Carol,

Given the amount of federal money going to Tennessee in a variety of forms
for Civil War commemoration, programming development, and
infrastructure/preservation already (e.g., the entire state is a civil war
heritage area), it doesn't strike me as a focus we should then also be using
our resources for.  I could see how a homefront exhibit might serve as a
means of improving overall interpretation of the Civil War in MoMS host
museums, but there again others are already implementing ongoing work toward
that end.  We would likely not tour it in TN.

Melissa

On Mon, Mar 1, 2010 at 4:57 PM, Lorraine McConaghy <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>  To accompany a traveling show from the Constitution Center, “Lincoln, the
> Constitution and the Civil War,” in 2008, MOHAI developed a small exhibit
> about the Civil War in Washington Territory.  It was VERY well received,
> here, at least partly because the subject matter was so unexpected.
> Although the Civil War was a *national *war, there is an enduring sense
> that the commemoration should be placed-based and battlefield oriented,
> rather than story-oriented, which makes it a *regional* interpretation.  I
> disagree, and know from my own research that Washington Territory and the
> state of Oregon participated in issues of race and slavery, the west coast
> underground railroad, wartime treason, vexed international relations with
> the Crown Colony of Victoria, suppression of pro-Confederate newspapers, and
> on and on, in the antebellum, wartime and reconstruction time frame.  The
> first Ku Klux Klan oath that I can find published here in the PNW was in
> 1871, and already emphasized white supremacy as the paramount value for this
> secret society, that grew out of the wartime Knights of the Golden Circle
> and Sons of Liberty.  Political conviction, family ties, steam engines and
> the telegraph made the Civil War a national one.
>
>
>
> As to timing, I do think there will be a growing wave of national interest
> in the Civil War, over the five years.  Last year, we had experience in
> Seattle with a commemoration, a community-wide set of events that marked the
> centennial of Seattle’s first world’s fair, and I can tell you that the
> later in the year it was, the more interest there was.  So exhibits went
> unvisited and books unbought in January 2009, but people were flocking to
> exhibits and buying books like mad by December.  There’s a cumulative,
> synergistic sort of effect of all the buzz of a commemoration.
>
>
>
> So glad that MoMS is considering this.
>
>
>
> *DR. LORRAINE M**c**CONAGHY*
>
> *public HISTORIAN*
>
> * *
>
> *Museum** of History** and Industry*
>
> *2700 24th Avenue East**, Seattle, WA 98112-2099**
> P: 206.324.1126 Ext. 23  |  F: 206.324.1346*
>
> *[log in to unmask]*
>
> *
> www.seattlehistory.org*
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> *From:* Harsh, Carol [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> *Sent:* Monday, March 01, 2010 1:44 PM
> *To:* [log in to unmask]
> *Subject:* New MoMS exhibition ideas
>
>
>
> Dear MoMS family and friends,
>
>
> We are exploring some ideas for the next MoMS exhibition and want to get
> some quick feedback in preparation for a meeting on March 17 with some
> curators at the National Museum of American History and the National
> Portrait Gallery.
>
>
>
> There was a lot of talk at the Federation Conference about the upcoming 150
> th anniversary of the Civil War.  We are exploring the possibility of
> developing an exhibition on the Civil War Homefront.  This is something that
> we discussed with quite a few folks at the conference and heard resounding
> support.   Since you have hosted MoMS exhibitions in the past you have a
> good feel for potential interest among the host communities, so we are
> interested in knowing your reaction to this idea, too.
>
>
>
> So, I have three questions:
>
>
>
> (1)    Are you interested in a MoMS exhibition centered on the homefront
> during the Civil War?
>
> (2)    If we were to do such an exhibition is it crucial that it open in
> the anniversary year—2011;  or could it open later, maybe Fall 2012 or
> Spring 2013?
>
> (3)    Do you think programs about the Civil War would only be popular in
> the anniversary years from 2011 to 2015, or is there generally an interest
> in the topic?
>
>
>
> We have been hearing about a lot of programming planned around the
> anniversary year.  Please let us know at your earliest convenience if you
> think your council would be interested in hosting a MoMS exhibition on the
> subject.
>
>
>
> All the best,
>
>
> Carol
>
>
>
> Carol G. Harsh
>
> Director, Museum on Main Street
>
> Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service
>
> P.O. Box 37012, MRC 941
>
> Washington, DC  20013-7012
>
> 202-633-5333
>
> 202-465-5267 (cell)
>
>
>



-- 
Melissa Davis
Director, TN Community History Program
Humanities TN
306 Gay St., Ste 306
Nashville, TN 37201
ph: 615-770-0006 x16
f: 615-916-2677