Writing for the Public

For four years now, I have learned to write papers for my professors. I learned how to find new views on topics, how to write in an academic tone while still maintaining my own voice and how to write in MLA or Chicago style. Interning at the Old Capitol Museum has given me a new skill—how to write for a public audience. Writing in the field of public history has to be more concise to include the main points of the information without becoming too bogged down in the details. Public writing is seen particularly in text panels. You have around seventy-five words to work with when writing a text panel, a very tight limit. The premise of writing for public history is that the museum visitor is not bored reading through paragraphs but also that they can walk away with some bit of knowledge. Another aspect of writing for public history is that you have to write for a diverse audience with various educational, cultural and geographical backgrounds. Having an unfamiliar audience means having to write in much more general terms than would be seen in academic writing. Similarly, with this blog, I have gradually learned to decrease the length of each blog, while attempting to write on topics that are relatively neutral yet still prove interesting and informative.

Present Meets Past

Thursday, October 25th, the Old Capitol Museum hosted its annual “Present Meets Past,” an event in which the visitor was able to interact with individuals from the building’s and the state’s history, as performed by several volunteer actors. This event drew in a record 132 visitors to the OCM. It was made successful through the collaborative work of the Old Capitol staff and volunteers and is a perfect example of the field of public history. It effectively tells the story of these individuals and their connection to history in an interactive and unique manner.

However, one of the most popular attractions of the night was one of non-human origins. That attraction was the mummy that was recently accessioned into the MDAH’s collection, although it has been in its possession since the early 1920s as part of a donation of Native American artifacts. For several years, it was thought that this mummy was of human origins until an x-ray examination revealed that it contained various random items—such as a heart full of nails. Nevertheless, the MDAH has retained the mummy and the mummy has always drawn a crowd and continues to do so as it is brought out for special occasions. The mummy truly is an example of the present meeting the past at the Old Capitol Museum.