Week 2

Going into my second week, we started the process of thoroughly going through the materials that our History and Historians class gathered last semester. Since we started this project as a class project, there is already a good amount done regarding research. I have read through the projects a few times. My former classmates did an amazing job and gave us a good foundation. Now that we have the material, we will begin the process of fact-checking. Checking facts is important in any field, but especially important here. This is a project that meant to spur action. We want these soldiers to have the reconnection they deserve. So we need to make sure what we have is excellent information. This is a process that we will go through for the next few weeks.

This week has been more about learning what goes into public history projects. While working on group projects has been a theme in some of my classes, especially with my Military History and Asian History classes. While discussing what needs to be done for Olustee, I really see just how big these projects are. It wasn’t something I thought about as I worked on the projects as a class assignment in my group. I knew it was a class-wide project, but now I see all the work the other groups did. Now we are talking about what goes into a website and expanding on the work already done. It drives home just how collaborative history is as a field. When I talk to my friends about history, they often see it as solitary work. Yet, studying history and from what my professors have shared about their experiences. It is anything but. From just the meetings we have had about our next steps, it’s clear to see that more than just historians work on these types of projects.

Simply discussing our plans makes me appreciate all the hard work people put into such projects. It’s more than just historians who come together to put these ventures together. I’m looking forward to working with these talented people. I also look forward to being able to learn from them and see the work they do. It’s good to see how many people will help with this project. I have seen many people talk about history as a boring subject with not much value, but this is the foundation of who we are as a society. Understanding and honoring our past is important. I look forward to helping bring attention to the fallen soldiers of Olustee.  

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