On The Road With The Lewis Hine Project
Since October of 2006, I have been making presentations, with pictures, about the Lewis Hine Project at schools, colleges,
libraries, museums and other venues all over New England. Here’s where I’ve been and a few notes about each visit.
I will update this page as new events occur, and post upcoming appearances.
April 2008: I made a presentation
to students and faculty members at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, at the invitation of Prof. of History, David
Glassberg. Afterward, I was treated to a delicious dinner at a great restaurant called Amherst Chinese Food.
April 2008, Endicott College, Beverly, Massachusetts
Professor Todd Wemmer, who created the Lost and
Found Photos project, invited me to talk to one of his classes. The students were eager participants, and stuck around for
an extra 25 minutes. My wife and I stayed overnight, compliments of the college, and had a great lunch at the Salem Diner,
just across the bay from Beverly. See www.lostandfoundphotos.org
April 2008: Mosier Elementary School, South Hadley, Massachusetts
The third grade class I worked with was a joy.
They really knew their stuff! I started off by asking them if they had a job. A dozen hands went up right away: “I take
out the garbage” – “I dry the dishes” – “I feed the dog” – “I vacuum.”
So I asked them if they did this job 12 hours a day, with 15 minutes for lunch, six days a week, like the child laborers in
the photos. They got the point. After class, one boy told me I look like Lewis Hine. That's third time this has happened.
At this point, I am beginning to believe it.
March 2008: Henry Sheldon Museum,
Middlebury, Vermont
My wife and I drove three hours to this lovely old colonial town, about 45 minutes south
of Burlington. The night before, they had a serious ice storm, but everything worked out fine. One of the audience members
was Mary Williamson, a niece of Lewis Hine, who lives nearby. It was a thrill to meet her. Once again, someone told me that
I look like Hine.
March 2008: Hampshire College, Amherst, Massachusetts
I showed slides from my Lewis Hine Project and
led a discussion about researching old photographs. Hampshire is known for its unique academic programs, and is the alma mater
of the great documentary filmmaker Ken Burns.
February 2008: Chesterfield Historical
Society, Chesterfield, Massachusetts
This tiny hill town 20 miles west of Northampton has a very active
historical society. They were friendly and welcoming, and I got to share a community supper with them.
January 2008: Forbes Library, Northampton, Massachusetts
Thanks to an article I wrote about my project in
the local newspaper, and some great publicity generated by the library, I was greeted with an overflow crowd. I was stunned
at the beginning when someone in the audience said that I look like Lewis Hine. The next day, I got an email from a woman
who had attended. She told me that she was so moved by my project, that she wanted to volunteer her assistance in transcribing
my taped interviews with descendants. Thanks, Seunghee, for being my first staff member.
December 2007: Smith College Campus School, Northampton, Massachusetts
I talked to sixth grade
students who are studying child labor. These wonderfully bright children are taught by Tom Weiner, a gifted and innovative
educator. This was one of the liveliest and most rewarding events I have attended.
November 2007: Western Massachusetts Jobs With Justice, Holyoke, Massachusetts
This well-known
non-profit organization arranged a presentation at the beautiful Holyoke Heritage Museum, a very appropriate venue, since
Holyoke was one of the great industrial cities in New England in the 1800s. It was the home of one of the first great canals
in the country, and one of the centers of the paper industry.
November 2007: Bent-Northrop Memorial
Library, Fairfield, Vermont
Most of the audience members were middle school students who had recently
read Counting On Grace, the book inspired by the Lewis Hine photo of
Addie Card. My brother and his wife, who live in nearby Burlington, were in attendance.
June 2007: Rockridge Retirement Community, Northampton, Massachusetts
Many of the audience members
had worked in their younger days at the area’s silk mills, so they had plenty of comments. It was fun, and the location
was only two miles from my house.
May 2007: Mt. Anthony Union High School, Bennington,
Vermont
I
made presentations to three double classes, in the town just up the road from Pownal. It was a real workout, since I had only
one 20-minute break for lunch, and woke up that morning with a terrible case of laryngitis. But the students were terrific,
and I got through it.
April 2007: Pownal Historical Society, Pownal, Vermont
I
was the speaker at the annual meeting. This is the town where Addie Card was born and raised. My search for her life story
represented the first Hine photo I researched. That story is posted on this site, and was obviously a very popular part of
my presentation.
February 2007: Lenox Library, Lenox, Massachusetts
This event was organized by the Berkshire Institute
of Lifelong Learning, which is affiliated with Berkshire Community College. It was very well attended, and I enjoyed it very
much.
October 2006: Worcester State College, Worcester, Massachusetts
I was invited by a professor in the history department
to speak to one of his classes. The college is quite a place, having grown by leaps and bounds over the past few years. One
of the students had been a child laborer in the Latin American country where she grew up.