Hi, Carol!

I don't know that an exhibition on the Civil War homefront would be a big draw for MoMS in Nebraska. It would depend on how the homefront is presented.

My initial thought is that the Civil War homefront is a departure from what has been the hallmark of recent MoMS exhibitions--broad topics that allow for state, community and personal exploration of American culture. Civil War homefront seems much more rooted in place and time than the MoMS norm. Produce for Victory was an exception, but related more closely in time and place for Nebraskans.

I don't think it would be crucial that it open in 2011 or that interest would end in 2015.

Mary Yager
Senior Program Officer
Nebraska Humanities Council
215 Centennial Mall South, Ste 330
Lincoln, NE 68508
402-474-2131 ext 103
FAX 402-474-4852
www.nebraskahumanities.org

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--- On Mon, 3/1/10, Harsh, Carol <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

From: Harsh, Carol <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: New MoMS exhibition ideas
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Monday, March 1, 2010, 3:44 PM

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.

(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.