Sudbury is currently home to two iconic water towers, one on Pine street and the other on Pearl street. Both towers are in a state of disrepair and a debate over their restoration or demolition has been ongoing since 2008.The Pine street tower was built in 1946 and was used for 50 years. The city's … Continue reading Sudbury’s water towers
Interactive Learning at the Ronald Reagan Library and Museum
The most recent episode of This American Life on NPR focused on "Kid Politics." A portion of this show focused on children learning about various monumental moments in United States politics. Included in this discussion of historical politics was a look at students interacting with the Ronald Reagan Library and Museum.The Reagan Library has an … Continue reading Interactive Learning at the Ronald Reagan Library and Museum
Historical Fiction Not Fact
The CBC recently began broadcasting a miniseries based on the novel The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet. The novel is one of my favourite historical fiction works and focuses on lives of peasants, monks, and British royalty during the 12th century.Despite my love for this book, I am slightly weary of how this … Continue reading Historical Fiction Not Fact
Spanish Residential School
During my trip down to Southern Ontario during the holidays I stopped at the former site of the Indian Residential School in Spanish, Ontario. This site was once home to St. Peter Claver's Residential School for Boys, St. Joseph's Girls Residential School. Eventually St. Peter Claver's was turned into the Garnier Residential School.The site is … Continue reading Spanish Residential School
Healing and restoration
December 19th's #reverb10 prompt was:Healing. What healed you this year? Was it sudden, or a drip-by-drip evolution? How would you like to be healed in 2011?This prompt brought to mind heritage restoration and the 'healing' of heritage buildings. Ideally, heritage preservation comes prior to extreme restoration efforts. Depending on the state of the building, heritage … Continue reading Healing and restoration
Action Planning
Today's #reverb10 prompt: Action. When it comes to aspirations, its not about ideas. It's about making ideas happen. What's your next step?When thinking about what career and heritage based actions I would like to take next year the first thing that comes to mind is planning. But, does planning count as action? It's an activity … Continue reading Action Planning
Beautifully different heritage
Prompt: Beautifully different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different - you'll find they're what make you beautiful.The heritage field is filled with differences all of which have the potential to compliment and learn from each other. Academic historians, … Continue reading Beautifully different heritage
Constructing a reading list
Today’s Prompt for #reverb10: December 6 – Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? (Author: Gretchen Rubin)I've been struggling with today's prompt since this morning. The most recent thing I've made is chocolate … Continue reading Constructing a reading list
E-Readers and Book Length
A recent Spark episode included a short discussion of the possible impact of e-readers on the length of books. It was suggested that e-readers may be responsible for an increase in book length. The argument being that e-readers make huge tomes easier to transport and more accessible.In some ways this argument does make sense. Book … Continue reading E-Readers and Book Length
Institutional Personality
The National Portrait Gallery of London recently released an online collection catalogue and made some of the institution's historical records available online. The Gallery's institutional records were previously not accessible to the general public and include a number of insights into the unique history of the institution.One of the more shocking bits of institutional history … Continue reading Institutional Personality