| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Beach Girl |
Posted - Jan 07 2007 : 8:42:29 PM
THANK YOU all for the warm welcome! Several of you have asked about my living history programs, so here you go.....it's a long one! I have put it here because it is how I supplemented my income.
Welcome to your Window to the Past!
I combined my love of (American) history with my theatre background. People will often say something to me about being a reenactor. That's different; that's a hobby that I have found a lot of inaccuracies in, especially when it comes to women and their clothing. I thrive on accuracy because without it and proper documentation of what I am telling people, they get the wrong picture of the past. History books give names, dates and places. I bring to life the way people actually lived, dressed, behaved, etc. Did you know that a woman NEVER put her hands on hips/waist during the Civil War era? Why? you ask. Because only prostitutes did that and it was a signal for what their profession was!  Now, mind you the only people that know what it was really like during the Civil War, etc. are all dead, but they left behind some wonderful primary sources:first person journals, letters, and such. I read these and hire period seamstresses (one for each era) to make my clothes. I don't just dress-up or tell anyone what is not documented by a primary source. It is a lot of work to do it right, but worth every minute of the research and the wearing of accurate clothing. Our American history has been changed, watered down, left out, etc. and I aim to keep people informed of how it REALLY was. 
My expertise is mid-19th century and the South during the Civil War. Due to the blockade and overall hardships for the civilians there, it makes for very interesting history. Like.....women making shoes out of the rugs when the shoes wore out and they could not get more. In Richmond, kids' shoes cost $45 in 1863. ALL children went barefooted until it got so cold that they could not handle it. No one had $45 to replace shoes, especially for the growing feet of children. Put that in perspective of today's dollar and those shoes would cost $832.06!!! Yep, my boys would be barefooted too. It's that kind of history that no one knows about and I LOVE to tell about. 
My programs range form Colonial to WWII. I have clothing and artifacts for each of the following:
Colonial/Rev. War, general Victorian (late 19th century), the Great Depression, WWII, 19th century Maritime (lighthouses/life saving stations), 18th/19th century herbal healing (I call that one "Nature's Pharmacy"), "Christmas Past" which covers American Christmas history from Jamestown to now, and the Civil War (CW), which has several sub-categories/programs within it: Southern homefront life, which I call "Making Do", kids (includes toys/games and school), and Elizabeth Van Lew (the Yankee spy living in Richmond during the war).
My clothes are accurate down to my underwear (or lack there of!). In the colonial days, nothing was on under the shift that was worn as an under layer beneath your clothes and then worn as your nightwear after removing your clothes. So, underneath the clothes of this colonial lady is nothing but a colonial lady, LOL. When it comes to CW, I wear 6 layers under my dress: my chemise (similar to the colonial shift), my split-crotch drawers (you can not pull anything down to use the bathroom once your corset is on, so they had these handy little underpinnings that open up when you sit down on the toilet), my corset (laces up the back, 3 separate lacings), my under the hoop petticoat, my hoop and then my over the hoop petticoat. Whew~it takes me a while to get dressed! Then I have to do my hair (which I do first because my arms won't reach once I'm in all those layers. I also have to put on my stockings and shoes before I get the corset on or I can't tie them. :-)
My programs run 45-50 minutes and then I take time for questions and let the audience come up and look at the artifacts on the table. I incorporate music (I sing and play several instruments) when possible and a CW period dance if time permits or I have been asked to do that specifically. It's very rewarding to do these programs and have people learn what life was REALLY like, especially during the early days of our history.
Since I have moved out here to the island I have not yet started my Window to the Past business. I am still trying to get settled and establish myself as a member of the community. When the time is right I will market them here. I'm also brushing up on island history (which happens to be mine since my ancestors came here in 1590) so I can better interpret life here during those time periods. Most of the island sided with the North during the CW and actually wanted to secede from the state of NC! I have ancestors who fought on both sides here. My ancestors were also lighthouse keepers and surfmen (for the US Life Saving Service).
I was an independent contractor in Virginia, doing most of my work through a tour company. In the spring I had a lot of VA students coming to Richmond on their annual VA history field trips. I also did CW dinners with a soldier and a musician.
Well, there you have it in a (long) nutshell. I love what I do and I love teaching history in this way.
Vanessa
Farmgirl-by-the-Sea |
| 8 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| sweetproserpina |
Posted - Jan 10 2007 : 12:38:36 PM
What an interesting job! As a history girl myself, it's neat to hear of someone who has taken their knowledge and become an entrepreneur with it. So many in history (with degrees..) have a hard time finding careers that allow them to use their knowledge unless they stay in academia.
I'm a historic interpreter at a national historic site. We are not a living history site, (there are pluses and minuses to first person vs. third person but don't get me started  ) but we do dress in costume.
Accuracy is a big problem - not because we don't know what would have been accurrate but because of health and safety issues and making history accessible to a wide variety of visitors. We have sprinklers and wheelchair ramps, electric lighting, and elevators etc. I really like your approach because your programs give you the freedom to be truly as accurate as you can be, with no restrictions.
Good for you History is so interesting - but the way it is normally taught has most thinking it's boring and all dates. Glad to know there are others out there that are getting folks interested in what happened long ago. (And maybe, we hope, even learning from it too!)
edited to add: Accuracy is a tricky thing when it comes to history. We only have bits and pieces about the past and make a conclusion based solely on those things. Even at our most accurate, based on as many primary sources that we can get a hold of, we are never truly accurate. As I tell my visitors sometimes, there are exceptions to every rule, and exceptions on every exception. lol! People in the past were as different from one another as people today. The more I learn about history, the more questions arise, and the more I realise I don't know - and may never know  Sometimes our very best guess is the best we can do. An interesting book on the subject is E.H. Carr's What is History?. I don't normally get into all the theory, but it's an interesting pov. The idea that a historian can never be objective (or even history for that matter!) Even primary sources need to be taken with a grain of salt sometimes...
Anyway, enough rambling - *grin* it's great to have someone to chat about all this stuff with!
"Isn't it splendid to think of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such an interesting world."
http://theprimroseway.blogspot.com/ |
| CountryGirl85 |
Posted - Jan 10 2007 : 12:24:18 PM
Wow, what a wonderful thing to do! Your passion for accuracy and the little details is inspiring. History is more than wars and dates; it's people, lifestyles, our heritage. The past was someone else's present. We all wish to live on in one way or another after we die, and learning about history is one way to honor the memory of those who came before us.
Keep up the good work!
Laura
http://thecraftycatgirl.blogspot.com
"In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart." Anne Frank |
| faithymom |
Posted - Jan 09 2007 : 11:05:39 AM
I know what you mean about both Hollywood and PC history, Vanessa...
I, too, could be considered a 'snob' when it comes to that. I love period films, but I have complaints when they try to change the details to make the story sell...
and changing history to make it 'look' better is just plain...well...fascist...
Sometimes people get irritated when I point out the inaccuracies, though.
"All television is educational television. The only question is, what is it teaching?"-Fmr. FCC Commissioner Nicholas Johnson |
| knewslady |
Posted - Jan 09 2007 : 06:46:06 AM
Great job. I would love wearing the clothes. Well, I guess I would but it has to be nice to know you can come home, get out of that hoop skirt, and put on a pair of jeans. I love those little history tidbits that you never got in school.
Kathy
Will always be a farmgirl at heart |
| Beach Girl |
Posted - Jan 09 2007 : 05:43:29 AM
Hi Faith~
I don't know much about the medieval period and don't know what is out there regarding primary sources. A primary source is something written back then, not a rewritten, updated version by someone else now. So, if you were interested in medicine, for example, you would want to read the books they read to get their info and read what they wrote about. Secondary sources often have added or deleted info, so if I read those I make sure there is a darn good bibliography of where they got their info. If someone says "oh, they did that back then" ask where they got their documentation. Document, document, document!
Keeping history accurate is so important. History seems to take a back seat these days or a politically correct view. We can't ignore or change what happened in the past, but we can learn from it.
Yes, I get on my soap box in regards to accuracy and documentation because I have seen so many people come away from (particularly Civil War reenactments) events saying things like, "WOW, I didn't know that!" and it is no more true that you saying you went to the moon.
I hope I don't sound too "uppity" in regards to accuracy; I don't mean to. It's just when you have people telling you what they "did back then" and you know it's not true, it gets frustrating. When you get someone telling you that your clothes are not right because they saw the right clothes in a CW movie, you just want them to know the truth. Movies are the worst for accurate clothes; no Hollywood actress wants the corset shape, LOL.
I hope that helped you. Just start looking for who was writing back then. If you need anything else, let me know.
Vanessa
Farmgirl-by-the-Sea |
| faithymom |
Posted - Jan 07 2007 : 9:57:04 PM
Super-cool!!!
I have done medieval reenactments and I have a passion for that time period, which I would love to translate into more concrete knowledge.
Any advice on where to start looking for real info?
I did love going to events and I am guilty of not always being accurate...but I had so much fun!
Doing those events is what sparked my love of sewing.
Thanks for sharing,
Faith
"All television is educational television. The only question is, what is it teaching?"-Fmr. FCC Commissioner Nicholas Johnson |
| Tina Michelle |
Posted - Jan 07 2007 : 9:08:13 PM
how very neat! I'm glad that you posted this too. Very, very interesting line of work.
~Seize the Day! Live, Love, Laugh~ |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Jan 07 2007 : 8:57:38 PM
What an interesting job to have!! I love that you research all the small details..it does make a big difference.
I have always been very interested in the civil war era
I am so glad you posted this..and don't worry about it being long...I loved every word and I am sure I won't be the only one!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
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