Good morning all, from the soggy Upper Midwest.

I'd like to toss in a few ideas from the perspective
of
a frequent visitor to historic houses and living
history sites.  Not something any site can manage but
there are several factors that will turn a fascinating
tour into a poor one for me:

1. The number of historic houses/sites I've tried to
visit in a single day because that's all the time I
have to spend in the area.

2. The response of the person or people I'm with has
an enormous import. When I was trying to keep kids
under control, it was hard to enjoy most historic
houses (and art museums) because so many of these
places were not designed to accommodate youngsters
back in the early '80's.  Twenty five years later and
with older traveling companion(s), it's someone's
grumpiness, discomfort or lack of interest that
suddenly turns the visit into a rush to get through
and away a.s.a.p (please don't take it personally.)  

In general, what makes historic house tours not boring
for me are:
1) the intrinsic historicity of the site (how
important was the event, action or person that's given
the building its status as a museum.)  
2) the authenticity and/or appropriateness of the
furnishings and fixtures (if the site does not really
show what it was like when the famous action or event
occurred or the person lived there, I feel cheated.) 
3) the tour guide's ability to interpret the site for
me or the quality of labels and guidebooks for
self-guided locations.

Judy Turner
Whitefish Bay, WI


      

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