Highlights Archives
Local History and Preservation Conference a Hit
Last weekend more than 300 Wisconsinites representing 52 counties (and some attendees from out of state) came to Madison for the Wisconsin Historical Society's 2008 Local History and Historic Preservation conference. The conference offered 27 sessions covering topics related to the theme "Building on the Basics." Presenters facilitated discussions of some of the most common issues facing local historical societies, historic preservation commissioners and preservation advocates, including fundraising, marketing, advocacy, and building constituencies and partnerships. Three hands-on, half-day workshops delving deep into issues of archival management, oral history and curatorial management were filled to capacity. Because of their popularity it looks very likely that we will host another series of workshops in the future.
On Friday, featured lunch speaker Randy Wilson of Community Design Solutions inspired the participants with seven principles for practical preservation. Wilson presented examples of projects in small towns in which residents and property owners worked together to identify and preserve their unique history and buildings as assets that revitalized their communities.
To explore revitalization in action, many of the conference participants took part in a special Friday night visit to historic Mazomanie. Architectural historians Jim Draeger and Tim Heggland gave tours of Mazomanie's downtown streetscape while Bob Dodsworth, president of the Mazomanie Historical Society, provided tours of the railroad corridor. A reception was also held in the community building, and the Mazomanie Historical Society museum was open for self-guided tours. The night ended with dinner at The Old Feed Mill, where owner Nancy Viste shared how she and her husband restored the property. Their work, along with the listing of the downtown on the National Register of Historic Places and the reuse of Wisconsin's oldest wooden depot as the local library, helped spark Mazomanie's downtown revival and its recent designation as one of America's 10 Coolest Small Communities by Budget Travel Magazine.
Attendees got up early Saturday morning for "Coffee and Conversation," which provided an opportunity to discuss, over coffee, subjects ranging from the digitization of photographs and collections to the research and survey of historic buildings with Society staff and conference presenters. After two morning sessions, the conference concluded with a lunch presentation by Jean Sanvidge Wouters, co-author of Apple Betty and Sloppy Joe, and her mother Helen Sanvidge. Together they shared a mixture of poignant and humorous family stories as they described the motivation behind publishing their family's history and recipes. The ladies encouraged the crowd to write and share their own stories for the enjoyment of their families and for future generations. The audience bought every copy of the book on hand to be signed by the author and her mother.
If you weren't able to join us this year, you'll be glad to know we're already planning the 2009 Local History and Historic Preservation conference in Wausau at the Plaza Hotel for October 9-10, so mark your calendars!
:: Posted October 2, 2008
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