| A Visit from NPS Regional Director Dennis Reidenbach
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On February 27, Essex Heritage was pleased to welcome
Dennis Reidenbach, the new NE Regional Director of the National Park Service
for a tour of the Essex National Heritage Area and series of
meetings. On hand to greet Mr. Reidenbach were Annie Harris, Essex Heritage Executive
 Director (not pictured); Patty Trap, Supt. of Salem Maritime and Saugus Iron Works
NHS; as well as key Board and staff members, municipal leaders, and partners representing several Heritage Area initiatives.
In addition to reviewing progress on the Border to Boston Trail and Coastal Trails Coalition, Mr. Reidenbach was
updated on work by Essex Heritage grant recipients and members of the regional "Buy
Local" and historical records initiatives. He
visited the Salem Maritime National Historic site where he was introduced
to community and business leaders at a reception given in
his honor, as well as the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site which is preparing
for its grand reopening. This visit was a validation of the strong
working partnership between Essex Heritage and the National Park Service and
the critical heritage preservation projects undertaken by this collaboration.
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| Explorers, Experience Essex Heritage this Spring...
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 Grab your cameras and join us as we explore "Photography
in the Essex Heritage Area" this spring. Essex
Heritage Explorers will investigate
the captured image and its significant impact on our lives, our history and the
way we perceive the world. From
Lynn Woods to Newbury, and from large format to digital, come discover Essex Heritage
through the eye of a camera lens! Visit HeritageExplorers.org...
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| Commissioner Corner: Lori Foley
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Essex Heritage Trustee Lori Foley has a genuine enthusiasm for educating
the public about preserving bound books and historic documents. As Director of
Field Service of the highly regarded Northeast
Document Conservation Center (NEDCC) in Andover, Lori provides professional services
that help institutions and individuals preserve paper-based artifacts. Lori's
efforts further NEDCC's mission to improve the conservation efforts of
libraries, archives, historical organizations, museums and other repositories. Her work also
supports institutions without in-house conservation facilities or those that
seek specialized expertise, and provides leadership in the preservation and
conservation fields.
Lori joined Essex Heritage as a Commissioner in 2004, and became a
Trustee in 2005. As Chair of the Historical Records Council, she worked to
promote it as a model for an emerging statewide support organization, of which Essex
Heritage is now a member. Lori's work promoting archival education continues with
NEDCC's sold-out spring series of one-day preservation workshops scheduled for
later this month. Visit NEDCC...
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The Latest on Trails & Sails 2008
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 On Tuesday, February 26, 2008 our second
planning meeting for Trails and Sails
2008: A Weekend of Walks and Water was held. Our plan to organize events this year by geographical
clusters, asking event hosts and regional businesses to collaborate on
developing one-day itineraries of events and bring more attendees to their
communities are beginning to gel. Better coordinated events driving more
attendees to regional inns, shops, and restaurants is the goal. Stay tuned as
our "cluster leaders" are named and local follow-up planning meetings are
scheduled. Please contact Barbara if you are thinking of planning an event.
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| Jim McAllister Heritage Hero Dinner |
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On Washington Square,
atop a massive boulder, stands a bronze statue of a man clothed in what is
obviously 17th century garb. Just over his left shoulder is the gothic,
multi-turreted Salem
Witch Museum.
For obvious reasons many visitors assume the sculpted figure is a witch. One
prestigious national magazine even called it a "determined sorceress." Who is
this man?
If you
didn't know the statue is Roger Conant who brought the
first settlers to "Naumkeake" in 1626, you should definitely join us for the Jim McAllister Heritage Hero dinner. Click here for information about our "25 Years, 25 Stories" celebration.
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| LINCs Workshops
Underway!
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 Using Essex LINCs has launched their seminar series for 25 Essex County
elementary teachers with 2 successful workshops! Teachers met at National
Archives in Waltham
on February 6th to discuss "Local History in a National Context."
Additional sites and topics include: Beverly Historical Society (Governing), Lawrence Heritage Center
(Working) and Andover Historical Society (Populating). Visit EssexLINCs.org...
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| Using Essex History, Summer Institute! |
This summer, Using
ESSEX History will partner with participating Essex County
middle and high school teachers to explore "Ordinary People, Extraordinary
Times." During  our Summer
Institute (July 14th-18th), teachers will learn how to weave
the past experiences of everyday Americans into discussions of the most pivotal
moments in American history. Coordinating daily trips to local historic
sites with a wealth of primary sources, this institute will employ the most
current scholarship and renowned historians to discuss topics such as the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, westward migration, and the Civil Rights
Movement. Visit UsingESSEXHistory.org...
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| Tom Leonard, Editorially Essex
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 March can be a long and tedious month. Winter ends the third week of the
month, but cold, raw and windy weather often lingers into April. The fact that
this month is long can also be positive. For the Essex National Heritage
Commission (ENHC) having 31 days and almost five weeks to plan for the rest of
the year is really helpful. Several planning sessions have been held to develop
strategies for programs for the rest of the year. As weather improves, and we spring
into summer, the products of these planning efforts will blossom. More...
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"News from the Essex National Heritage Area" is a
monthly electronic newsletter for members, non members and site partners of Essex Heritage. Our mission is to raise the visibility of
the Essex National Heritage Area and all its historical, cultural and natural
resources, and promote our ongoing activities. Articles that are 250 words or
less and fit the editorial scope of our newsletter may be submitted to the
Essex Heritage eNews Editorial Committee for publication. We reserve the right
to select an article or portion of an article whose content is found
appropriate and edit it for publication.
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Thursday, April 3, 11 AMJim McAllister Lecture Series: "Local Color: Four Centuries of
North Shore Lore"
(Bouillon served 10:15 -
11AM) Hamilton Hall, 9 Chestnut St. Salem, MA.
Tickets can be purchased in advance here
or at Hamilton Hall.
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Thursday, April 10, 4-6 PM
Preservation 301:
An Introduction to the
National Register of
Historic Places Program
Topsfield Town Library
Sponsored by Essex
Heritage,
presented by Preservation
Massachusetts and, in collaboration with the Mass. Historical Commission. A free workshop on the
National Register of Historic Places program, recognizing the significance of historic sites to local, state, and national history. For more information
and to register, click here. |
Saturday, April 12 & 26
"Save Your Collection, Share Your Story, Sustain Your Mission:
A Primer for Small
Museums and Historical
Societies."
The New England Museum Association (NEMA), in partnership with the
Massachusetts
Foundation for the Humanities, offers this two-part program on organizational basics. For more information, download this pdf document or contact NEMA at 781-641-0013. Register early! Deadline is March 21.
Saturday, April 12
8:30 AM-2:30 PM
The
Great Marsh Symposium: Coastal Treasure in Our Backyard
Parker
River
National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters
6
Plum Island
Turnpike Newburyport,
MA
An
outstanding roster of experts will give short presentations on a wide variety of
Great Marsh topics. Three
optional field trips will be offered. Registration
is $12, pre-registration is required. For more information click here.
Thursday,
April 17, 7-9 PM
"A Visual Journey
in the Great Marsh"
Veasey Memorial Park
201 Washington Street
Groveland, MA 01834
Dorothy Monnelly will lead a visual journey through her black and white
images from her recently published book, Between Land and Sea: The Great
Marsh. Qualities of light, texture, pattern and their
interconnection that evoke a sense of this primeval landscape, and her many years of photographing the Great Marsh will be discussed. Explorers Free, Non-Explorers $15
RSVP for this event here
Become an Explorer
Friday, April 25th, 7:30 PM
Jim McAllister Lecture Series: "Cape Ann's
Artistic
Melting Pot"
Rockport Art Association
12 Main Street, Rockport, MA
Admission is $10 per person
For more information click here.
Fri. & Sat., May 16 & 17
Saugus Iron Works
Grand Re-Opening
Summer Safaris 2008...
Essex
Heritage is working with Hunt's Photo & Video on plans for summer 2008 Photo
Safaris! You will once again have an opportunity to test the
latest in digital photography and optical equipment from Canon, Nikon, Olympus, and Tamron on backdrops featuring
some of the Heritage Area's best landscapes. Events will include demonstrations and tips from
professional photographers and camera manufacturers. 2008 Photo Safari dates
and locations will be available at EssexHeritage.org.
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Coastal Trails
Coalition Recounts
Successful Year
From the outside looking in, the process of developing a multi-use trail
may appear to be a slow, drawn-out affair with few notable milestones. In
reality, it is more often a dynamic and complex undertaking where small pieces lead
to the proverbial greater whole. A good illustration is the Coastal Trails
Coalition and its work to create the Coastal Trails Network, a 30-mile system
of interconnected trails and bikeways linking the lower Merrimack
Valley communities of Amesbury,
Newbury, Newburyport and Salisbury. |
| Formed in partnership with Essex National
Heritage Commission, the National Park Service Rivers and Trails Program and
the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission, the CTC and its member communities
recently celebrated another outstanding year of "bricks and mortar"
achievements. Click
here (pdf) to review CTC Highlights of 2007. |
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Give the Gift of Discovery...
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An Explorers membership!
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The Essex National Heritage Area is one of 37 heritage areas affiliated with the National Park Service. |
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