PRESS RELEASES
Bangor Museum and History Center and Bangor High School Win
Two National Awards for Excellence in History
The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) recently announced that the Bangor Museum and History Center (BMHC) is the recipient of a 2012 Award of Merit from the AASLH Leadership in History Awards committee. Only 59 awards are being given in 2012. The BMHC is being honored for their collaborative project with the Bangor High School, Exploring Historic Landscapes Using GIS: The Great Bangor Fire of 1911, a history and
science project featuring 15 student maps that were displayed as part of The Great Fire exhibit in 2011.
In addition to the Award of Merit, the Bangor Museum and History Center and Bangor High School, were also selected as a 2013 History in Progress (HIP) Award winner by the Leadership in History awards committee.
The HIP Award, given at the discretion of the Committee, is an additional award for an Award of Merit winner whose nomination is highly inspirational, exhibits exceptional scholarship, and/or is exceedingly entrepreneurial in terms of funding, partnerships, or collaborations, creative problem solving, or unusual project design and inclusiveness. Only three HIP Awards will be presented in 2013. AASLH congratulates the Bangor Museum and History Center and Bangor High School for the work that has brought this honor.
“This project is the perfect marriage of history and science.” stated Jennifer Pictou, Executive Director of the BMHC. “This is a cutting edge program and we are honored to be working with such excellent faculty like Margaret Chernosky and her students. Museums are always looking for new ways to connect with all ages and through innovative collaborations like this museums and schools can bridge both educational and technological gaps in learning history. The BMHC has undertaken this project as a way to help increase critical thinking of history and enable students and community members alike to understand our local history in new and personal ways.”
“The Leadership in History Awards is AASLH’s highest distinction and the winners represent the best in the field,” Terry Davis, AASLH President & CEO. “This year, we are pleased to distinguish each recipient’s commitment and innovation to the interpretation of history, as well as their leadership for the future of state and local history.”
The Leadership in History Awards Program was initiated in 1945 to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history throughout America. Each nomination is peer-reviewed by AASLH’s state captains. Final awards are decided by the Awards Committee, comprised of AASLH’s fourteen regional representatives and the National Awards Chair.
“Mapping the Great Fire was an amazing part of the overall exhibit in 2011 that led the viewer to a very different mental place when looking at such a defining event in Bangor’s history,” said Pictou. “Those who experience these maps will be led to a new understanding of the transforming impact of the Great Fire on people in Bangor during that time. They will also be prompted to re-examine their own beliefs about the Great Fire and to come to a greater
understanding of how the event still impacts Bangor 100 years later.”
The program continues in 2012 with Civil War maps and coincides with the BMHC's current exhibit, Women in War, the first of the organizations planned exhibits celebrating the anniversary of the Civil War.
Presentation of the awards will be made at a special banquet during the 2012 AASLH Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah on Friday, October 5, 2012. The awards banquet is supported by a generous contribution from the History
Channel.
The Bangor Museum and History Center is Maine's second oldest historical society and houses one of the nation's largest Civil War collections. The museum is located in the historic Thomas A. Hill House on the corner of
Union and High Streets in Bangor. The museum is open from 10:00 a.m. To 5:00 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Call 942-1900 or visit www.bangormuseum.com for more information.
The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) is a not-for-profit professional organization of individuals and institutions working to preserve and promote history. From its headquarters in Nashville, Ten., AASLH provides leadership, service, and support for its members who preserve and interpret state and local history in order to make the past more meaningful in American society. AASLH publishes books, technical publications, a quarterly magazine, and monthly newsletter. The association also sponsors regional and national training workshops and an annual meeting. For more information about AASLH, visit www.aaslh.org.
