Telling America's Stories Through Places

Melissa Bingmann is Director of Public History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of West Virginia. She is the author of Prep School Cowboys: Ranch Schools in the American West.

Introduction

Part I: An Overview of the Types of Sites to be Found and the Stories They Can Tell

1. Presidents' Homes

2. Sites of Lesser-Known Historical Actors

3. Legacy Sites

4. Interpreting Slavery in Urban Spaces and Northern Sites

5. Industrial Sites and Labor History

6. Military History: Battlefields and Forts

7. World War II Sites

8. Native American Sites and Sacred Places

9. Sexuality at Historic Sites

10. Social Utopian Communities

11. Urban Walking Tours

12. Heritage Corridors, Trails, and Historic Places that Require Transportation

Part II: The Significance of Ownership in Shaping Historical Narratives

13. Non-profit Historic Sites

14. Government Sites

15. For-Profit Sites and Corporate Sites

16. Church Owned Sites

Part III: Techniques

17. Using the Stuff of History to Tell Stories

18. Common Pitfalls and Turn-offs

19. The Methodology of Researching and Writing about Historic Sites