Search engine for discovering works of Art, research articles, and books related to Art and Culture
Javascript must be enabled to continue!
Public Memory Meets Archival Memory: The Interpretation of Williamsburg's Secretary's Office
View through CrossRef
One of the restored buildings in the Colonial Williamsburg historic site is the Secretary's Office, built in 1747-48, the oldest public records structure in the English-speaking colonies. Probably few archivists and other records professionals know that the antecedents of their profession are well represented in such a popular tourist attraction. This essay considers three lessons for archivists in their quest for greater public understanding and support, drawing on how this old public records structure has been interpreted. First, the essay suggests that the story of the Secretary's Office is not well known by archivists and those interested in the history of efforts to preserve our documentary heritage. Second, the essay recounts the story of the failure by America's premier and pioneering historic site to interpret fully the legacy of the public records office. Finally, the essay indicates that the lack of interpretation represents a lost opportunity to promote public understanding of what records represent, why archives are important, and the work of archivists.
Title: Public Memory Meets Archival Memory: The Interpretation of Williamsburg's Secretary's Office
Description:
One of the restored buildings in the Colonial Williamsburg historic site is the Secretary's Office, built in 1747-48, the oldest public records structure in the English-speaking colonies.
Probably few archivists and other records professionals know that the antecedents of their profession are well represented in such a popular tourist attraction.
This essay considers three lessons for archivists in their quest for greater public understanding and support, drawing on how this old public records structure has been interpreted.
First, the essay suggests that the story of the Secretary's Office is not well known by archivists and those interested in the history of efforts to preserve our documentary heritage.
Second, the essay recounts the story of the failure by America's premier and pioneering historic site to interpret fully the legacy of the public records office.
Finally, the essay indicates that the lack of interpretation represents a lost opportunity to promote public understanding of what records represent, why archives are important, and the work of archivists.
Related Results
Study on thermal comfort zone in MM and HVAC office buildings in Aichi prefecture based on daily survey
Study on thermal comfort zone in MM and HVAC office buildings in Aichi prefecture based on daily survey
Thermal comfort has been a discussed subject since 1930. Researchers have looked into understanding the thermal comfort of the occupant’s weather at home, offices, educational ins...
Study on behavioral adaptation for the adaptive thermal comfort and energy saving in Japanese office buildings
Study on behavioral adaptation for the adaptive thermal comfort and energy saving in Japanese office buildings
Office workers use a variety of adaptive opportunities to regulate their indoor thermal environment. The behavioural adaptations such as window opening, clothing adjustments, and u...
Environment and Planning A
Environment and Planning A
This paper is a detailed study of the location history of eight software and information technology (IT) enabled service firms, with varying attributes such as age of firm, type of...
Evolution of Master of Public Health Core Curriculum: Trends and Insights
Evolution of Master of Public Health Core Curriculum: Trends and Insights
Objectives: Revised accreditation criteria from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) in 2016 prompted schools and programs of public health to shift their master of pu...
Redefining "The Resource": Interpretation and Public Folklore
Redefining "The Resource": Interpretation and Public Folklore
Abstract
There has always been practical training offered to staff in public agencies and historic sites on subjects such as how to create public programs and design...
The Cultural Public Sphere
The Cultural Public Sphere
Media research that uses the concept of a public sphere in order to measure distortion against its ideal standard of dialogic democracy tends to concentrate upon the cognitive aspe...
Public Management, Rhetoric, and Culture
Public Management, Rhetoric, and Culture
AbstractReturns to the general question of what sort of science public management is or can be and how cultural theory can contribute to that science. If public management is (as s...
When Theatre was for All: the Cork Report, after Ten Years
When Theatre was for All: the Cork Report, after Ten Years
By the mid 'eighties, the Thatcher government's public funding restrictions had taken a firm hold, leading to a now familiar position of crisis theatre management. In 1985, under p...