Dwight Young is Digging Archaeology at Montpelier

Last week, Dwight Young was on an archaeological dig at Montpelier, a National Trust Historic Site in Virginia. He sent daily dispatches about the experience, starting on October 22 with his initial reservations (“33 years later and despite numerous “never again” vows, here I am again“) and his final thoughts on his week in the field (“If you hear about something that sounds like fun, it probably is – and you should do it. I signed up for the Montpelier gig on an impulse, and I’m very glad I did.”).  You usually don’t get to hear a visitor’s perspective on a program, and certainly not in such an entertaining manner, so

Cindi Malinick on exchange in Western Australia

Cindi Malinick

Thanks to funding from the Consulate General of the United States in Perth, Cindi Malinick (Executive Director of Decatur House and Louise B. Potter Director of Special Events, Stewardship of Historic Sites, both part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation) is working with the National Trust of Western Australia (NTWA) for six weeks to explore establishing a professional development exchange program with that organization as well as to share NTHP best practices and bring back new ideas.   NTWA regularly dispatches its staff to other national trusts around the world, but has never had the opportunity to interact with the United States in such a manner.

Cindi will meet first with the staff from the National Trust of Australia, Victoria in Melbourne and visit some of their historic sites before settling in to Perth. While in western Australia, she is scheduled to visit a wide variety of NTWA’s historic sites–including cottages, cemeteries, schools, and ancient rock art–as well as give presentations to Curtin University graduate students, NTWA staff and trustees, and also meet with Dr. Ken Chern, Consul General, and his staff.

Lincoln’s Cottage offers Lesson Plan through TWHP

Teachers who have helped their students grasp the key dates, places, events, and people in Civil War history now have the chance to flesh out one of the period’s most prominent individuals, Abraham Lincoln.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which administers President Lincoln’s Cottage, American University graduate students, and the National Park Service’s Teaching with Historic Places program worked together to create the new online lesson plan President Lincoln’s Cottage: A Retreat, which uses the White House resident’s second home as a foundation on which to construct a portrait of him. You can reach this lesson plan and others from http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/twhp/.

At President Lincoln’s Cottage, Lincoln appears as a husband and father as well as

Ensuring your PowerPoint Presentation Preserves its Format

Mark Trickett, Archaeology Field Director at James Madison’s Montpelier, had a nice tip to ensure your formatting is preserved in your PowerPoint presentations:

Have you ever prepared presentations only to find that the careful formatting goes to hell and back when you plug in your Flash drive and fire up PowerPoint?  Things can get quickly ugly, and that can bring across the wrong message or even ruin a presentation. There is, however, light at the end of the tunnel. If you knew this already then you have my apologies. If you didn’t, then you’re going to love. . . embedding fonts in the presentation.

In PowerPoint 2007

1. Click the Office button (that round icon in the upper left of the screen).

Patrick O’Connell to serve as Judge for Tailgate Contest at Montpelier

The Montpelier Steeplechase and Equestrian Foundation today announced that Patrick O’Connell, renowned chef and proprietor of the Inn at Little Washington, will serve as the celebrity judge for the annual Dolley Madison Tailgate Competition. The competition will take place on Saturday, November 7, 2009, during the 75th Running of the Montpelier Hunt Races on the grounds of James Madison’s Montpelier, a National Trust Historic Site.

“Tailgating is a favorite tradition among Montpelier Hunt Races attendees,” said Martha Strawther, executive director of the Montpelier Steeplechase and Equestrian Foundation. “This year we are honored to host Chef Patrick O’Connell as our celebrity judge. Chef O’Connell is known for his exquisite taste and eye for detail. We are certain contest participants will delight in the chance to visit with him one-on-one.”

The Dolley Madison Tailgate Competition, sponsored by “The Piedmont Virginian” magazine, will begin at 10:30 a.m. This year’s top prizes include