percy did great all weekend long. The folks at the event were super welcoming, and all my guild folks took turns playing with Percy when I needed to run around for a bit. He played with the other baby in attendance, and smiled at everyone who came to visit. He napped through the firing of guns, but woke when the drum called everyone to muster. I am really lucky with my healthy, happy baby, and I am so thankful for my generous, helpful guildmates.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy makes friends at Fort Wayne</td></tr>
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-54657257706862789702015-04-28T13:45:00.000-04:002015-04-28T13:45:00.203-04:00A Good First Impression<br />
I’ve brought this up <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2012/06/monologue-ing.html" target="_blank">before,</a> but I’ve been thinking about it again. Upon meeting someone we only get a short time to make a first impression. As someone educating about a different time and place the first impression is doubly important. Here are the things that I consider important in a LH introduction:<br />
1. Something about the time period you are representing<br />
2. Something about the person you are portraying<br />
3. Something to engage your audience<br />
I like to try to do all that in just a few short sentences. <br />
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When using first-person interpretation we have to be clever to get the most important information out there since we are talking from the long-ago, to an audience of modern individuals. It is a challenge, but a good one. Even when using third-person it is important to avoid giving just a name and a date. Most people don’t have the historical knowledge to put dates into any kind of context. Event smart people who should know dates <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2014/12/that-random-collection-of-digits.html" target="_blank">often don’t</a>. and names have a fairly low educational factor.<br />
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So what does a good introduction sound like? Stephen delivered one of my favorites here at the museum with his 1870s coachman character, it went something like:<br />
“Welcome to the kitchen! I hope you don't mind if I don't stand, Mr. Goodwin gave us the evening off. We’re having a bit of a party to celebrate Christmas eve, and to celebrate that we’re one year further away from that dreadful war.”<br />
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I love this intro because although in this particular iteration the character is unnamed and the date is not given, there is so much an audience member can get from the intro:<br />
1. The speaker is an employee, and a fairly formal one (usually they stand when a guest arrives)<br />
2. He has identified the place: the kitchen of the home owned by Mr. Goodwin<br />
3. The day itself is something special: a party of Christmas eve, and at the end of a war.<br />
4. Because he does not specify the war, he has left an opening for his audience to ask. Though they could ask any number of questions based on his statement, the one hanging in the room is: “what war is that?” which can lead to quite a good discussion about the era, about the character, about the audience member’s own experience of war. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMhkOVRQpuevhhm4bpbNP8JllyVaV0uZpsOZm7reiINNIJ4MHTgpOCfgqu1JlREp4daDToQdZeOt5ut1ZR_ddQGMka7Ag2Ur-gLEOPMVG8BNF4dl6m8m1LPsLoch3u4G-hJIXMQv29AIv/s1600/Goodwin+Kitchen+medium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMhkOVRQpuevhhm4bpbNP8JllyVaV0uZpsOZm7reiINNIJ4MHTgpOCfgqu1JlREp4daDToQdZeOt5ut1ZR_ddQGMka7Ag2Ur-gLEOPMVG8BNF4dl6m8m1LPsLoch3u4G-hJIXMQv29AIv/s1600/Goodwin+Kitchen+medium.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"George Rose" chats with a visitor in the kitchen at Goodwin House</td></tr>
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Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-91432889007579402012015-04-23T14:41:00.000-04:002015-04-23T14:41:16.414-04:00Getting Restless<br />Things are gearing up here for opening day at the museum. The seasonal staff have been in training all week, getting reacquainted with us full-timers, learning about the new programs, and introducing new staff members. The costumes are coming back out, the cook stoves are being fired up, the houses have been aired out and dusted off. I am so jealous of those who are stepping back into the shoes, cracking open the cookbooks, and greeting the houses once again.<br />I love my job, it is so much fun to bring special days to the museum; but I miss actually acting out the daily tasks, and portraying the fabulous women of this neighborhood. I did get into costume last weekend at a very cool reenactment, but it has only slightly diminished the pangs as I see the aprons and skirts go whisking by.<br /><br />I think I need to plan a tea party for May, so I can get dressed up. The renfaires seem very far away.<br />
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.<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-15469168087058508012015-03-25T13:23:00.000-04:002015-03-25T13:23:00.168-04:00Next Era<br />
When browsing around the internet I came across <a href="http://historicalsewing.com/building-a-dream-regency-wardrobe" target="_blank">this Dream Regency Wardrobe</a>. There are way too many pieces to this wardrobe for me, but oh goodness wouldn’t I like a dream wardrobe full of historical clothes! Actually, I do have a closet full of historical clothes, but they represent eras from the 12th Century through 1945. And the itch has struck me again, I think I need to take up a new time period!<br />
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What with a baby, job, house, and the eras I already play in I probably do not need another time period, but remember the link that started this crazy train of thought is about dreams, and my current daydream is about the next era that I would undertake, if I were to undertake another era. But which one? Well there would have to be local events at which I could take part, and it would be a bonus if I could bring Percy along. There would need to be something about the era that I was interested in researching. Oh and the outfit. Is there a specific outfit that I would like to re-create?<br />
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Here are my three top choices of the moment:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo83qUwEv4q7Lm3P8ogz37AJZ_8_s0W6L1eXtW6DUx3FilhU-ZcdFmu5vHl1a7nCMNIZ_eM4Te0LFLN8SEGew2Hh3JbMZpsj36hDOCLFL7bExIGUd1eAjV5rfDbHMcMZZUj3im5mH7h5mm/s1600/next+regency+project.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo83qUwEv4q7Lm3P8ogz37AJZ_8_s0W6L1eXtW6DUx3FilhU-ZcdFmu5vHl1a7nCMNIZ_eM4Te0LFLN8SEGew2Hh3JbMZpsj36hDOCLFL7bExIGUd1eAjV5rfDbHMcMZZUj3im5mH7h5mm/s1600/next+regency+project.jpg" height="320" width="204" /></a><u>1812: Proper Young Lady</u><br />
Oh how I would love to reenact the era of Jane Austen. The crisp white dresses, the romance, the dancing! And I could take part in the <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/regency-ladies-wedgie-society/" target="_blank">Regency Ladies' Wedgie Society</a>! But really, I’m not a young lady any more, and Jane is so far across the pond. How does the era stack up against my list?<br />
<b>Events:</b> There is an awesome, if somewhat early (year 1800) event that takes place down in Providence RI called: <a href="http://whatcheerday.com/" target="_blank">What Cheer Day</a>. I’m not sure I’m up to their standards, and it is very far, but I do dream of taking part one day. <a href="http://vintagedancers.org/events.html" target="_blank">Commonwealth Vintage Dancers</a> do have a Regency dance weekend, I’m busy that weekend this year, but maybe next year.<br />
<b>Research:</b> The museum where I work has a house furnished to the late 18teens, I could certainly start there. I might even continue just looking at Portsmouth history during that time, there is a rich history that involves African Americans, neighborhood fires, the start of industry, and the blossoming of the neighborhood known as Puddle Pock.<br />
<b>Outfit:</b> I actually already have a few dresses and spencers that could go in this time, but I’ve really always wanted to make a military inspired wool pelisse. I love the long lines, and the warm look in the face of all the flimsy cotton!<br />
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<u>1912: Suffragette</u><br />
Cast off the shackles of yesterday! But seriously, we’re still fighting these battles, and what better way for a reenactor feminist to do so than by honoring the suffragettes of our past? That and I’ve wanted an early 1900s suit forever.<br />
<b>Events:</b> Well, now that the anniversary of the titanic is past, I don’t actually know of any events where I could wear this. Maybe just out to tea? A few years ago a friend hosted a fancy tea in Concord, MA, and a few years before that we went to dress-up tea on Cape Cod. Maybe it is time for me to host one <a href="http://www.silverfountain.com/tea-parlor/" target="_blank">not too far</a> from our new house.<br />
<b>Research:</b> I am intrigued by the time right before World War One. I even have a couple of books on this era just waiting to be read. I wonder when I’ll have time to read a whole book.<br />
<b>Outfit:</b> Did I mention that I already have the design picked out? I’ve wanted a traveling or walking suit for a very long time. I think they are elegant, yet practical, and I think the style would fit my frame so well. Oh, and I already bought the fabric, it is a white wool with red pinstripes. Oh, how I want to make this!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOILTGbgJ-uN7e_P8s5XVE8jhbxX_ENY1LqqWw-4JsWBgOgiqspP7QB2fk1DqcozPOC-FloZMmNvIMUG65nyuFUloggyQHv9EqYxsBd5nFdjbJnLxV5WA7wK7Sgda0JLpSbtwRuIMMPi2N/s1600/flapper+factory+dress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOILTGbgJ-uN7e_P8s5XVE8jhbxX_ENY1LqqWw-4JsWBgOgiqspP7QB2fk1DqcozPOC-FloZMmNvIMUG65nyuFUloggyQHv9EqYxsBd5nFdjbJnLxV5WA7wK7Sgda0JLpSbtwRuIMMPi2N/s1600/flapper+factory+dress.jpg" height="320" width="227" /></a><br />
<u>1920s Leisure Life</u><br />
Oh the dancing, the picnics, the croquet! Actually this time appeals less to me than some of the others, but there are plenty of events, right in my area.<br />
<b>Events:</b> This one is very event heavy. Last year we attended the “<a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2014/08/percys-first-lh-event.html" target="_blank">Jazz-Age Lawn Party</a>” down in Ipswitch Mass, and now I find there is a similar one here on the <a href="http://oldasadam.com/gatsby-on-the-isles/" target="_blank">seacoast of NH</a> that involves a boat ride out to the islands, and a picnic by the old hotel. Blankets on the lawn on a summer afternoon are perfect places for toddlers, I think these sorts of events fit the family for this summer.<br />
<b>Research:</b> I think what most interest me about the 20s is the dance. I’d love to learn the Charleston, foxtrot, and I bet I could learn a lot about daily life by studying dance trends.<br />
<b>Outfit:</b> Last year I just bought some stuff from TJ Maxx to attend our first event, but I would be way too embarrassed to do that two years in a row! Besides, one of my favorite bloggers shared <a href="http://luckylucille.com/2015/02/the-hack-tory-dress-preface/" target="_blank">this post</a> about a new pattern she tried. It is a modern pattern, but from a very retro <a href="http://merchantandmills.com/" target="_blank">company</a> and looks like I could easily make a few modifications to make it even more twenties, but still be able to wear it out and about an no one would know it was not a modern dress. Plus I have a lovely pink and green striped linen in my stash that is just begging for a dress like this.<br />
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So while I'm not sure any of these project will get done this year, a gal can dream, right?<br />
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.Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-16967572143905827752015-03-18T14:06:00.000-04:002015-03-18T14:06:59.700-04:00Visual Thinking Strategies<br />
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Back in November I attended the New England Museum Association's conference in Boston. I still have mixed feelings about the conference, mostly because November is so busy with my job, and spending two days away from the office seemed like a waste of valuable time. The conference was so crowded I did not get to attend as many sessions as I wanted to, and some of the ones I did attend were not too useful for me in my current position. What I did get out of it was a chance to connect with people who do what I do, and that is what makes the trip worth it. It also really makes me want to host the FPIPN conference <link></link> in Portsmouth next spring.<br />
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One of the sessions I did attend was on Visual Thinking Strategies. Although I was unaware of the term as it was meant in the session, I have inadvertently been teaching using VTS since I was in college. Thinking back on it, someone must have taught it to me, just never used the term. I'm not sure if it was my parents while they dragged me to museum after museum or if it was in college classes on art history or museums but someone must have used visual thinking strategies on me. The session at the conference basically went through the kid's program at one of the mill museums in Northern Mass. They showed photographs of child mill workers from the early 20th Century and asked the kids what they think about the photo and why, then showed them modern photos of child labor around the world, and did the same. While the presenters were walking us museum folks through their kids program I was flashing back to an experience just out of college when I put together and ran a summer camp.<br />
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I was working at Historic Northampton, the director had given me a chance right out of college and I was so overwhelmed. But I did manage to put together a one week summer program for kids teaching about life in the year 1875. Every morning when the kids arrived we all hunkered down on the carpet in the tiny classroom behind the gallery, and I would bring out a stack of images: photos of New York and Boston in the 1870s one day, greeting cards the next, advertisements the next. We would look at the images and I would ask the kids what they thought about the kids in the photos, about the products advertised, about what things were considered beautiful, or cool or … My questions were much more leading than the actual VTS questions, which are just: “What is going on in this picture?” and “What makes you say that?” but we used the images to spark some really good discussions. The kids did not have to know a lot of history going in to the discussion, they just had to look at the image and they could take part.<br />
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Last week we were talking about a new summer camp program here at the museum that would focus on food. We brought up food in art and in advertising, and wondered how to incorporate that into the camp program, well that is easy! Giving a kid an image and asking them what is going on in the picture can be a fantastic way to establish a shared vocabulary, a jumping off point, a reference for all the other crafts, recipes, garden tours that take place over the week. I don’t get a lot of chances to work directly with visitors any more, but sitting in on the camp planning session was a lot of fun, and reminded me how much I like visual thinking strategies.Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-70424579327648060142015-03-02T16:30:00.002-05:002015-03-02T16:31:06.706-05:00A Reenactor's Timeline<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5CcGUuwo4wU5XE8mJdZSjK9C9RMDfzQhu_pHBLpObzj_kqNnp-lbAAvbTqMcX5HFiHvIHfNFy9uUJsKre2EZ1843bb9VJzSaXcrQ9KL_xJ0G7A6to03DnOHYm1nsO-caJMdtzc0PVJSv_/s1600/LHA25th2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5CcGUuwo4wU5XE8mJdZSjK9C9RMDfzQhu_pHBLpObzj_kqNnp-lbAAvbTqMcX5HFiHvIHfNFy9uUJsKre2EZ1843bb9VJzSaXcrQ9KL_xJ0G7A6to03DnOHYm1nsO-caJMdtzc0PVJSv_/s1600/LHA25th2011.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few of the groups (I'm in there in the middle) at the LHA's 25th timeline event in 2011</td></tr>
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I've attended a few LH events that are "timeline events" where groups representing a number of different historical eras/cultures set up encampments, hold demos, participate in fashion shows, and more. For those of us who portray an era that is a little less common, sometimes timeline events are the only events where were get to interact with other people who do living history. <a href="http://www.reenactorfest.com/" target="_blank">Military History Fest</a> is not called a timeline, but it has all the elements, and we've been attending that one (this past February being the only exception) since it started. When we were just starting out with <a href="http://www.landsknechtguild.com/" target="_blank">Das Geld Fahnlein</a> we drove all the way to Maryland to participate in a timeline event with another Landsknecht unit, and a few years later tracked down a small timeline event in the middle of Vermont. We've event thought of hosting our own for a while, but getting something new off the ground can be quite difficult.<br />
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Winter in the office is when I plan all SBM's events for the next year: get feedback on last year, take a good look at the way we have done things in the past, and think about making changes for the upcoming seasons. Many of the events that I oversee are very established with key elements that work well, and only need minor changes every year: Halloween is about safe trick-or-treat, Christmas is about holiday stories, music and decorations, but July 4th has always seemed a bit unfocussed. We have a big naturalization ceremony in the morning to welcome new citizens to the United States, but as fun as it is to attend, most visitors (or potential visitors) don't think of a naturalization ceremony as a good reason to come to a museum on a day usually devoted to parades and barbeques. This past month I've taken a look at all the elements we've included in our July 4th celebrations: food vendors, craft sellers, kids games, reenactor encampments, garden crafts, special tours, readings of the Declaration, a kid's bike parade, cupcake walk, the list of random bits and pieces went on and on with very little to unify them other than the color scheme. So I took off the list any bits that fit in with other events we already host: we have two food-related events, and a big craft event in the fall. Those bits that had little to do with history like the non-historic kid’s games and cupcake walk I tossed out. Then I looked at the list of things I had left and picked out my favorite parts. The bike parade is a huge hit and I love parades of all shapes and sizes, garden crafts fit so well into the museum’s mission and everyone has fun taking a bit of the museum home, and then there are the reenactors.<br />
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Anyone who has read this blog for any length of time will know that I feel very strongly that Living History is a great way to engage with the past, and reenactors do just that, they themselves engage with the past, and help others to do so as well. In 2014 there were three different reenactment groups that participated in SBM’s July 4th festivities: one portraying 1740, one 1865, and one 1943. In year’s past there have been even more: a 1770s doctor, some 1914 folks. Then there are our normal costumed roleplayers who are inside the historic houses representing 1777, 1870, 1907, and 1919. Then there are the <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2013/09/junior-role-players.html" target="_blank">Junior Roleplayers</a> who all come out on July 4th and bring to life the buildings and lanes that are usually so static. Once I looked at the event through the lens of my own interests, I discovered that I already had a reenactor’s timeline in the making, with many reasons to cement the theme.<br />
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Why a reenactor’s timeline? Strawbery Banke already shows change over time with houses interpreted from 1690 to 1950, so we are well set-up to host multiple time periods. Our houses represent some eras that
are less commonly reenacted (not just the ones during major wars) so
I’m hoping to attract reenactors who portray some of the less common
personas. Strawbery Banke Museum is known to a lot of local reenactment
groups, many of whom had told me they would like to be more involved
here. Since I do some reenacting on my own I have connections in the
reenactment community that I can utilize to get more people involved. Even more exciting to me, I plan on actively looking for groups or individuals that have non-military impressions. We show daily life here on the seacoast, I’ll welcome military reenactors but I want to showcase all sorts of history. There is a fairly active vintage community on the seacoast that I hope to engage; they love history and live locally, but many of them do not visit SBM. One of our staff members has a Model-A Ford which he will bring, and he has promised to bring out a few of his antique car buddies too. I’m excited to get some Native American groups involved, and hopefully some of the fantastic African American LH presenters that are in the area.<br />
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I’m gearing up by contacting as many local, or not so local, museums and historic sites that host reenactment events, so I can ask them questions, and hopefully make some professional contacts. I’m reaching out to folks in the LH community that I’ve never worked with before. I’m making a list of all the timeline events in New England, and finding those with interesting, not necessarily military, displays to enrich those that come out to visit SBM on the 4th of July.<br />
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<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-23879306066587727862015-02-04T15:46:00.003-05:002015-02-04T15:46:50.776-05:00Book Review: The Same Ax, Twice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs3GUFTHubUAb0p9YWDXjks-iR8RBN46abVRR6beXfZqnH90mHfvZSc_mVbJtqq2sb4AzCtsLCcUqi540-7i2EktPNOGg8p4GoB0DTURqg0soHAa9pw-UOf8dwY6NHMccVlXp0LIZCq-6r/s1600/same+axe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs3GUFTHubUAb0p9YWDXjks-iR8RBN46abVRR6beXfZqnH90mHfvZSc_mVbJtqq2sb4AzCtsLCcUqi540-7i2EktPNOGg8p4GoB0DTURqg0soHAa9pw-UOf8dwY6NHMccVlXp0LIZCq-6r/s1600/same+axe.jpg" height="320" width="211" /></a></div>
<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Same-Twice-Restoration-Throwaway/dp/1584651172/ref=tmm_pap_title_0" target="_blank">Same Axe Twice: Restoration and Renewal in a Throwaway Age</a>, by Howard Mansfield was recommended to me by a colleague at the museum. This book is not just a look at history, it is specifically how we use history, recreate history, honor it, and interact with it today. Every chapter is a series of vignettes of different historical reenactments and recreations: the first airplane, people who make their own telescopes, Civil War Battle reenactments, and more. It turns out there are a ton of really diverse ways that modern Americans are interacting with the past. Mansfield talks about how we here in New England have been interacting with the past since the Victorian era with the invention of “Old Home Days” as a means of cultural celebration and mourning the loss of family members moving away from their local roots.<br /><br />Mansfield is from New Hampshire, and writing with an incredibly local perspective. This is particularly interesting to me, having grown up here a lot of the villages and towns are familiar. The history of this region is something I grew up with. I think the book would still be interesting to folks outside of the state who enjoy regional sociological studies, but that could just be me. As someone who has both consumed the tourism of the region, as well as worked in the tourism field here, I agree that nostalgia is a part of our touristic appeal. Nostalgia is an odd concept, but one that is important when discussing how people view history, and in this case, New Hampshire history. A few years ago I tried to read “The Past is a foreign country” by David Lowenthall and I admit I did not get very far in that book before I had to return it to the library. “Same Axe” reminds me of Lowenthall’s book, in a smaller format.<br /><br />I found the whole to be fairly melancholy: guys reviving old engines are described as puttering among the exhaust and nostalgia. American progress is described as a sad state of affairs. After a section on the Nevada atomic test sites Mansfield concludes: “American places are but a moment’s bright flash, followed by long, confused memories.”<br /><br />But the diversity of history presented and the amount of connections that people were making to the past was inspiring for someone like me who often wonders if I am alone in my obsession with change over time.<br /><br />Howard Mansfield has written a number of other books on history, I’ve also been told I have to read “In the Memory House” and any number of his other books. I think I’ll wait until a sunny day though, just in case they are as mopey as “Same Axe.”<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-72011383631787905812015-01-23T13:39:00.000-05:002015-02-04T15:41:00.656-05:00Book Review: Past into Present<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWlYnyuIu40FaKXstXZboLXmICtQxHLnI2OCcX9wqSO5C9gE0YB6nSPr5MWoUUbeIPP9w2evDJd2JPkm4tMqRZmgDeZenQQYrNkbvoBIuN_y6jIKu3VK2695yLQ9mY-uQa-OlKZfCyzFx/s1600/Stacy+Roth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWlYnyuIu40FaKXstXZboLXmICtQxHLnI2OCcX9wqSO5C9gE0YB6nSPr5MWoUUbeIPP9w2evDJd2JPkm4tMqRZmgDeZenQQYrNkbvoBIuN_y6jIKu3VK2695yLQ9mY-uQa-OlKZfCyzFx/s1600/Stacy+Roth.jpg" /></a></div>
Is there a book for what I do? For creating, improving, and learning about first-person historical characters? Yes, there is one: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Past-into-Present-First-Person-Interpretation/dp/0807847100/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421707068&sr=1-1&keywords=past+into+present" target="_blank">Past into Present: Effective Techniques for First-Person Historical Interpretation</a> by Stacy F. Roth. Published in 1998, Roth undertakes to record techniques of first person interpretation as practiced at a number of museums around the US. She looks specifically at interactive interpretation: those where the LH interpreter has conversations with the visitor as opposed to museum theatre, where there is a more set script, and the visitor is more an audience than a participant. In the book, Roth covers the basics like: establishing a vocabulary, the places where first person interpretation is practiced, pros and cons from a practitioner and audience perspective. She goes in depth on how different people at different sites create their interpretations, connect with the public, and deal with different types of audiences. <br />
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The book reads less like a how-to and more like an academic dissertation, so it can be difficult to dig pertinent info out of wordy paragraphs for those who are looking for an intorduction. But for those of us of a studious mindset there is plenty to sink your teeth into. The appendixes contain both a glossary of terms, which is very necessary in this field, and a list of “character development” topics that can spur on a beginner, or add depth to an established character.<br />
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Roth was not the first person to write about Living History, that distinction goes to Jay Anderson. And there have been books published since, but Roth has not been surpassed, Past into Present is the place to start, and is where we need to return in order to up our art.<br />
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.Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-19270295626225517402015-01-19T16:04:00.000-05:002015-01-19T16:04:03.218-05:00Series Review: Tales From the Green Valley<br />After reading <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/06/book-review-building-of-green-valley.html" target="_blank">The Building of the Green Valley</a> back in 2011 I finally watched the TV series this past month while recovering from minor surgery. What a lovely series. Stephen and I watched it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRj1YYnsBGk&list=PL6LJQOAaGj2magtWkqqRQOUKF9SOK-IIt&index=1" target="_blank">on YouTube</a>, we devoured all 12 episodes in just a few sittings. <br /><br />The premise: 5 history experts spend a year on a 16th century farm, doing all the things a farm family would do around the year 1620. Each episode represents a month in the year, and starting in September they wear the clothes, plow fields, eat meals, make and use tools, care for livestock, the whole thing. This is not like the reality shows that put “average folks” in historical circumstances, the two women and three men who participate are archaeologists, historians or experts of some sort. We are not subjected to any personality drama, just lovely scenery of Western England, beautifully restored buildings and landscapes, and enthusiastic experimental archaeology. <br /><br />I am not an expert in 16th Century farming, so they certainly could have made choices that were less than accurate that I missed; but with that caveat, it all felt really good to me. I thought all the activities portrayed on the show: laundry, thatching, land clearing, charcoal burning, haying, cheese making, hog butchery, etc. gave a really good feel both for those who knew nothing about the history, and those of us who strive for accuracy in our own presentations. I definitely learned a bunch. I did not know that much about thatching, or that there was such a thing as a ceramic still for medicine making. In every episode there were times when I would sigh with longing over a besom broom, a lovely landscape, or something else in the show. <br /><br />Watching <a href="http://www.petersommer.com/about-peter-sommer-travels/tales-from-the-green-valley/" target="_blank">Tales from the Green Valley</a> was a really nice way to spend some cold January evenings dreaming about the upcoming reenacting season.<br />
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.Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-21992280398285280232014-12-24T14:58:00.000-05:002014-12-24T14:58:00.315-05:00That random collection of digits<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The average American does not know dates. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was talking with a retired Literature professor about volunteering
at the museum and learning how to hearth cook. I mentioned that we use recipes
from the late 18<sup>th</sup> Century, and his response was to ask if we were
making pemmican and other Native American meals. By 1770 (what I meant by the
later 18<sup>th</sup> C.) there were very few Native Americans left in Downtown
Portsmouth, there had been English settlers here for over 120 years. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The museum was hiring an outside group, dancers
specifically, for some shows and the organizer was effusive about his wonderful
costumes. First he said they were just like Currier and Ives, then he mentioned
“A Christmas Carol” then went on to talk about “vintage dress”. I had to ask if
he was talking 1840s when Currier and Ives started and when a Christmas
Carol was first printed, or 1900s which is when Currier and Ives ended and what
is usually considered vintage. He had no idea. When I got to see his costumes
they actually were pretty good renditions of the 1860s Currier & Ives
prints, it was just the concept of dates and names for separate eras that he had no interest in.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I gave a tour of the museum to a kid just out of college where
he had majored in history. I mentioned that Ichabod Goodwin was governor of the
state just at the beginning of the Civil War, but that we show his house how it
looked in 1870. The kid asked if it was a colonial house. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Maybe it is just the way that I use dates and events, names
of time periods versus names of styles. I like to think I’m not a bad history
educator. It does say to me that when introducing some to a historical concept,
giving a date: as set of numbers strung together to indicate a time in history,
or giving an era whether it is Colonial or Victorian can be totally ineffective
as a method of grounding your audience.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here is a challenge to you all: How can you give your
audience an anchor from which to understand you without using dates or era
name?</div>
Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-30296361693710143352014-12-19T13:32:00.000-05:002014-12-19T13:32:09.898-05:00Baby in CampHere is my annual Connecticut RenFaire post, only a few months late. I have been insanely busy over the past couple months. I don’t recommend having a baby, selling and buying a house, and managing 3 months of intense events at work while participating in reenactments every weekend. Now we’re a couple months later, this is what has stuck with me.<br /><br />Every year that we’ve set up as Das Geld Fahnlein at the Connecticut Renaissance Faire has been an incredibly different experience. In 2009 we were just starting out: everyone had new outfits, we were teaching ourselves how to cook over the fire, and starting to gather the props and gear of a military camp. In 2010 I worked hard on cooking from historical recipes, and on how we spoke to and educated faire visitors. 2011 we got rid of a bunch of the camp items that had been “good enough” and I got rid of more plastic bins, instead storing our gear in baskets, chests and cloth bundles. That year we also got some new members who brought great energy to the group. In 2012 I was working as a role player at Strawbery Banke which meant less time at faire, and most of the other founding members took time off too, so the group was small and a little strange. It was the last year the faire was in Hebron, CT and a lot of our group was struggling with burn out and wondering if it was still fun. On a positive note it was the first year we had a baby in camp: Amanda and Tom brought their one-year-old, who proved just as popular with visitors as the dog and the cook fire. 2013 we were on a new site which was challenging but we were back on track: we laughed, learned, enjoyed each other and enjoyed history. I was feeling under the weather a lot during the run, turns out I was pregnant!<br /><br />The challenge of this past year was welcoming the newest member of our family into the Fahnlein. Percy was 4 months old during CTRF, and we were all still learning how to be a family and participate in the things we love to do. Percy was totally adorable in his period clothes: he had all the outfits that Amanda had made for her daughter, plus another friend sewed him an outfit, which was good because I had no time to sew anything for him. We got our picture taken at lot. I also inevitably heard over and over: “that’s not a real baby” then got to listen to the squeals as Percy gurgled, waved his hands, snored or did something else that proved he was real, happy, and just doing his baby things. Percy made a lot of friends. There were faire folks outside our group that we had not interacted with that saw the baby then came back every day to visit, or Percy and I would leave camp to go around the faire and call on all the folks who thought interacting with a baby was pure joy.<br /><br />Before the faire run I had hoped I would still be able to help with the cooking, monitor the weapons, attend the demos, maybe even march in the parade. I ended up doing none of those things. I had Percy adequately clothed for the weather, but at 4 months old he was still very vulnerable to the wind, bright sun, cold rain, all the things that nature throws at us during a New England fall. So he and I stayed in the big tent and talked to visitors from there. We nursed, napped, I sang him songs and made funny faces, we paced the rugs or lay on the bed. Meanwhile the rest of camp was busy at the cook fire, weapons display, medical demonstration and all the usual things. It was a bit isolating, being stuck in the tent, though people did come to visit me, and I passed the baby around in order to have a few minutes to tidy up, wash dishes, eat some food. I had made a baby sling so I could wear him around while working, but the weather was just too variable for me to expose him to the elements for any length of time. I did get to interact with visitors when they came in to our tent: they would pet the dog and coo at the baby and I would try to impart a little history. Quite a few Sundays, Stephen told me to head home early.<br />
<br />Was our first camp experience with baby a success? Yes, I think it was. I just need to lower my expectations for myself while I make sure that Percy has a good time growing up.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgstf3MtEXv6_XRynBLihIyx6SPJwtrfPJSYNj3JUo3CXDTWY_Em5YFZRvmX84v_bAUjaE3zGeJYfgAlldP4FYL5UC_x7fgNpZeFeXCPmw5ED34RffZOocm3NcX2hWLKXLLgjAEnivOSQSa/s1600/percy+and+me+at+faire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgstf3MtEXv6_XRynBLihIyx6SPJwtrfPJSYNj3JUo3CXDTWY_Em5YFZRvmX84v_bAUjaE3zGeJYfgAlldP4FYL5UC_x7fgNpZeFeXCPmw5ED34RffZOocm3NcX2hWLKXLLgjAEnivOSQSa/s1600/percy+and+me+at+faire.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy, Lilly, and I at the Connecticut Renaissance Faire. Photo by Amanda Sullivan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-4798330277065219882014-11-21T11:39:00.000-05:002014-11-21T11:39:00.038-05:00Living History in Unlikely Places<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhASRJTwxpgTMZ0HPfMf-8nXtIxmtboKF3tBW-mu_9YhUrY_3hS8Ll92kPM_wc8lGUzp0RHpyWfi1o91n6KCVejs-nIQOSB5IGEvw9LfzV6I3pZ4R1Lw0xo5PItorWjmFsiqC6xrIzj6FHx/s1600/beer+sideways.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhASRJTwxpgTMZ0HPfMf-8nXtIxmtboKF3tBW-mu_9YhUrY_3hS8Ll92kPM_wc8lGUzp0RHpyWfi1o91n6KCVejs-nIQOSB5IGEvw9LfzV6I3pZ4R1Lw0xo5PItorWjmFsiqC6xrIzj6FHx/s1600/beer+sideways.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a>One of the things I love to do with this blog is talk about the unlikely places I find living history. When I stumble upon them unexpectedly it is always a thrill. Last week my family went on vacation: Stephen, Percy and I went with my parents to Portland, Oregon. Since Stephen and my dad are both fans of beer, and Portland is well known for its small, specialized breweries, we spent most of our evening meals at pubs and breweries. I am not a fan of beer, but hearing the two of them go on and on about something they both enjoy was well worth it. I ate a lot of good soup. Our Wednesday night stop was to a brewery called <i>Hair of the Dog</i>. When we got there we found their normal offerings replaced, an author was signing his book, of historical brewing recipes! The list of what was on tap started with an offering created from an 1804 recipe, and continued on through the century ending with one from the 1930s. <br /><br />While the guys oohed and ahhed about the changes to the recipe and flavors as the century progressed I was a bit sad that I really don’t like beer. I was still able to enjoy the fact that all these beer lovers were sipping a bit of history. They were participating in Living History, and making sure that the past was still relevant today. And I am always a fan of that.<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-84367404930025907172014-11-17T10:54:00.000-05:002014-11-17T10:54:31.978-05:00Bringing the streets to lifeAs Special Events Manager I get to make magic during all sorts of events. I think a large part of that magical atmosphere is created by people, specifically first-person role-players so I try to add as many into my events as possible. Even before I was hired to run SBM’s holiday event, Candlelight Stroll employed more role-players than the regular season, and more than the other events. We have 8 houses that are set up as our “Historic Houses” (i.e. furnished to a specific time period, telling a specific story, and not an exhibit or craft demonstration house) and during Stroll they all contain role-players. One house has only one person in costume, some of the other houses contain up to 8 people bringing holiday stories to life. Some of those folks are employed as role-players during the regular season, many of them are teenagers that participate in our Junior Role-player program, some we hire in specifically for the three weekends in December.<br /><br />This year I’m hiring folks to perform a few roles inside the historic houses, and I’m also hiring folks to perform on the streets of our neighborhood to extend the atmosphere (and to entertain those people who are stuck waiting in lines.) I did a little of this last year, I hired two of my friends from the Renaissance Faire to interact on the streets and they did a great job. They’ve perfected their craft of interactive improvisational theatre over years of working Faires, and the two I picked are also history buffs. I got great feedback about those two, and permission to hire a bunch more. But I only know so many folks who are close enough to the coast of NH who would want to perform on the streets in December. I’m looking at possibly hiring people I have not worked with before which is exciting, but daunting too. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Junior Roleplayers head on to the grounds during Candlelight Stroll 2013</td></tr>
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<br />The challenge will be ensuring a certain level of quality among the role players when we bring on extra people who do not have all year to perfect their craft. Visitors will not be able to tell by looking who is a year-round role-player, who is a RenFaire performer, and who is an actor hired just for this event. I am planning to do a day of training to get a basic starting point for all the different costumed people, We’ll see how much it is possible to do in just one day.<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-14281620026171704212014-10-09T10:59:00.000-04:002014-10-09T10:59:20.823-04:00Not That RichI recently read a blog post by one of my favorite bloggers <a href="http://kittycalash.com/2014/10/08/woolen-woes/" target="_blank">Kitty Calash</a> in which she mentioned a conversation discussing if the rich folks living Providence, RI in the late 18th Century could afford curtains. I won’t wade in to that conversation, but it brought up a discussion I had last year with a roleplayer that I was training about the vagaries of defining a historical person as "rich". I had to explain that although the Goodwins might have been a little rich they really were not super rich. Today we can talk about the super-rich, the 1%, those that drive a Lexus versus a Toyota, versus a Honda, versus a Lamborghini. When we have conversations about those living a long time ago, subtleties like exactly how rich someone is can be lost. <br /><br />Here on the grounds of Strawbery Banke we have a house we call the Governor’s Mansion. It is actually a very modest house. The family that lived there had five kids, two of which lived in the house as adults. So in the year 1870 there were three generations in the house: Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin, two grown daughters, at least two grandchildren (maybe three), plus four servants. By my count there are 4 small bedrooms on the second floor; the servants and children would be stuck in the third floor attic space. On days when everyone was home it would have been a very crowded house! So that means they must not have been very rich.<br /><br />And yet … They took vacations and expensive train trips every summer. Mr. Goodwin’s investments did well enough that he could fund a campaign for Governor, and had enough clout to get all his banking friends to fund the first New Hampshire troops sent off to fight the Civil War. The females got their wardrobes from the dress makers in Boston and New York. They had four servants. So they were rich.<br /><br />But of those servants, only one was male, and he was the coachman. They did not have a butler. Their servants were all younger (the oldest being 25) and mostly immigrants, so they were not the expensive class of servants. Mr. Goodwin did not own hotels, plantations, or factories (other folks in town did,) but he did own shares in railroads and bridges. So not that rich.<br /><br />I ended up explaining it to my trainee this way: if the Goodwins lived today, they could not afford their own private jet, but would fly first class. Yes they had money, but they were not part of the 1%. See there were gradations back then too.<br />
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.<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-12843826265526097932014-08-13T14:29:00.000-04:002014-08-13T14:29:00.025-04:00Fall Museum PlansEven though it is still summer by most American calendars, fall and winter planning are well underway at Strawbery Banke. The two events that started off my career as Manager of Special Events are coming around again and I am super excited to add a little of my own creativity into them this year.<br /><br />Ghosts on the Banke: last year I had only just started less than a month before our <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2013/11/halloween-and-what-im-up-to.html" target="_blank">Halloween event</a>, so mostly I was carrying out the vision of the last person in my position. "Ghosts" is a safe trick-or-treat that last for two hours per evening on Friday and Saturday the weekend before Halloween. It is a small budget event, and most of that budget is spent on candy so over the years it has gotten away from being a history event, though it is still about community. This year I'm going to try to bring a little history back, by enlisting the help of local theater groups: improv troupes, high school clubs, anyone I can find, to tell "ghost stories" or historical themed skits and scenes on the grounds during the event. I'm going to have to put in some miles tracking down groups to participate but hopefully this will add a new level of community involvement, more history, and lot more life to the event.<br /><br />Our holiday event: <a href="http://imlivinghistory.blogspot.com/2013/12/candlelight-stroll-2013.html" target="_blank">Candlelight Stroll</a> is also on my mind. To this one I need to add more outdoor activity. This is not that easy to do in December in New England, but that is what I am hoping to do. I am trying to increase the number of caroling groups, or at least spread them out more evenly over the three weekends; I am hoping to work with local Boy Scout and Girl Scout troupes to get them involved, and I have been given the okay to hire more costumed role players!<br /><br />The last one is the one closest to my heart, I've done so much historical interpretation, acting, role playing, whatever you want to call it, myself. I think it is a great way to bring history to life, and Renaissance Faires have taught me that it is also a great way to keep a crowd entertained. Since we have houses ranging in date from 1690 to 1950 I am looking forward to hiring people to portray all sorts of townsfolk from all sorts of eras. I've already written up the casting call even though I will not put it out until September. The next step as far as putting more costumed role players on site is to start in on the research, also tons of fun, and something I have missed doing!Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-59814386651966738872014-08-07T13:09:00.000-04:002014-08-07T13:09:53.197-04:00Percy's first LH Event<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percival Shellenbean</td></tr>
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Well it has been a busy spring and summer for us here. In mid-June baby Percival was born! We are both healthy and happy. I’m getting used to being parent to an infant, he is learning important stuff like digesting milk, and waving his arms and legs.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percy in his antique pram, Lilly looking on.</td></tr>
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We have not done much history stuff this year, we attended a really fun immersive event in April, and then visited the Connecticut Renaissance Faire’s Robin Hood show to attend a friend’s wedding. The visit to the faire was two weeks before the baby was due, and since then we’ve stuck pretty close to home. Now that he is closer to two months I’ve gone back to work. I have big plans for Halloween and Christmas, but I’ll share those later. We also took Percy to his first history event this past weekend. Well, he came to my museum on July 4th, when he was two weeks old, but we were just there as visitors, modern clothes, stroller, all that. <br />
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This past Sunday we got all dolled up and went to a <a href="http://roaringtwentieslawnparty.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Roaring Twenties lawn party</a> hosted by Boston Swing Central, held at the amazingly lavish Crane Estate at Castle Hill. I heard about the event last year through some blogs I read, but had forgotten about it until the Commonwealth Vintage Dancers’ newsletter arrived in my inbox. I did not get the news letter in enough time for the initial date, but the event was postponed due to rain which gave us one week to prepare. I was so desperate to get dressed up and get out of the house that I was determined to go even though we did not have proper attire, nor the energy to make up the clothes etc.. I did manage to convince our friends to come out with us with their cutie 2 year old daughter. They pulled stuff out of their closets, I scoured TJ Maxx and Marshall’s, Stephen wore his lovely tailored suit, and Percy wore an actual vintage piece, sewn for Stephen’s grandmother when she was a baby. My mother pulled the vintage pram out of the attic that she used to push me in when I was a baby, and we bought picnic stuff on the way out of town.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Shellenbeans, photo by Amanda Sullivan</td></tr>
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The weather was fine, the band was amazing, the dancers looked fabulous, and the site was extravagant. There were some impressive antique cars, and some of the vintage shops from Boston had come out with their wares. I did not do any dancing myself but it was fun to sit on the blanket, eat cucumber sandwiches, and watch the well dressed people go by. The crowd was so different from any of the other events we attend. There were a lot of folks in their mid-twenties to early thirties looking spiffy in their vintage duds. Then there were the slightly older couples who were obviously there to dance. Generally the audience felt more hipster and less nerdy than the Renaissance faire crowd, though he clothing level was about that you might find at a Renaissance Faire:
some really awesome, most folks at least trying, way too many sneakers. There were a few kids in attendance, but only a few. The crowd was also very different from those at battle reenactments: much younger, much more relaxed and fairly evenly divided between men and women. Surprisingly, it was also a different crowd from either the SCA dance events we attend, or the Colonial and Civil War dances: those tend to be much much smaller, a little more welcoming to newcomers, and fairly heavily clothing centered. All in all, attending this event made me feel really lucky to live in an area where I can participate in such an amazing variety of Living History events.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVpV_yrF_Y28yNB37pDKR-B6Jci7caUQe_6LXCXXE7OjXq0GGZSi5breqZJQdrn8TYttMMfnQzvBi7ufN__W_M48SV5lLL42m0sc8DC_ET-xI-B6U_PAl-aX_H9qR-5XWk69WRljT1Gev/s1600/Sullivans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVpV_yrF_Y28yNB37pDKR-B6Jci7caUQe_6LXCXXE7OjXq0GGZSi5breqZJQdrn8TYttMMfnQzvBi7ufN__W_M48SV5lLL42m0sc8DC_ET-xI-B6U_PAl-aX_H9qR-5XWk69WRljT1Gev/s1600/Sullivans.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sullivan family, photo by Alena Shellenbean</td></tr>
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Percy was such a good baby. He was fine in the car until we were almost there, then he submitted to the funny dress and the crocheted cap once he was in a clean diaper. He enjoyed bouncing along the in the old pram, and when we got to our picnic spot he nursed, lay on the blanket for a while, then fell asleep and went back in the pram. We got a ton of compliments on our own antique transportation, and folks adored Percy in his finery. We were only able to stay out for a few hours, none of us are sleeping through the night, but it was so worth it.<br />
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Now we’ve got to get back into the sewing room and get ready for the fall!Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4400689295697249280.post-18846634753550673692014-05-06T14:17:00.000-04:002014-05-06T14:17:57.906-04:00Looking at Old HousesOh you poor neglected readers! I'm so sorry I have not updated in so long. Many life changes happening here that have left me exhausted most of the time. Stephen and I are a month and a half away from having a baby! Inviting Alysa into our life was a great experience, so now that we've had a teenager we're going back and staring from the beginning. We can't wait to bring another little reenactor into the world.<br />
<br />As if adding to the family was not crazy enough, we're also moving, Right now my commute to work is an hour and twenty minutes, one-way. So I spend almost 3 hours in the car every day driving to and from work. That is not going to be okay once I'm a new mom, so we're selling our current house and looking to buy closer to the museum. Right now I'm fairly convinced that selling a house is more stressful than being pregnant, though it could be just that the house deadlines are approaching much more rapidly, and my pregnancy has been very uncomplicated so far.<br />
<br />I do intend to write up a blog post about the latest reenactment I attended, which will basically be my last until after the baby is born (none of my reenacting clothes fit me, and as I mentioned, I'm constantly exhausted.) Today I thought I'd write about house hunting. Since Stephen and I love history, and there are a ton of historical houses available in New Hampshire, many folks have asked if we're looking to purchase a historical house. The answer is a tentative maybe.<br /><br />I grew up in a house built in 1795 so I know the pitfalls very well: they are drafty and hard to heat, they are always dusty and for those with allergies or asthma (Like Stephen and myself) they can be a health problem. They require constant maintenance since some part of the structure is always getting old and in need of replacement. As a historian I also know the value of old houses: they tell the stories of their community, you can trace the different ages they have witnessed on the walls and floors. Also, they are probably going to last for at least another 200 years if not more, as long as someone who loves them treats them well.<br /><br />When doing our initial online house searches we are much more likely to bypass a house built in the 1980s (I don't like split-levels and we both hate wall-to-wall carpeting) and look more seriously at a house built in 1890. Go back much further (there was one house in our price range listed as built in 1760) and I get worried, unless it has been well cared for, and the insulation has been updated, that house could be a nightmare to look after. Our focus is much taken up with work, reenacting, and soon to be parenthood, we are looking for a home, not another project.<br /><br />But I find old houses so hard to resist! This past weekend a central chimney cape with a lovely barn caught my fancy, and I am totally in love. The kitchen is horrible, the whole thing needs work, and the stairs are an accident waiting to happen, but the house is nestled right into the land, it looked so welcoming, and had a lot of great stories to tell. I can imagine all our books feeling right at home in those rooms, and listening to the sounds of the house at night. I can picture the gardens and the rope swings, the living room and the sewing room, Stephen's workshop.<br /><br />Well we've only just started looking, I'm hoping there will be other houses out there, ones that will require less work, but maybe still have a hint of history about them.<br />
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<br />Alenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05653469207935707496noreply@blogger.com2