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What Is Public History? Publics and Their Pasts, Meanings and Practices
Author(s): Jill Liddington
Reviewed work(s):
Source: Oral History, Vol. 30, No. 1, Women's Narratives of Resistance (Spring, 2002), pp. 83-
93
Published by: Oral History Society
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40179644 .
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PUBUC HISTORY
by JillLiddington
Whatare the broad meanings of 'publichistory', and how is it used by prac- ABSTRACT|
titioners and by academics? Here, I track the way different meanings have
developed - first in the United States, then in Australia,and most recently
in Britain.I explore the keyword 'public', seeing whether social or cultural KEYWORDS:
Public history;
theorists can help; and finallyconsider how theoretical concerns help prac-
treritaQG/
tising public historians - citing examples of good practice. public sphere
What is Public History - and what do public history or the Imperial War Museum's 'The
historians do? There has recently been an Trench Experience',4 the popular past is
audible explosion of popular presentations of presentedas if it is just down the road, merely
the past. It has become almost impossible to roundthe corner,just a finger-tipaway.No need
switch on the television without encountering for passportor troublesometravel;you can just
Simon Schama'sprime-timeseries A Historyof flick the TV switch, click on your mouse,
Britain,or Steven Spielberg'sdramatizeddocu- browse on the History Channel,5and you are
mentary Band of Brothers;*or to turn on the instantly- frequently,pleasurably- there.
radio without eavesdroppinginto a discussion The past, or at least its popular presenta-
about memory and remembering.Enthusiasm tions, surroundsus now. The past means busi-
for living history'grips the nation: The 1940s ness. Radio producersscour their contacts for
House series, with a contemporary family appropriatehistorianswho can sum up current
volunteeringto 'relive' rationingand the blitz, research in a few crisp sentences. Even elite
was wildly popular.So much so that the Impe- academic associations debate 'Historians and
rialWarMuseum's'1940s House' exhibition,in their Publics'.6 Pioneering Ruskin College,
which '17 BraemarGardens, West Wickham' Oxford offers an MA in Public History,while
was reconstructedin all its suburbanordinari- other institutionsrun courses in appliedhistory
ness - to the delight of large parties of young or heritagestudieswith a publichistorycompo-
school-pupils - has been extended twice, to nent.7And of course the Oral Historyjournal,
mid-2002.2Meanwhile,the BBCHistorymaga- committed to a broad readership,now has its
zine, offering'Historyto go' and 'Historyon the own Public History section.
Net', sells over 50,000 copies a month. So: are we all public historians now? Is
Yes, 'the past is a foreign country';they still everyonewho works on the past with members
'do things differentlythere'.3But increasingly, of the public (whetherthey be museumvisitors,
whether it is Schama's drum-and-trumpet television viewers or partiesof school pupils) a
Acknowledgements (eds), Packaging the Past? PublicHistories, Historians,200 1. Thanksto Constance Schulz
I am gratefulto many people for theirtime and Melbourne: Melbourne UniversityPress, 1991 , for introducingme to Dwight Pitcaithley,NPS
conversations.Earlierversionsof this paper p 4; also applied historycourses, see Chief Historian;I am gratefulto Dwight and
were given at RuskinCollege's 2001 Public Constance Schulz, 'Becoming a Public LauraFellerfor discussion, Washington, May
Historyconference and at Leeds University's Historian'inJ Gardner and P LaPaglia(eds), 2001.
School of ContinuingEducation'sresearch PublicHistory:essays fromthe field, Malabar: 21. http://www.ncph
seminar.I would also particularlylike to thank Kreiger,1999, p 31. 22. Radical HistoryReview, 79, Winter
Joanna Bornat,Dave Peacock, Hilda Kean, 1 2. RobertKelley,'PublicHistory:its origins, 2001 , interviewwith Mike Wallace, p 68.
Simon Ditchfield,Constance Schulz, Graham natureand prospects', The PublicHistorian, http://chnm.gmu.edu/rhr/rhr.htm. RHRbegan
Smithand Stephen Hussey for commentingon 1:1, autumn 1978, quoted by Davison, its regularpublic historysection in 1987;
an earlierdraftof thisarticle. The opinions 1991 ; Kelleywas an environmentalhistorian thanksto Dave Kinkelafor this.
expressed are of course my own. and G Wesley Johnson an Africanhistorian 23. 'Become a memberof the Colonial
interestedin local history. WilliamsburgFoundationand help us share the
NOTES 13. RonaldJ Grele, 'Whose Public?Whose lessons of our past with today's young minds',
1 . Radio Times,5-1 1 May, 2001 ; & 29 History?What is the Goal of a Public leaflet, with inducementsto contributors.
September-5October 2001 . Historian?',The PublicHistorian,3:1, 198 1, 24. Rickard& Spearritt,1991, 'Introduction',
2. Radio Times,6-1 2 January,2001 . pp44-8. p 3; Davison, 1991 , p 14 on US's 'unreflective
3. LPHartley,The Go-Between, 1953, 14. Michael Wallace, 'HistoryMuseums in acceptance of professionalcredo based on a
London:Penguin, 1958; see Lowenthal, the United States', in Susan Benson, Stephen liberalconsensus model of society'.
endnote 29. Brierand Roy Rosenzweig (eds) Presentingthe 25. Rickard& Spearritt,1991 , pp 1-2; 'The
4. When I visited IWAA,barbed wire Past: Essays on Historyand the Public, ProfessionalHistorians'Association of New
entangled my clothes and there was 'real' Philadelphia, 1986, pp. 146. Wallace is a South Wales', 1991, p 215.
desperation in 'Captain Newman's' voice from Radical HistoryReview editor. 26. PaulAshtonand Paula Hamilton,
the trenches. 15. Wallace, 1986, pp 149-50. 'Streetwise:PublicHistoryin New South
5* http://www.historychannel.com/ (US) 16. Michael H. Frisch,'TheMemory of Wales', PublicHistoryReview, 5/6, 1996-7,
includes 'ThisDay in History','Relive 100 History',in Benson, Brierand Rosenzweig, p. 12-3; thanksto Paulfor copies.
Years:Click Here', and a display of Sponsors 1986, pp 12, 16-17. 27. George Morgan, 'Historyon the Rocks',
(includingHoliday Inn). 17. NCPH, A Guide to Graduate Programs in Rickard& Spearritt,1991 , p 78 ff
6. Royal HistoricalSociety (RHS)conference, in PublicHistory,Indianapolis:IUPUI,1996; 28. Oral History,29:2, Autumn2001, pp
'Historiansand theirPublics',April2001 , thanksto LauraFeller,NPS Historian.See also 2 1-2 for museumpresentations.
Universityof York. Donald Ritchie,'When Historygoes public: 29. David Lowenthal,The Past is a Foreign
7. Simon Ditchfield,'Itpays to help the public recent experiences in the United States', Oral Country,Cambridge: CUP, 1985, p 185.
to meet the ancestors', TimesHigher Education History,29:1, 2001. 30. Lowenthal, 1985, pp 196 & 210.
Supplement,20 April2001 . 18* http://www.publichistory.org, 31. However, David Glassberg, 'Public
8. I acknowledge an anglophone slant; but I professionallydesigned, includes reviews, job- History& the Study of Memory', The Public
hope it opens up debate on other cultures. finding tips and a summarizingessay, and Historian, 18:2, 1996, stimulateda
9. Universityof Sussex, AAAin LifeHistory offers inducementsto 'be officially recognized roundtablediscussion which included
Research:Oral Historyand Mass-Observation. as an Associate Editor'. Lowenthaland Frisch,The PublicHistorian,
1 0. Universityof York,Historyand Heritage, 19. Endearinglydefended by P Cantelon, 19:2, 1997.
AAAoption, Sept 2001; 'As a Business:Hired, not Bought', in Gardner 32. PatrickWright, On Livingin an Old
www.york.ac.uk/depts/hist and LaPaglia, 1999. Country:the national past in contemporary
11. Graeme Davison, 'Paradigmsof Public 2O. http://WWW.CR.NPS.GOV/HISTORY Britain,London:Verso, 1985, chap 2, pp 53
History',inJohn Rickardand PeterSpearritt and Directoryof National ParkService &55.
92 ORALHlffORY Spring2002
33* RobertHewison, The Heritage Industry: 43. See Davison, ( 199 1) p 6, stillone of the 58. Jay Winter, 'PublicHistoryand
Britainin a Climate of Decline, London: clearest analysts of public history. Scholarship', HistoryWorkshopJournal, 1996,
Methuen, 1987, chap 3, pp 31, 55, 1 1 1 & 44. RaymondWilliams, Keywords, London: 42, p. 169.
1 18; while this is helpfulon hypocrisies (for Fontana, 1976, pp 192-7. 59. See also 'Interviewwith Mike Wallace',
example closure of public libraries),it becomes 45. Joan B Landes(ed), feminism: the public 2001, p. 67.
a bit of a rantas it nears the present. Fora and the private. London:Oxford 1998. 60. Radio Times,21 July,2001 .
cooler account froma differentperspective, 46. ExceptTonyBennett, The Birthof the 61. 'Past is perfect' ('We're the new
see PeterMandler, The Falland Rise of the Museum: history,theory & politics, Routledge, rock'n'roll'),Guardian, 29 Oct 2001 . 'Forget
Stately Home, New Haven, Yale University 1995; &Jordanova, 2000, very briefly. the cliche that historyis the new rock'n'roll...:it
Press. 1997. Epiloaue. Habermas is however currentlycultishamong is good historythat is gaining popularity',BBC
34. Raphael Samuel, Theatresof Memory: early-modernhistorians. Historymagazine, Books of the year, Winter
vol. I - Past and present in contemporary 47. JurgenHabermas, The Structural 2001 . See also www.bbc.co.uk/history
culture,London:Verso, 1994, pp 242, 207, Transformationof the PublicSphere: an Inquiry 62. Membershipof the Power of Place
210, 297. into a Category of Bourgeois Society, 1962, Steering Group: the only exception was
35. Samuel, 1994, pp 265, 267, 274 & 1989, Cambridge: MIT& Polity, 1992, p 3. ProfessorLolaYoung, there as ProjectDirector,
Afterword;Mandler, 1997, p 474. 48. Habermas, 1989, p 164 (168), 'From Black Historyand Culture.The reporthad such
36. The PublicHistorian,6:4, 1984, 'The a Culture-DebatingPublicto a Culture- headings as 'Before we do anything, we need
Debut of PublicHistoryin Europe',especially Consuming Public'. knowledge', but did not apparently look to
PeterBeck, 'Forwardwith History:Studyingthe 49. Habermas, Structural,pp 171 . historiansto provide that. Therewas, of
Past for Careers in the Future'. 50. Habermas, Structural,p 175; my course, also one archaeologist on the Group;
37. Thanksto AlastairThomson,conversation emphases added. and archaeology is generally differentlyplaced
at the Oral HistorySociety conference, 2001 ; 51. Craig Calhoun, Habermas and the in relationto EnglishHeritage. Thanksto
also to Stephen Hussey for his honest email, PublicSphere, Cambridge; MIT,1991 , pp Constance Schulz for discussion here.
March 2001 . Had Oral Historynot had an 26-7 also 11-2. 63. For instance, the Fawcett Library,
Australianeditor would this innovationhave 52. Calhoun, 1991, 'FurtherReflectionsof established in 1926, has received a £4.2
happened? the PublicSphere', p 440 ff . millionHLFgrant, reopening as the Women's
38. www.ruskin.ac.uk/prospectus/hist- 53. Forexample, Seyla Benhabib, 'Models Libraryin a new building.
crs.htm.Thanksvery much to Hilda Kean for of PublicSpace: Hannah Arendt, the Liberal 64. Stephen Hussey, 'What Principles?',
conversations. H Kean, P Martin,S Morgan Traditionand Jurgen Habermas', in Landes, OHS conference, TalkingCommunityHistories,
(eds), Seeing History:public historyin Britain 1998, p82. June 2001.
now, London:Boutle, 2000. 54. Therewas interestingdiscussion about 65. Forour 'VanishingCentury'exhibition,
39. See 'Working-classWomen in the North RAEat the RHSconference, with some we successfullybid to a small labour movement
West', Oral History,5:2, 1977, Women's suggesting the governmentpays academics not charity,gaining about £450 which allowed
Historyissue. to communicate publicly,others arguing RAE the display boards to be professionallyheat-
40. The VanishingCentury:living, losing, need not constrainhistorians. sealed.
retrieved,displayed', May 2000, the First 55. Davison, p 7 (also quoting Grele, 66. For instance, Centres for Social Change:
National PublicHistoryConference, Oxford; I 1981). Museums, Galleries and Archivesfor All:
am very gratefulto Hilda Kean. 56. See R Rosenzweig & D Thelen (eds), The policy guidance on Social Inclusionfor DCMS
41. Ludmillajordanova,Historyin Practice, Presence of the Past:popular uses of historyin funded and local authoritymuseums,galleries
London:Arnold, 2000, chap 6. American Life,New York:Columbia, 1998, p and archives in Enqland, DCMS 2000.
42. Other speakers included PatrickWright, 187. 67. Britainmay not go down the
Matthew Evans(chairof Resource),Constance 5T. 'Magnificent:but is it history?'BBC contractual route of Australia'sPhyllisPhame
Schulz, and Dave Peacock who, with Simon Historymagazine, May 200 1 . LabourHistory or America's commercial historicalconsulting
Ditchfield,YorkUniversity,ran a 'Heritage Review inauguratedits public historysection in firms, but historianssurely need the
Studies as Applied History'HEFCE/FDTL 200 1, with reviews of labour heritage heightened visibilityand employability
project 1996-9. museums. enjoyed by archaeologists.
Spring2002 OQALHISTOftY93