NC Maritime Museum

Ten days since my last post, but there really hasn't been anything too interesting going on in that time. I've been working on a book review, trying to keep up with my summer classes (which is always hectic), and lots of the routine stuff at work. However, things are about to get busy again over the next few weeks and it all began yesterday.My wife, Lori, tried on my flat hat, but it was a bit too big for her.

Me and some of my mates from the Carolina Living History Guild headed down to Beaufort to the NC Maritime Museum, which is where my wife works. We had been asked to do a Saturday living history program and it just so happened that the date we selected was also during the Beaufort Historical Association's annual historic homes tour. This worked out really well for us because lots of folks were already in town for the tour. We set up displays on uniforms, small arms, and steam engines, and portrayed both Union and Confederate navies, both of which had ties to the town at different points during the war. We had steady visitation all day and saw over 600 folks come through. One of the day's highlights was a visit from fellow historian, author, and US Army officer, Wade Sokolosky. Wade is a native of Beaufort and has just recently returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan; I was very glad that had the opportunity to come by the museum for a brief visit. All in all, it was a good day, and we even got a little silly towards the end, as you'll see in the photos.Al Mitchell talking to visitors about steam engines
Don Smith and Ken Sewell man the ever-popular small arms displayAnd then the silliness ensued!

Back to the Grind

So what have I been doing with myself since I got back from ALHFAM? Well, I definitely had an ALHFAM hangover, as one friend put it. There is always a sort of "high" that you have when you return from a conference, but with ALHFAM it lasted a bit longer than with most other conferences. It was extended even further when my Pittsburgh Penguins defeated Detroit in Game 7 to win their first Stanley Cup since 1992.
The day after that we had a cannon shoot at Fort Macon, which is always fun.
So Monday, when I returned to the office, reality hit me like a ton of bricks. I've spent most of this week trying to get back in the routine and back to projects that were left unfinished before the conference. I think I'm finally back to normal now that the weekend is almost upon us.Photo by Tim Faulkner, Kinston, NC

New Civil War Blog

I've just discovered a new blog, Thoughts, Essays, and Musings on the Civil War, thanks to Elektratig (he's also on my blogroll). It appears to be a quite interesting blog, though the author is only 20 posts into it. Check it out when you get a chance.

ALHFAM Update 4

Today is the final day of the conference, and this will likely be my last "update." I doubt I'll do a conference overview since you can get that by reading the series of updates. I think everyone in my new group of friends is ready to get the hell out of here and go home. We've all had a great time, but are all fatigued and most of us are not feeling well. Most everyone is blaming the food; I don't think its the quality necessarily, but we've been eating an awful lot this week and I think its just starting to catch up to us. And that's to say nothing of the amount of alcohol we've consumed.

Today's sessions have been good. First, I attended a session on interpretation of southern "plain folk" of the 18th and early 19th centuries. The focus was on foodways, clothing, and housing. It was an excellent session led by two knowledgeable presenters. The second session I went to this morning was about organizing day camps for kids at museums and historic sites. I got some good information out of that session as well, that I can pass on to our sites.

The luncheon and annual business meeting was about what one would expect of such an event. This afternoon there was only one session, a plenary session that dealt with the challenges facing living history sites and what kind of future we face. While it was a great discussion, I think having it as the last session of the last day was a bad idea, as many folks were not in attendance. I sat through it and enjoyed all the speakers, but left when the Q&A started. We've got the closing dinner this evening and we're done. Its been a great conference, much different than any others I've ever been to, and I hope to make ALHFAM a tradition. I also hope to get more of our sites involved, as I believe they will greatly benefit from what this organization has to offer.

ALHFAM Update 3

Today was our free day to explore and experience Old Salem. There were plenty of special tours, activities, and other opportunities that one could sign up for, or you could go the route I did and just walk around and look at what you wanted. I started off the morning shopping for a few souvenirs to take home. With that accomplished, I headed straight to the gunsmith's shop. This place was pretty cool. It's the only one of its kind in the country; original building, in original location, with a complete inventory of what the 18th century gunsmith had in there. They build fowling pieces and hunting rifles, as well as maintaining muskets for the Old Salem Militia. "The Moravians were pacifists" you say? Well, yes, they were. They had to pay a state tax to avoid militia service, but by the early 19th century that tax had gotten quite high, so they formed a militia company to abide by the spirit of the law, if not the letter of it. They had three militiamen outfitted today and they portray the militia of 1831. It's pretty damn cool.

I also enjoyed the shoemaker's shop. The interpreter there was really knowledgeable and great to talk with. I got to see a reenactment of a fire drill, using Salem's reproduction fire engine. I did brief tours of both the Toy Museum and the Museum of Southeastern Decorative Arts. Finally, it was off to play a quite spirited game of vintage baseball (apparently an ALHFAM tradition). My team won 11-3, and a good time was had by all.

There was some business conducted today, mainly in the form of regional committee meetings during the lunch break. I attended the Southeast Region meeting, getting to meet a few folks I hadn't yet met, and hearing what future plans are for regional conferences. We have dinner again tonight, followed by another long-standing ALHFAM tradition, the auction (which raises money for the organization). Though I have no money to buy anything, I hear the auction is quite entertaining. One more day to go, and then heading home Wednesday morning.

ALHFAM Update 2

Today was really great. I have made some really cool new friends, including two from Texas, two from Canada, one from Louisiana, and one from Germany (yeah, that's right, GERMANY). I've also started to realize that living history is a very small world because I'm meeting people who know other people that I know through different organizations, etc. I've met a couple of former NC DCR employees who have moved on to other endeavors as well. I guess it really is kind of a close knit community.

The keynote speaker today was excellent. Dr. Robert Morgan, an English professor from Cornell University, gave the talk. The topic was his recent book about Daniel Boone. His stories were fascinating and his insights into historians, their craft, and what Boone's life says about American culture were superb. It was really an excellent presentation.

The rest of the day was devoted to military history, including a session on how to get the most out of your relationship with reenactors and a military history Professional Interest Group meeting. I got to meet some really cool folks in both of those sessions.

This evening there was a bluegrass concert on the grounds of Old Salem, along with more music and colonial games in the tavern. Afterwards, it was a few drinks in the hotel bar with my new friends, and now here I am, getting ready to turn in and rest up for tomorrow, which is an entire day on the Old Salem grounds with lots of planned activities and tours. Should be lots of fun.

ALHFAM Update 1

Got here much faster this morning than I thought I would. No, I wasn't speeding either. From my house to Winston-Salem, with two stops, took about 3 hr. 45 min. Not too shabby. The hotel folks were nice enough to let me check in at 9 a.m. which I didn't expect. Went to a short tailoring workshop at the Single Brothers Workshop, which was led by Drew Neill. I know Drew because he is also a part-time interpreter with Fort Dobbs and is involved in our Historic Weapons program. Afterwards, I met a friend and her family for lunch and a stroll through the pet shop, as her girls tried, unsuccessfully, to talk their way into more pets. My roommate for the next three days just arrived from Canada, via Washington DC and Piedmont Triad International. He and I are going down to Old Salem this evening for the "First Timers" Reception and conference dinner. Should be fun, but I'll be anxious to get back to the room and catch Game 5 of the Pens-Wings series. More later!

Heading to ALHFAM Conference Tomorrow

I will be hitting the road very early tomorrow morning to attend the ALHFAM Annual Meeting which is conveniently being held at Old Salem in Winston-Salem, NC this year. I was fortunate to receive a fellowship from the ALHFAM Southeast Region to attend the conference. This will be my first ALHFAM conference and I am looking forward to meeting new folks and learning what this organization is all about. There appear to be some useful sessions on the schedule, as well as plenty of time to see Old Salem, a site that I've never visited. The conference runs Saturday-Tuesday and I'll try to post some brief observations while I'm there.

New Blog

Now this is pretty cool. There's a new blog called North Cakalacky Travellers that is being authored by a 9-year old girl (with some help from her mom). They are travelling all over the state this summer, visiting historic sites, museums, and the like. This is also being documented in a parenting magazine. I say kudos to this young lady and am looking forward to reading about all her experiences! I've added her to my blogroll, so y'all check it out!

Book Review (sort of)

I've been trying to read Sarah McCulloh Lemmon's Frustrated Patriots: North Carolina and the War of 1812 for a few weeks now. I finally had to stop, even though I wasn't quite finished with the book. It is unusual for me to stop reading a book when I've already gotten 2/3 of the way through it, but this time I had to make an exception. This book was published in the year I was born, and unfortunately is the only full-length study of North Carolina's role in the War of 1812. The real problem, for me anyway, is the author's writing style. This book has threatened to put me to sleep on numerous occasions and just seems very tedious to get through. I just could not continue slogging through this book any longer.

As a reference source, this book is serviceable; there is plenty of good information in the book that is useful when researching a particular topic. I did enjoy the first chapter, which discussed North Carolina politics in the period immediately prior to the war. The book is not without some merit. I understand the the state's War of 1812 Bicentennial Committee has discussed possibly reprinting this book (which has been out of print for quite some time, not surprisingly). I'd rather see someone tackle the project of writing a completely new history of North Carolina's role in the conflict. A fresh treatment is definitely needed.