In the fall of 1970, twenty three enthusiastic historians and museum professionals met at Old Sturbridge Village in central Massachusetts to share ideas and discuss the challenges of interpreting historical agriculture and living history. Realizing that this gathering was only a beginning, within months they incorporated as ALHFAM (originally the Association of Living Historical Farms and Agricultural Museums). Like all things, the field of living history and ALHFAM itself (now more inclusively called the Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums) has evolved, grown, and changed over the ensuing forty years. Innovative ideas and time-tested techniques will continue to be combined as we face new challenges and opportunities in the years ahead. On June 20-24, 2010 ALHFAM returns to its roots even as we look to the future. This international gathering will explore how the roots and branches of living history can better feed the minds of our public, making earlier times relevant in the 21st century, and discuss what cultivation is needed to ensure a healthy future for the past. We invite those working in historic agriculture, education, interpretation, curation, and all branches of living history to central Massachusetts for ALHFAM’s annual meeting and conference, hosted by Old Sturbridge Village. The conference will take place at Worcester State college, in New England’s second largest city, “the heart of the Commonwealth.” Early bird registration registrations ends April 30th; registration closes June 1st. For the complete program and registration information, go to http://www.alhfam.org/conf/2010_PROGRAM.pdf Martha Katz-Hyman Chair, ALHFAM Publications Committee Chair, ALHFAM Collections, Preservation and Registration Professional Interest Group Co-administrator, ALHFAM-L ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).