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Alan is joined by Peter Armstrong, president of Mystic Seaport Museum, to continue our celebration of 250 years of American innovation. Peter reflects on his 25 years in museum leadership and shares insights into Mystic's long shipbuilding history. The museum, the largest maritime museum in the U.S., features historic vessels like the Charles W. Morgan, clipper ships, and a converted diesel-electric steamboat. From Fresnel lenses to nuclear submarines, Peter highlights how the museum preserves maritime heritage while embracing modern innovation. Guest Bio Peter Armstrong has been president of Mystic Seaport Museum since 2020, the largest maritime museum in the United States. With over 25 years in museum leadership, Peter previously served as senior director of museum operations and education at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. Before moving to the U.S., he held key roles at the UK's National Museum of Arms and Armor, which includes iconic sites like the Tower of London. Peter brings a deep passion for history, education, and preservation to every project, making him a leading voice in connecting heritage with innovation. Show Highlights (1:30) How Mystic became a hub for shipping and shipbuilding (3:02) What you can see and do at the Mystic Seaport Museum (5:55) What makes whaling ships and clipper ships different from any other types of ships (9:26) When and how steamboat technology made its way to the United States (14:00) How the Fresnel lens revolutionized lighthouses (15:34) Where America builds its ships today (17:53) Where you can learn more about the Mystic Seaport Museum Links Referenced Website: https://mysticseaport.org
In this episode, host Claire Bown talks with Linda Norris, a Senior Specialist in Methodology and Practice at the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience. Linda is known for her work in museum capacity-building, leading training and workshops for major museums and historic sites like the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation and the War Childhood Museum.Listen in to uncover practical frameworks (such as the 4 Truths and the Arc of Dialogue) for facilitating productive dialogues and handling conflicts effectively. Linda discusses essential skills for leading conversations that foster understanding and address contentious issues. Linkshttps://www.sitesofconscience.org/Library of videos on our YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/SitesofConscience/videos but particularly the short intro to the Arc of Dialogue https://youtu.be/IhiPUh_l49k?si=nUCgXR8u3RPtoZPhArticle: Life-long Anti-Oppression for Museum Professionals by Braden Paynter and Linda Norris; https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10598650.2022.2140555Book recommendation: Clint Smith - How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America
The Carpenters' Company of Philadelphia presented the third David McCullough Prize for Excellence in American Public History at the Museum of the American Revolution. In its first award year since the passing of its namesake, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough, the prestigious honor celebrates individuals and organizations whose work engages the public and significantly impacts their understanding of American history. I speak to this year's award recipient - Christy S. Coleman, Executive Director of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. I also speak to the winner of the 2023 David McCullough Prize for Teaching, honoring educators in the Philadelphia area - Brittni Jennings, M.Ed., a teacher of African American History at Philadelphia's Constitution High School as well as Carpenters' Hall Executive Director Michael Norris.https://www.carpentershall.orgwww jyfmuseums.org and @jyfmuseums (FB, IG and TW)Brittni Jennings- Social Media Instagram @afromationavenue
In 2019, there were many lectures and commemorations of the first African Americans to arrive in the Colony of Virginia who were forced into labor for the Planter class. But, 1619 was also the year that brought the first large influx of English Women to the Colony. Why did these women agree to become wives to men they had never met? What was the role and status of these women at Jamestown? What new laws gave incentive for these women to come to a place that posed so many threats to their well-being? How did the Established Church look upon women? Today we will discuss with Jamie Helmick the answer to these and other fascinating questions. Jamie Helmick is the Special Projects and Programs Manager for Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. Jamie has degrees from Christopher Newport University (CNU) and Old Dominion University.
Mark Maloy, Liz Williams from Gadsby's Tavern, and Felicia Abrams and Kate Gruber from the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation discuss the hit Broadway show, Hamilton. Get some historical perspective on the show and Alexander Hamilton.
It's a highly charged issue - are Confederate statues an homage to history or a racist reminder of the mistreatment of Blacks in this country? Many Confederate monuments have been removed from their public places, but there is much discussion about where to put them. Do they belong in museums? Should they be destroyed? Do we erase history by removing them from the "public square"? We gain perspective from historian Christy S. Coleman, Executive Director of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, and Dr. Arthur T. Carter, who is working on what may be an inclusive way to honor the heritage of both Confederate and Union soldiers.
Good morning, RVA! It’s 66 °F, and we’ve got hurricane remnants moving through the region today. Expect temperatures to stay right about where they are, rain, and some real-deal wind this afternoon. Stay safe!Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 1,345↗️ new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealth and 16↘️ new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 136↗️ new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 53, Henrico: 48, and Richmond: 35). Since this pandemic began, 422 people have died in the Richmond region. The COVID Tracking Project has an interesting post up about the widening gap between hospitalizations and deaths in America as a result of COVID-19. Many, many people are still dying each day (1,025 yesterday), but, compared to the dark, New York-driven spring, fewer people who are hospitalized do end up dying. From the post: “This pattern in the data we compile is borne out by a recent finding that in one large New York healthcare system, patients hospitalized with COVID-19 had a greater than 25 percent chance of dying at the beginning of the pandemic. By August, COVID-19 patients admitted to the same hospital system had a less than eight percent chance of dying.” That same study credits new treatments and less burden on hospitals for keeping folks alive…and the fact that hospitalizations are up among younger people who are just more likely to survive. Positives and negatives.Make sure you take time to read this great piece by Kate Master in the Virginia Mercury about school reopening. Masters lays out how confusing and stressful these decisions are for local school boards who, ultimately, have full authority to make whatever reopening decisions they want. Part of that stress comes from a lack of data (which we’re slowly starting to piece together), part of it from a lack of statewide mandates from the Governor, and part of it from a federal government that’s often up to no good. A lot of things I write about are complicated, but school reopening is complicated.Related: In a press briefing yesterday, Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras said: “With increasing infection rates and the direction things seem to be heading, not just locally, but nationally, I am not optimistic, at this point, that we would be able to come back in person…We will continue to track the data, seek input from our families, and from our teachers. But, the number one priority is the health and safety of our students, our staff, and our families. So we’ll be watching this very, very closely.” Kamras goes on to say “Richmond is not Henrico and it is not Chesterfield…We are very different places.” which I think just perfectly illustrates everything Kate Masters wrote in her piece linked above.Yesterday, the Governor signed into law a dozen or so bills focused on police reform. You can read his press release—which amazingly contains direct links to LIS (that’s the State’s bill tracking website) for each and every bill that he signed. Gotta love that! As per always, I’m bad at state government, so I don’t know which of these bills should have gone further and which are solid, progressive reforms. I will point out, though, HB 5055 and SB 5035 which “permit civilian review boards the authority to issue subpoenas and make binding disciplinary decisions.” Hopefully these new laws will clear up any of the legal gray area we had locally about the power of the Civilian Review Board Richmond (and maybe Henrico!) is trying to stand up. Speaking of, I wonder what’s up with our Civilian Review Board Task Force…Quick follow up: RPD did end up arresting and charging four people at this week’s march in solidarity with folks in Philly. Police charged one person with “obstructing free passage,” another with “obstruction of justice, carrying a concealed weapon and pedestrian in the roadway,” a third with “inciting a riot and throwing a missile at an occupied vehicle,” and the fourth with “assault on a law enforcement officer.” I wish it were easier to track these charges and see if anything comes of them. I get names and mugshots emailed to me instantly, but I never hear if these charges are dropped, people are convicted, or what. Related, and more seriously, I’d like this information for murder suspects, too.One final police-related bit of follow up, the Richmond Times-Dispatch has an editorial calling for the RPD’s newly-formed External Advisory Committee to release the names of its members and open its meetings up to the media. I wrote similar things earlier this week, but, after hearing from a member of the committee, I think I may have been too flip. While I do think that the Richmond Police Department have burnt up too much public trust over the past few months to allow this committee to remain unnamed, I deeply appreciate how much work a volunteer committee like this is for regular folks. It’s possible to appreciate and value the people who want to get involved and make Richmond a better, safer place, while simultaneously recognizing that, in this particular situation, those people should probably be willing to be part of a truly public-facing group.Today at 2:00 PM, ChamberRVA will host a Shared Values Summit featuring Bill Martin from the Valentine, Christy Coleman previously from the American Civil War Museum and now the ED of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, prolific Richmond artist Hamilton Glass, and the president and vice president of the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce (who will talk about their work in reparations for the Tulsa massacre). This is a solid group of folks and might could be a good way to spend your rainy afternoon. Tickets are $25.Heads up: If you’d planned on heading over to the Richmond and Henrico Health District’s community testing event today, it is canceled on account of hurricane remnants. However! If you need a COVID-19 test you should get one, and you can check out this big list of places offering them—to folks with or without insurance.Via /r/rva: “In honor of the upcoming election, my fiancé made (Abigail) Spamburgers and (Nick) Fritos. Don’t forget to vote!”This morning’s longreadThe Vast Bay Leaf ConspiracyThis definitely seems like something I’d have already shared as a longread before, but a quick Google suggests that I have not! Even if I have, I’m happy to share it again because what even are bay leaves??What does a bay leaf taste like? Nothing. What does a bay leaf smell like? Nothing. What does a bay leaf look like? A leaf. How does a bay leaf behave? It behaves as a leaf would, if you took a leaf from the tree outside of your apartment building and put it into your soup. People say, “Boil a bay leaf in some water and then taste the water if you want to know what a bay leaf tastes like.” No.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.
Tales of a Red Clay Rambler: A pottery and ceramic art podcast
Today on the Tales of a Red Clay Rambler Podcast I have an interview with public historian and museum executive Christy S. Coleman. Her museum career started at seventeen portraying enslaved women at Colonial Williamsburg in their living history educational program. She went on to be the Director of Historic Programs before becoming the CEO of multiple institutions including the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, MI, and the American Civil War Museum in Richmond, VA. In our interview we talk about the empathetic value of living history programs, how museums create context in the way they display objects, and Christy’s work as a historical consultant for TV and film. We discuss her work on the recent biopic Harriet (2019) about the life of Harriet Tubman. In January of this year, Christy was named Executive Director of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, which administers the Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown. To find out more about Christy visit www.christyscoleman.com or follow her on Twitter at @historygonwrong.
We talk with Christy S Coleman, Executive Director at Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation on dealing with difficult decisions, including furloughs and redundancies. For Dexibit's full coverage on Leading in Crisis, see dexibit.com/covid19. FOLLOW CHRISTY COLEMAN twitter.com/historygonwrong
The 2019 Commemoration is a sub-agency of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, the lead State Agency planning the 2019 quadricentennial commemoration of the first representative legislative assembly; first Africans to arrive in British North America; arrival of women to build community; and the first thanksgiving. The vision of the commemoration is to leverage partnerships and launch a series of programs and events of national and international significance to build awareness of Virginia's role in the creation of the United States and position Virginia as a global leader in education, economic development and tourism. Ms. Spangler will serve as the principal liaison to state appointed committees and will oversee the planning and execution of the Commemoration. http://americanevolution2019.com https://twitter.com/Commemorate2019 https://www.facebook.com/Commemorate2019 https://www.americanevolution2019.com/engage/va-history-trails/
English settlers first reached the American colonies not at Plymouth Rock in 1620 but in 1607, when Captain James Smith and crew landed in Virginia. They founded Jamestown, also naming the nearby river for their leader, and traded with the local Indians, including the legendary Pocohantas. More than a century later, the Americans defeated Cornwallis at nearby Yorktown, ending the successful Revolutionary War. Today, both communities are part of America's Historic Triangle, which also includes Colonial Williamsburg. Find out why history is fun from Peter Armstrong, senior director of museum operations and education at the Jamestown Yorktown Foundation, who guests on TRAVEL ITCH RADIO Thursday May 3. Listen live at 8p EDT on iTunes or BlogTalkRadio.com as hosts Dan Schlossberg and Maggie Linton present the events, museums, and surviving structures in the region today.
Abby sits down with Samantha McCarty (http://couturecourtesan.blogspot.com) to discuss her research on mourning dress during the American Civil War. Samantha currently works as a Tailor for the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation in Virginia, and though she spends most of her time studying and recreating 17th & 18th century dress for interpreters, one of her first passions was researching all things to do with mourning during the American Civil War. Topics discussed: Types of Mourning, What to Wear, Fabrics & Textiles, Jewelry, Society & Custom, and more! For images & additional info check out http://blog.americanduchess.com/2017/05/Podcast-Episode-2.html
As you prepare your Thanksgiving Day meal, have you ever wondered what the early American settlers sat down to at their special feasts? On this edition of Virginia Conversations, a look at that colonial menu with our guests including a woman who literally wrote the book on early Virginian cuisine as well as an interpreter from the Jamestown Yorktown Foundation who brings colonial culinary history to life. Join us with host May-Lily Lee.
"The Crowded Hut" is a Yiddish tale about a man who lived with his family in such a dwelling, and liked to complain because it was too cramped. He sought the advice of a wise old woman (or a Rabbi in some versions) who offered some rather unorthodox advice. This story seemed, for reasons that become apparent on listening to it, to be appropriate for Thanksgiving, which is the day on which this episode is being posted.Several years before the first Thanksgiving was celebrated by settlers in Massachusetts, another group of rugged immigrants established the first English colony in the new world by the James River in Virginia, a settlement near present-day Williamsburg that came to be known as Jamestown. Since 1957, Jamestown Settlement has provided visitors a colorful glimpse into the beginnings of our nation. The site features not only an extensive indoor museum, but also replicas of Fort James, the Powhatan Indian Village, and the three ships on which the colonists arrived. Hands-on activities include opportunities to "steer" one of the ships, and to help dig out a dugout canoe, which the Native Americans fashioned from logs with the aid of fire.If you come here before April 2008, you can view a major, one-time, yearlong showcase called "The World of 1607". To commemorate the colony's 400th birthday, the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation sent word to other nations that they were seeking artifacts from that time frame for a special exhibit. They expected SOME response, but they were absolutely SWAMPED with items from all over -- too many to exhibit at once, so they were divided into four parcels, to be displayed in rotation. It's amazing to think that while John Smith was struggling to get a new country started, Shakespeare was in his prime.The Settlement portrays the experiences and contributions of three cultures: the English, the Native American, and the African. Slaves on a ship bound for Central America were seized by British privateers (a fancy word for pirates with a permit) and redirected to Virginia, where their forced labor helped the new civilization survive and thrive. Their chapter in the story is often given scant notice in the history books, so it's especially welcome to see so much coverage of it here.We do hear a great deal about the Native Americans, of course, but what we hear is often wrong. The chief of the Powhatan Indians was not named Powhatan (accent on the first syllable, if you please); that's just what the settlers called him, after the tribe itself. And that romance between John Smith and Pocahontas? Forgeddaboutit! (What? You mean Disney got some things wrong??) Actually, when John Smith arrived, Pocahontas was only 8 years old. We also asked our guide (and they have many knowledgeable guides here, many in period costume) about the legend of Pocahontas saving him from execution at the last minute. Wasn't that really a staged initiation stunt or some such? Well perhaps, he said. But note that John Smith (yes, that was his real name) traveled to several countries, and kept lengthy journals; and it seems that just about everywhere he went, he reported that some princess had saved his life. Hmmm... Looks like he may have been a fellow spinner of folktales himself.Happy Listening!Dennis (old man), Kimberly (old woman) and Zephyr (narrator) assisted by various beasts