General Public History
6/12/2014 – The World Cup through the Lens of History
On June 12, 2014, the 20th FIFA World Cup officially kicked off in San Pao, Brazil. For precisely a month, more than a billion eyes will diligently watch as 32 teams compete in the sport’s marquee event. A fan only needs to watch one game to realize the World Cup is a public celebration steeped… Read the Rest »
5/23/14 – Breaking Trails at the Dawn of the National Parks System
Editor’s note: Today’s blog post is from Jennifer Stevens. My 12-year old son recently asked me why I read the obituaries in the paper. I didn’t have to think very long before I answered: I love people’s stories. Environmental history is – like all history – cut from the cloth of people’s stories. Human interaction… Read the Rest »
5/2/14 – Flying Before 9/11: a Review of The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking
Editor’s note: Today’s blog is from our office manager and (one of our) resident book worms, Jill Johnson. In late November 2000, I found myself tired and long way from home. Having just arrived in Auckland, New Zealand from the U.S., my powers of observation were not the best. Nonetheless, when I boarded my onward… Read the Rest »
4/23/14 – SHRA’s Jennifer Stevens interviewed for Boise State Public Radio Story
Earlier this month, Jennifer Stevens was interviewed by Scott Graf of Boise State Public Radio for a feature the station ran on Boise’s 1959 mudslide. It is a topic we’ve discussed on the blog before, and one that has gained more attention in the aftermath of the devastating landslide last month in Oso, WA. Click… Read the Rest »
3/7/14 – Competing Interests: Grazing, Timber, and the U. S. Forest Service
Editor’s Note: This is the second installment in a series of blogs by SHRA Research Associate Naomi Heindel on the history of the United States Forest Service. This installment focuses on the tensions, those of a century ago and those of today, between the Forest Service and western grazing and timber interests. As I wrote… Read the Rest »
2/26/14 – Meet Mark Steel
Editor’s Note: Today’s blog post is from SHRA’s Stephanie Milne-Lane. Growing up, my parents’ kitchen table was the landing spot for a variety of disparate objects like backpacks, bills, and water bottles. But no matter how much was thrown on top, a small archive of Newsweek magazines could always be found beneath the daily rubble…. Read the Rest »
1/24/14 – History at the Movies, Part 2
Copious movies over the past several years have used the film industry’s iconic motto of “lights, camera, action” to portray historical stories, both fictional and factual. While Hollywood’s films have targeted a variety of timeframes and places, the history of race relations in the United States has occupied many movie makers since 2011. In these… Read the Rest »
1/10/14 – History at the Movies, Part 1
There’s no better time to think about the role that history plays in making movies with the movie award season just around the corner. Conversely, it’s interesting to explore the role that movies play in making history. This March will mark the 86th annual Academy Awards, and over the past eight decades, a cavalcade of… Read the Rest »
12/13/13 – The U.S. Forest Service: Setting the Scene
Editor’s Note: Today’s blog post is by SHRA Research Associate Naomi Heindel. What is the greatest good? Who makes up the greatest number, and who is often left out? How long is the long run? The United States Forest Service has struggled with these and similar questions for decades, as it has attempted to satisfy… Read the Rest »
11/1/13 – An Entrepreneurial Education:Bridging History and Business
Today’s blog post was written by HannaLore Hein, SHRA’s fall intern. Learn more about HannaLore here. “Entrepreneurialism” and “History” are two words that don’t often end up in the same sentence… at least that has been my experience, until recently. I have always had a passion for history, but I cannot say the same about… Read the Rest »