Welcome!

Welcome to The Everyday Historian.  Who is the Everyday Historian, you ask?  The Everyday Historian is me, a professional historian, but it is also you -- whether you are an academic, a history professional, a history learner, an enthusiast of the past, or someone living in a world informed of its past and creating history as you live your life.  I believe that there are many ways to engage with the past, and all are legitimate, so The Everyday Historian is a place where we can ponder the past, be amused by history, and perhaps learn a thing or two, without labels or pretense or the pressure of your high school history teacher.

I'll post 2-3 times a week and keep the content varied.  Feedback is always appreciated, as are discussion and suggestions!  Some examples of what you'll find in the coming weeks:

• Historical recipes and crafts, brought to life, probably with varying degrees of success
• Book and website reviews, some serious, some...not (satire and parody are very historical!)
• "Ask the Historian", where I'll harness all my research skills to answer YOUR questions
• Discussion of history in films -- what works, and what doesn't (I'm looking at you, "Gangs of New York".  Daniel Day-Lewis can't save you from gross anachronism!)
• Featured historical homes, structures, and places.  I'll need your help for this one, so save all your pictures and best "old house plumbing stories".
• Essays on the history of topics of interest today.  Wonder about the history of gun control?  The origins of healthcare?  Why the country is so regionally divided?  You've come to the right place.

See?  Not boring, and there won't even be a quiz!