Saturday, May 25, 2013

Local and Community History Month - 2013


By Diane Forrest

Growing up in school, history was not one of my favorite subjects; in fact I would say it was probably one of my least favorites.  Listening to things people did hundreds of years ago didn't interest me.   The older I got, however, I began to appreciate the stories of how things around me came to be, and things the people before me went through so that I may have a better way of life.
I am fortunate enough to live in a small historic community.  People from all over the world come to my small little town to see the way things used to be, and how far we have come.  The other day in our newspaper, there was a story about the planning of our community's tri-centennial.   It seems like yesterday when we celebrated 275 years of the beginning of our town.   The City was settled by the French in 1716, followed by the British, then the Spanish, who ultimately laid out the city’s structural grid. Each of them left their mark on Natchez, and nearly every inch of architecture in the historic areas of the City, is influenced by the three nationalities.  There is so much history here as there is in most communities.

Some good ways to discover your town's history is to first check out the local Library.  Maybe there are some books written about your town, or if not, you can check the newspaper archives.  Another good way to explore history is to visit local cemeteries.  As a way to raise money for care and upkeep of our local cemetery, the custodian decided to have a fundraiser on Halloween.  He organized several people who dressed up as members of the deceased residents and each acted out the story of their lives.  It was a huge hit, and now each year many others participate in the telling of the stories and several hundreds tour the grounds for a small glimpse of history.
Take some time out this month to see what new things you can find out about your community.  You may be pleasantly surprised by what you learn.
(Images from Google) 

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