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Make The History Come Alive

Writer's picture: Lilly OdegaardLilly Odegaard
PLAY. Graduate Jack Odegaard plays checkers at Fort Nisqually. History museums are underrated and need to be appreciated more. Photo courtesy of Lilly Odegaard.
PLAY. Graduate Jack Odegaard plays checkers at Fort Nisqually. History museums are underrated and need to be appreciated more. Photo courtesy of Lilly Odegaard.

History museums are highly underrated. Some see them as boring places to visit, but I disagree. I think they are filled with excitement and something new that you don't see everyday. We’ve all visited at least one museum when we were in elementary school, but I think as we grow up we kind of forget about how much fun they were. I've always loved them and I think it’s interesting to learn things you sometimes don't learn in school. When I go to a museum it always feels like I'm traveling back in time and seeing how life was different for people long ago.

When I was little I went on this field trip to the Wing Luke museum in Seattle, it’s located in the China-International district and the museum focuses on the art, history and culture of Asian Pacific Americans. It was such a beautiful museum to see. The art was amazing, and not only that but there were little rooms set up that were recreated from how people truly lived. It showed the beautiful parts of living in Seattle in that time, and the hardships of it. It was informational and super fun to see as a little kid. I never knew much about the reality of life for Asian Pacific Americans during this time and I really enjoyed learning about their culture and values through art and history.

Another reason why I love history museums is they can be super interactive with the guest, and very entertaining. My favorite museum, that I volunteer at, is a reenactment history museum in Tacoma—Fort Nisqually. It is super innereactive and fun for people of all ages. Everyone that works there is actually a volunteer, including me. Everyone there has a costume and they’re super elaborate and historically accurate. There are many accessories you can use or buy yourself to add to the outfit. It makes going to the museum so much more fun because it makes you feel as though you are truly in the 1800s. At events we have live music that they would have played during that time period, dances, and cooking and many more activities for the public to join in. There are many events throughout the year, all different. We celebrate different things like Queen Victorias birthday, the candle light you which is a 2-day event where groups go through the fort on a tour, looking in at everyone like it’s a flashback in time. As a reenactor we don't speak to guests, we just act as our character through the whole event. I love this history museum specifically because it’s interactive and interesting being able to participate in 18th century skills.

Overall, I think history museums are highly underrated and we should all at least go to a couple in our lifetime. They are super unique, and some may have more quiet places where you learn the material of the museum yourself by observing, others are interactive and like mini plays to watch. Either or, I love them both and enjoy learning news things about our worlds history every time I go.

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