1950 U.S. federal census records are going to be released for public view this year, because it has now been 72 years since that census was taken, and the National Archives follows what is known as the 72-Year Rule. The story of why the 72-Year Rule exists is an example of how history actually happens … Continue reading The 72-Year Rule: How History Happens
history
Pet Peeve: “An Historic”
I know this seems an awfully petty thing to write about right now, but it’s really an example of something much more important, which is a lack of the use of critical thinking skills. Besides, it drives me absolutely insane and I have to vent somewhere. I can’t stand it when people use the phrase … Continue reading Pet Peeve: “An Historic”
Best History Book Ever: Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari
Everyone should read this book. Its full title is Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, and it is exactly that, but it also somehow manages to be both a work of philosophy and a very entertaining read. Harari writes with a clarity and wit rarely seen in academic writing, or any kind of non-fiction. Reading … Continue reading Best History Book Ever: Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari
How Genealogy Debunks Myths About History, #2: Nuclear Families
Many people seem to think that single parent families and blended families were a rarity until the increased prevalence of divorce in recent decades. Genealogy tells a different story. In researching my ancestors and those of other people, I have indeed found very few that were divorced, but I have also found very few children … Continue reading How Genealogy Debunks Myths About History, #2: Nuclear Families
College and Career Readiness is the Wrong Goal
There’s a question I’ve been mulling lately. If the people who say that AI and related technologies are going to put most people out of work, and that a successful human future requires the decoupling of employment from income, are right, what kind of education system best serves the people of that future? I think … Continue reading College and Career Readiness is the Wrong Goal
How Genealogy Debunks Myths About History, #1: Marriage
My explorations in genealogy have led me to question a lot of conventional wisdom about the lives of people in earlier eras. One of the assumptions I had was that until fairly recently, most people married before age 30. There might have been the occasional confirmed bachelor or spinster aunt, but they were unusual. In … Continue reading How Genealogy Debunks Myths About History, #1: Marriage
Genealogy Personalizes History
I love history. I have even made my living as a history teacher, but until I finished high school I thought I hated the whole subject. That was because my history teachers made it incredibly boring. It wasn't entirely their fault. They taught it the same boring way they were taught, which is also the … Continue reading Genealogy Personalizes History
E. Steiger & Co. 