I recently finished the novel, The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris. It was a Christmas gift from my wonderful sister-in-law who knows I love history. She actually tricked me into telling her I wanted it. I had seen the book on lists of books for history lovers, best seller sections of stores, and online…
Having grown up in an era when Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was already established as a national holiday, it can seem as if the holiday was a no-brainer, a day to celebrate this important man's contributions to civil rights, equality, and our nation. However, the holiday was, and still is by some, debated and…
Ok, so you may know that a few of these are about the Vietnam War (1955-1975), but some are a bit more obscure or surprising. The Vietnam War is one of the least understood, most contested and divisive wars in American history. The war was so hotly opposed by the American public that returning veterans…
Día de Muertos or Day of the Dead is actually a 3 day celebration in honor and in memory of the deceased. Despite the association with death and skulls, the tradition is all about remembering deceased relatives and honoring their memory. It is a colorful and bright celebration of their lives. The modern holiday combines…
Finally coming to the end of my Public Historian on Vacation series. I spent so much time writing about San Antonio even though we were only there for 2 days because we packed a lot into 2 days, it was our first time visiting, and it was so beautiful and interesting. After we visited the…
This is part four of my Public Historian on Vacation series, which was originally intended to be a three part series. However, I realized I had more to say about various stops along the way. However, this will be the third and final post about our time in San Antonio before moving on to our…
I currently work as the archivist for a private company. In that position I get to manage a collection, do research for reference requests, manage loans, etc. However, I do not get to do research beyond the company really so I miss researching about more varied historical topics. For that reason I have begun doing…
Our first day in San Antonio included barbecue and a tour of the Alamo, but also a trip to a less traditional kind of museum, Barney Smith's Toilet Seat Art Museum. Yes, toilet seat art. Barney Smith, a former plumber and volunteer firefighter turned artist has collected and decorated hundreds, maybe thousands, of toilet seats.…
After leaving Galveston, we drove to San Antonio to meet up with my other set of grandparents (my mother's mother and husband). We arrived, ate barbecue on the River Walk (because when in Texas...) and then set off to see the Alamo (because again, when in Texas.) The County Line - where we ate BBQ.…
I've been busy, at work & at home, including a vacation with my husband and my mother to her home state of Texas. We went to Galveston and San Antonio with mom and then split ways, with her off to Fredericksburg and us staying another day in San Antone before going to New Iberia and…
Beth Nevarez Historical Consulting 