Unique Look at History

Many people view history as a dreary topic that should be left in books and museums; however there are historians out there who are giving history a face lift. I’ve recently started to follow blogs that offer an innovative look at historical matters.

The first is Restaurant-ing Through History which follows America’s love of going out to eat and delves into the past of restaurants and what keeps people coming back. The most recent article is titled Restaurant Booth Controversy, which is a topic that would never cross my mind as relevant to…well anything. However, after reading the post I find myself completely intrigued in the development of restaurant booths since 18^th century France. Why would I ever find that to be fascinating topic? The writer of this blog provides images that the viewer can reference to and has an exciting way of telling the history. I choose this blog because the writer serves up a history lesson by aligning it with something we all know and love, restaurants. The blog also includes a post that discusses the social importance that ice cream shops had on American culture and who doesn’t have at least one childhood memory of going out for ice cream?

The other blog I chose is Forgotten Bookmarks, which probably has the most interesting theme of all the blogs I’ve discovered. The writer of this blog is a used and rare bookseller and the blog is based on all the odd things left behind in the pages of the books. What is great about these findings is that they are unanticipated primary sources found by chance. It is exciting to think that you are stumbling upon something that was once important and personal but there is no telling when it was last seen. The objects found include a letter dated 1883, polaroids, business cards, valentines, recipes, flattened plants, and even foreign currency. What I really like about the blog is that the writer doesn’t try to create a history or story behind each found piece but lets the viewer come to their own conclusion of who the owner once was based on the object and the book it was found in. The blog ignites a conversation but leaves it open for discussion and I find that to be the best way to instigate learning on a topic.

I like these blogs because they make history exciting by showing it in a relatable topic like restaurants or by playing off of our curiosities with what bookmarks are left behind as clues to our social history.