About

The National Trust Historic Sites Weblog is primarily a resource for National Trust Historic Sites, a group of 29 sites located across the United States that are closely associated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and provides news and information on managing collections, improving building preservation, enhancing historical interpretation, conducting visitor research, and nearly anything else that will help historic site staff (whether paid or volunteer) better manage, enhance, and promote their historic sites (sometimes called “historic house museums” but we’re discouraging that term for many reasons). Most posts will be public because they may be helpful to the larger historic site community, however, some posts will be private because they contain information exclusive to National Trust Historic Sites. To learn more about these Sites, visit www.PreservationNation.org.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation provides leadership, education, advocacy, and resources to a national network of people, organizations and local communities committed to saving places, connecting us to our history, and collectively shaping the future of America’s stories. For more information visit www.PreservationNation.org.

Contributions and Contributors

The contributors to this blog are on staff at the National Trust for Historic Preservation and National Trust Historic Sites, but their posts are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the National Trust for Historic Preservation or National Trust Historic Sites. If you’d like to respond to a posting, we welcome your comments and ideas (just be sure you identify yourself so we know who’s contributing). If you have questions or concerns about this blog, contact Max A. van Balgooy (Director of Interpretation and Education at NTHP). If you wish to post a new announcement to the historic house museum community, please use the Yahoo! group for historic house museums managed by AASLH. And if you are really passionate about historic sites, create your own blog for free at WordPress.com or Blogspot.com.

History

The NTHS Blog was launched to replace an occasional e-newsletter that I distributed to educators, curators, and marketing directors at National Trust Historic Sites. Every month or so I would compile news and information, review books and articles, and share ideas that would be helpful for the Sites. But I often found that news wasn’t reaching people quickly enough and that my email list was becoming unmanageable. After talking with many people about alternatives, our Online Communications Director Warren Shaver suggested I look at blogs, particularly WordPress. In November 2007 I launched it as a test with four postings. By the next month I felt sufficiently comfortable with blogging that I announced it to National Trust Historic Sites and my colleagues at the office, resulting in 250 views. In January and February 2008, I promoted it to several historic site and museum online communities, including the Museum-L and AASLH listservs, which resulted in a record of 452 views in one day (February 12). And for one brief moment (August 1, 2008), it was listed among the Blogs of the Day by WordPress (when you consider there are over four million blogs hosted at WordPress.com, that’s a nice pat on the back). In its first year, the NTHS Blog grew considerably and the number of page visits is about 2500 per month.

This page has the following sub pages.

• Contributors