Middletown Peach Festival and Fun

This weekend I had a ton of fun at the Middletown Peach Festival in Delaware with the Victorians of Virtue and Valor. We marched in the parade and then occupied the yard in front of the historical society with period games, a fabulous Cinderella puppet show made from period patterns, a recruitment center, a silhouette artist and even a snake-oil salesman. 

While the festival isn't purely a historically based event, the event was lighthearted and there was a lot of interaction between reenactors and visitors.

Beautiful doll fashion show.

Salesman making some sales. 

The puppet show was beautiful and a huge draw for girls and boys alike.  Some visitors even play acted out the whole 15 minute Cinderella script. 

To finish off the day, the ladies tried their hands at a military volley.  

Then Sunday, Andy and I went to help out on tall ship, Gazela. We're joining the crew so will have more updates about the ship later this year.

Overall it was a fun and productive weekend. I was able to see friends and make new ones.

Period Shoes Hurt? Period Shoe Solutions Civil War Knitted Soles

You put on your period dress and walk outside in the nice, smoke filled air. Everything is perfect. You have a nice dress, a great bonnet and an awesome shawl. But something is wrong. It's your cute shoes. Every step you take, you feel the rubbing of your raw foot against hardened leather. Your shoes hurt and it's ruining what would otherwise be a good time.

Much of the uncomfortableness of period shoes would be assuaged by woolen socks, and everyday use molding shoes to fit more comfortably. But sometimes, reproduction shoes just don't fit quite right. Many times, they aren't made to our feet and never fit perfect.


There are a few period solutions to the problem, the most common one seems to be an insole made of "kid leather" glued inside the shoe. This would make shoes a little tighter and could cover any uncomfortable stitches or overlaps.  It is very simple to make this kind by tracing the bottom of your shoe onto leather and cutting it down as you need to make it fit.

For those who wanted a little more cushion, knitted insole patterns were widely published.

I've included 2 knitted patterns below. These patterns will have to be widened slightly to fit a modern day foot. If you have ever had the chance to look at period shoes, they are thinner than most of our shoes and feet today. The size of our feet is linked to our diets as children and modern people in general have larger feet even just compared to our grandparents. If you are a beginner, you can trace the bottom of your shoe to use as a template and increase and decrease stitches to match it.

I like the idea of sewing the knitting to muslin and sealing the outer edge with ribbon:

Plate 21

  

Garden Wedding!

This weekend I got to go to the most beautiful, intimate garden wedding ever! For those of you that don't know, I love garden weddings. I love small weddings. Small intimate weddings just ooze love. Only recently have people started shying away from small affairs in favor of enormous, lavish events.(Personally I don't believe in couples starting out their lives together in debt for a one day party.)

 

There's just something about small weddings that makes your heart feel the romance in the air. Many bigger gatherings just can't capture that.

Many of the details of a wedding are forgotten soon after the celebration dies down. But that feeling of love that burned in your heart when you witness two people can be felt years later.

This really was an awesome, love-filled wedding and I'm so happy I got to witness it. It was a beautiful wedding and such a happy celebration. Congratulations guys!

Know a Veteran? Record their Story!

LOC

The American Folklife Center, part of the Library of Congress, has been conducting an important ongoing project: The Veteran's History Project. The goal of the Veteran's History Project is to collect firsthand accounts from American war veterans, and civilians to aided war efforts from WWI to the present.





As more and more witnesses of these events pass away, their personal stories are lost with them. Many people experienced extraordinary things that they do not feel the need to share with anyone until someone asks. 

Many people discredit oral histories because they have long been associated with many problems.

Problems associated with oral history:

- Interviews conducted years after an event are subject to nostalgia, forgetfulness, embellishment, false memory, etc. 

- The interviewer's questions can make certain aspects seem more important to the interviewee than they really were. For instance, interviewers generally ask specific questions that they are interested in hearing about rather than letting the interviewee demonstrate what they believed was most important. 

-Interviewees may be reluctant to share things that they may be embarrassed of, especially if the interviewer is a family member. 

Even though there are many pitfalls in using and conducting oral histories, oral histories are still important.  Oral histories can bring up forgotten parts of history and give a human face and experience to historical events. Oral histories are good for recording emotions and feelings about events. Writers of history are quick to generalize the feelings of groups of people in the past but oral histories are one way to show the diversity of feelings and emotions that existed. In addition, they also show the diversity of experience. A farm girl might have different feelings about an event than a soldier she was standing next to.


If you would like to take part in the project, the American Folklife Center has put together resources for those interested and instructions on how to record and submit materials. 

-Here is a link to the project.
-Here is a link to their interview field kit.   
-Search to see some of the histories they have collected already.  
-Tips for Interviewers from the Bancroft Library's Regional Oral History Office to help interviewers minimize bias in their interviews.

Museums: Are We Putting Ourselves Out of Business?

We keep hearing the cries from museums and historical sites. We have no money! The economy is terrible! We are getting no donations! But is it us who are putting ourselves out of business?

It sounds ridiculous. Every historical site staff member or volunteer I have ever met worked very hard and was dedicated to their site. So what is the problem?

There are many historical sites trying to be saved today and more and more each year and in this economy, pleas for funding are coming from charities, schools and clubs.  Our historical sites and museums have long relied on the gracious donations. While this has worked in the past, in this economy, people are watching their money and trying to get the best value for their dollar. Your site needs to offer something to the public in exchange for their money.

Many sites tout their tours, their displays and their historical interpreters. I no longer think that this is enough. With so many sites in competition with each other and so much "historical exchange" between sites. Something must be done to set yourself apart.

Many sites agree and have tried to "update" their museums with multimedia displays and movies. These are great for the younger generations, but honestly can't compete with anything the kids are carrying around in their pockets. If anything, multimedia belongs on your website where your guest can get excited for a trip to your site and a little bit extra if they want some more after they visit.

Tours and historical interpreters are great but they are not the draw they used to be. Almost every historical sites offers these services. Just ask a reenactor or living historians how many more events there are compared to only a few years ago! Also, the fact that many site workers work at multiple sites and the historical community fosters an exchange of knowledge that can lead to all sites having similar offerings for guests.

So what can sites do to stay above water?

-Specialize: Is there anything special about your site? Is there something that could be done there that couldn't be done somewhere else? Don't avoid the "exchange" but think if there is a way you could offer something differently than other sites do. It's hard to think outside the box when we are all trying to teach similar things.

-Collaborate: Instead of fighting the competition, is there anyway to join forces? Can you have guests grind mill at a local site and have them bake it at yours? Can you give them a discount for visiting more than one site? Sites in my area have a special booklet and individualized stamps that visitors can "collect" by visiting all of the sites in the area.

-Invest in yourself: I know, there's no money, but if you run bare bones and never put any money back into your site, you will eventually burn out as well as give your site a bad reputation.

-Listen to your visitors: Try to collect as much feedback as possible and use it to get better. Also analyze trends and use them to offer more of what your visitors want and less of what they don't. Some of your offerings may not be worth the money you spend on them. 

-Use your staff and volunteers. I think this is the biggest mistake that many sites make. You may think you are using your staff but there is probably a multitude of things you don't know about each member. You probably have someone collecting tickets or serving food who actually has a hobby that people would pay to learn or see. You might have a worker who loves gardening and would love to create a new gardening program or someone who collects period beer recipes and likes to make them. Your staff can help you differentiate your offerings. Not every site can let visitors smell a variety of period beverages.  

We all want all sites to prosper. Do you have any experiences with this or any tips to help museums or historical sites?