Thinking about what a history museum can be

Erik Ledbetter · **Posted:** Thu Jan 31, 2008 12:38 pm

An article from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Levine Museum in Charlotte NC. Much food for thought:

http://www.ajc.com/travel/content/travel/southeast/nc_stories/2008/01/30/trlevine_0131.html

wesp · **Posted:** Thu Jan 31, 2008 2:31 pm

Quote:

That's the way museums should be, Zimmern said. "Historically, museums were a repository of artifacts. We are more about telling the story and making the artifacts part of the telling."

What a great story. I agree that the artifacts are only "part of the telling" and not the focus of the telling. So much of what I see in the railway preservation movement focuses on the equipment and misses the larger picture. You can have the best looking Birney car, passenger coach, or steam locomotive, and still miss the message.

Wesley

PCook · **Joined:** Sat Jul 02, 2005 7:16 am **Posts:** 2127

The machines of railroading are economic tools. The people who designed and built them had a tangible influence on the advancement of our civilization. They are an integral part of the story.

PC