1. Many people shared stories of nerdy historical activities they enjoyed such as naming children after presidents, making historically themed quilts, visiting historical sites related to presidents, and identifying clothing from historical paintings.
2. Others discussed traveling to obscure historical markers, reenacting historical events, dressing in period clothing to teach history, and collecting memorabilia related to historical figures like Abraham Lincoln.
3. Many expressed strong emotional reactions like crying at significant historical locations such as the Lincoln Memorial, Gettysburg battlefield, and Martin Luther King Jr.'s church.
2. “I named my
firstborn after a
President.
The rest would have
been too, but I was
overruled.”
— Dana W.
The History List
3. “I make historically
themed quilts and
bring them to the
historical site that
inspired them.
Here is my Gettysburg
Quilt with Lincoln.”
— Jennifer L.
The History List
4. “Our goal is to visit
one site for each
President.
We’ve checked off 26
Presidents so far and
even met President
Carter at his church!”
— Chyanna R.
The History List
5. “My daughter started ID’ing clothing ages
from Copley paintings at age 11.”
— Colleen H.
The History List
6. “I have George
Washington’s name
tattooed on me, not
once, but twice; and I
ran a 5K with General
Washington.”
— Shawn C.
The History List
7. “I met my husband in Lincoln’s birthday – decided it
was fate and we were married on the anniversary of
the Wright Brothers’ first flight.”
— Meredith A.
The History List
8. “I had a shirt made for my trip to Peacefield with my favorite
John Adams quote: ‘Thanks to God He gave me
stubbornness when I know that I am right.’”
— Dani D.
The History List
10. “A day into the tour in DC I realized that I
knew more about DC than our guide.
When she couldn’t answer the kids’
questions I did.”
— Steve W.
The History List
11. “I broke into tears the first time I
visited the Lincoln Memorial. ”
— Laurie P.
—
The History List
12. “I make historic desserts and baked
goods using authentic recipes.”
— Christa D.
The History List
14. “I started a blog, “Statues:
The People They Salute.”
— Diana E.
The History List
15. “We recently stayed at the Roosevelt cabins in
Yellowstone! I cried a little and geeked out
— Hannah S.
The History List
16. “I held the playbill
from the night
Lincoln was
assassinated.”
— Eric F.
The History List
17. “I asked my buddies in
the military if they
the actual title of our
National Anthem. No
one knew. So I went
a big, long lecture on
name and history.”
— Kate M.
The History List
18. “On a two week road trip in Halifax, my four kids
aged 2 – 10 mutinied and said, ‘We haven’t
a SINGLE MUSEUM this whole trip!’”
— Colleen H.
The History List
19. “I found a marker
from Benjamin
Banneker who laid
out the original plan
of DC. ”
— Michael L.
The History List
20. “I proposed to my
wife in Thomas
Jefferson's garden
pavilion at
Monticello. Years
later, we went back
to take pictures
with our kids.”
— Matt K.
The History List
21. “I traveled to an obscure historical marker, the
location of a dugout that was inhabited by
Boston Corbett.
— Kandy C-H.
Thomas P. "Boston" Corbett was a Union Army soldier who shot and killed
President Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. Corbett was initially
arrested for disobeying orders but was later released. Source: Wikipedia
The History List
22. “When I was teaching U.S. History and
Geography, I would dress up for the era
we were studying. Sometimes, I didn't
change before I left school and would go
shopping on the way home in the
costume.”
—Colleen K.
The History List
23. “Instead of spending the one weekend off with my
new friends, I rented a car and drove 4 hours to
Lincoln's Boyhood home by myself.”
— Carrie R.
The History List
24. “I choked up and cried while I was sitting in
Dr. King’s church in Atlanta.”
— Carla P.
The History List
25. “I received a
set of
encyclopedias
from my
grandmother
when I was 8
years old.
I finished
reading them
by 10.”
— Kimberly C.
The History List
26. “At the Lincoln
Memorial, I tried to
get the tour guide to
tell us the story of
Mariah Anderson.
It took a bit of
prompting, dropping
hints, then finally just
blurting out the
story.”
— Jill R.
NPR did this story on the
75th anniversary.
The History List
27. “We had a 3 week road trip out west. On the way home,
we drove along the Oregon Trail!”
— Elizabeth K.
The History List
28. “I made a cut out
of James Madison
for my classroom
and I put word
bubbles on him
periodically
throughout the
year.”
— Stephanie L.
The History List
29. “While walking
the Freedom
Trail, we took a
detour to find the
house that has
been restored on
the show, ‘This
Old House’ in
Charlestown.”
— Joyce A.
The History List
30. “My husband memorizes
the entire sequence of a
historic battle, goes to
the site, and walks
around the empty field
for
hours by himself
reimagining the entire
battle, step by step.”
— Karen H.
The History List
31. “I rode a water
taxi in the middle
of a rain storm to
spend the
afternoon of my
54th birthday
visiting Ft.
McHenry.”
— JD C.
The History List
32. “I took a picture
with every
President’s portrait
at the National
Portrait Gallery,
including my
favorite president,
Calvin Coolidge.”
— Isaac L.
The History List
33. “I read the book,
‘Killing Lincoln’,
watched the movie 3
times in a row, then
watched it 3 more
times the following
night with my iPad on
hand to check for
historical accuracy.”
— Kimberly V.
The History List
34. “I talk to my house – a battle survivor
home in Gettysburg.” — Robin S.
The History List
35. “I cried reading
the biography of the
wife of our museum’s
namesake. A museum
visitor came in and said,
‘Man, that must have
been some book!’”
— James B.
The History List
36. “There is a bust of Ben
Franklin at the Franklin
College of Indiana. It’s
considered good luck
if you rub his nose
before an exam. For
good measure, I even
gave him a peck on
the cheek.”
— Shannon I.
The History List
37. “My husband and I visited historical places in Michigan’s
Upper Peninsula for our first anniversary – including the
Delaware Copper Mine in the Keweenaw Peninsula.”
— Amanda P.
The History List
38. “I could not set foot on the field of battle where
Pickett’s charge took place. It felt like holy ground.”
— Jason N.
The History List
39. “My son and I waited to see the Star Spangled Banner. We
walked through it as slowly as possible, walked out and got
back into line to go back in. I lost count how many times we
went through.”
— Heather D.
The History List
40. “I shadowed my daughter’s online college history
course just to take the course without getting
credit.” — Heidi C.
The History List
41. “I followed John
Wilkes Booth’s
escape route
backwards. Some of
those places are
ridiculously hard to
find!”
— Shanna H.
The History List
42. “In between the ceremony and the reception of my
friend’s wedding, I brought (aka dragged) several
colleagues to Hamilton Grange. I was excited—them, not
so much.” — Jennifer L.
The History List
43. “My maiden name is
Nichols and since
Thomas Jefferson is on
the nickel, I tossed two
nickels on his grave and
shed many tears.”
— Linda F.
The History List
44. “I watch for myself in the background
of historic documentaries filmed in
National Parks in which I worked –
like in a PBS docudrama about Fort
Necessity.”
— Barry Z.
The History List
45. “A 2 hour self guided car tour in Gettysburg took us 6
hours to complete because the kids demanded to get
out and examine every single site.”
— Colleen H.
The History List
46. “I cry every time I go to Mt. Vernon, where we
have annual passes.”
— Mandy C.
The History List
47. “I scolded some
children horsing
around in the Lincoln
Memorial –
unacceptable in that
sacred place.”
— Laura P.
The History List
48. “Feeling like I was
John Buford when
I was up on the
cupola of the
Lutheran
Seminary in
Gettysburg.”
— Eric F.
John Buford is a US Army
cavalry officer best known for
his role in the first day of the
Battle of Gettysburg on July 1,
1863. Source:Wikipedia
The History List
49. “I had an ivy plant in the classroom for years
that was named Thomas Jefferson.”
— Colleen K.
The History List
50. “I met George
Washington at a
historical
re-enactment. He
gave me really great
stuff for my research
paper. I offered to list
him as my primary
source but it never
came up.”
— Dena N.
The History List
51. “I teach my students
the ‘proper’ way to say
George
Washington –
which I invented
myself.”
— Shawn C.
The History List
52. “When I reached the chapel inside the
White Tower, I was in awe and broke
into tears.” — Christina B.
The History List
53. “I clean the
many historical
markers in our town
yearly.”
— Viki K.
The History List
54. “I love going to cemeteries and
photographing the markers for my
family, and for others too. I try to find
the oldest one.”
— Viki K.
The History List
55. “I like to spend my lunch
at the 13th floor of
Nebraska State Capitol to
enjoy the Merkabah
chandelier, the transcript
of the Gettysburg and to
see the murals.”
— Claire L.
The History List
56. “Being unable to form a coherent sentence while
standing in the Signing Room of Independence
Hall on the 4th of July.”
— Sam A.
The History List
57. “I am a part of an Old
West reenactment group.
We put on shows and
teach history about the
Old West by using
comedy and melodrama
in our skits.”
— Jason B.
The History List
58. “When I saw the ‘Washington Crossing the
Delaware’ at the MET, I sat on the bench in front
of it and cried for at least 30 minutes.”
— James and Gretchen T.
The History List
59. “I played the fife dressed in a male’s period attire at
the streets of Williamsburg while I was 5 months
pregnant.” — Nancy S.
The History List
60. “After walking the ‘Pickett’s Charge’ field, we
were covered in mud. In a moment of history joy,
my student and I decided to eat a bit of the mud,
a tradition I carried on with my best history
students for years!”
— Karen T.
The History List
61. “I got engaged on Patriot’s Day at the Old North
Bridge in Concord surrounded by reenactors and
got married the following year on Bunker Hill
Day.” — Ashley A.
The History List
62. “I begged the doctor to schedule my C-section for
March 15th (Ides of March). My daughter will be
grateful someday that the doctor made me wait till
March 17 instead.” — Kenzie R.
The History List
63. “I researched a murder that had gone unsolved
for over 80 years and wrote a book about it.”
— Stacy H.
The History List
64. “When I saw the State House, I started clapping and
yelled, ‘Oh my God! It’s the State House! Look how
beautiful it is. Charles Bulfinch designed that. Isn’t it
amazing?!’”
— Charlene D.
Charles Bulfich is regarded as the first American professional architect, who gained fame chiefly as
a designer of government buildings. Source: Wikipedia
The History List
65. “When I buy something,
if the total or change
coincides with an
interesting historical
date, I get really excited
and tell everyone around
what happened on that
date or year.”
— H. Grace C.
The History List
66. “I participate in living history performances at
James Buchanan’s home, Wheatland.”
— Kelly W.
The History List
67. “While on vacation to Hawaii, I required my
daughters to visit Pearl Harbor and the Arizona
Memorial and to listen to the experiences of a
WWII veteran.”
— Theresa B.
The History List
68. “Visiting Trinity
Church in NYC, I left
a stone at Alexander
Hamilton’s grave.”
— Maria T. P.
The History List
69. “I welcomed people
to an open house as
Sir William Howe.”
— Bill M.
General William Howe was
Commander-in-Chief of British forces
during Revolutionary War. Source:
Wikipedia
The History List
70. “I cry every time I hear the Star-Spangled
Banner.” — Jenna H.
The History List
71. “I dragged my best
friend through a
cemetery in the
pouring rain to see
Benedict Arnold’s
mother’s grave.”
— Wendy B.
The History List
72. “In college, there
was a thing about
poking historic
buildings.
When I got to see
Frank Lloyd’s
Wight’s Robie
House, I had to poke
it.”
— Lindsey L.B.
The History List
73. “On the 240th anniversary of their passing, I
visited the graves of 27 people who died in an
epidemic.” — Judy C.
The History List
74. “When my daughter and I toured the Tower of
London, our tour guide kept getting names and
dates mixed up, I corrected her.”
— Beth G.
The History List
75. “I dressed my
infant in an
18th century
reproduction diaper
covers while
reenacting.”
— Colleen H.
The History List
76. “I took my relatives to
Gettysburg. I told them
about John Burns. When
other people stopped and
listened, I stayed behind
and spent 6 hours telling
the story to other groups.”
– Heather H.
John Lawrence Burns, veteran of the War of
1812, became a 69-year-old civilian combatant
with the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg
during the American Civil War. He was
wounded, but survived and became a national
celebrity. Source: Wikipedia
The History List
77. “I collect anything related to Abe Lincoln
because I believe he is my soulmate.” — Patty A.P.
The History List
78. “I spend my
birthdays at
locations where
Presidents are
buried.
I’ve visited 18
presidential graves
so far.”
— Shirley P.
The History List
79. “Every time I watch my favorite movie, 1776, I
cry when they sing the Declaration of
Independence.” — Robin S. W.
The History List
80. “I went to the 150th anniversary of
Gettysburg as a high school graduation
present for myself.” — Anna Joy K.
The History List
81. “I brought a Thomas Jefferson
biography to a rock concert.”
— Dani M.
The History List
82. Learn more and plan
your next outing at
TheHistoryList.com
The History List