[Durham INC] City of Durham Grant Gives History Hub a Boost

Tue Dec 4 11:32:53 EST 2012

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

News Release

News Media Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov <mailto:Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov>  

http://Facebook.com/CityofDurhamNC <http://Facebook.com/CityofDurhamNC>

http://Twitter.com/CityofDurhamNC <http://Twitter.com/CityofDurhamNC>

For Immediate Release: December 4, 2012

City of Durham Grant Gives History Hub a Boost

Second Pop-Up Museum Event December 6

DURHAM, N.C. - The Durham community will soon boast its own
brick-and-mortar museum dedicated to the history of Durham, thanks in
part to a recent grant from the City of Durham.  

The Durham City Council, based on a recommendation from the Durham
Cultural Advisory Board, has awarded a $47,145 grant to the Museum of
Durham History for capital improvements to its History Hub and for the
installation of an area combining a map of local heritage sites and an
interactive, touch-screen display. 

According to Renee Leverty, chair of the Durham Cultural Advisory Board,
the recommendation was based on the need for the community to have a
special place to celebrate Durham's history. "The History Hub is a great
match for this community," Leverty said. "Durham is rich with history,
diversity, and cultural heritage. The Hub will give the residents as
well as visitors a place to learn, celebrate, and preserve that
history."  

The History Hub is located in the former bus transfer station at 500 W.
Main St. in downtown Durham. Museum officials and the City's Office of
Economic and Workforce Development staff have identified several
projects that will use these grant funds, including:

*         Refurbishment of the gazebo's roof and shingles and electrical
installation to build a small stage and a seating platform

*         Installation of outdoor signs to direct people to and from the
Durham History Hub

*         Installation of a hose bib so that plants can be watered as
part of a landscaping project

*         Installation of a large, mounted map that will help raise
awareness and build traffic for other Durham heritage sites, an
important part of the Hub's mission. The map will be a permanent
installation and a colorful focal point for the museum. It will also be
flexible enough to accommodate timely events and special activities at
the heritage sites noted. In addition to graphics depicting permanent
sites, such as the Hayti Heritage Center and Durham's state historic
sites, the map will have up to 15 call-out magnets that can be used for
special events such as CenterFest, the Bull City Blues Festival, or the
West Point on the Eno July 4th celebration

*         A large, interactive touch screen that will make historical
discovery easy and accessible for visitors. A menu will allow users to
choose among History Beneath Our Feet, the Museum's unique gazetteer
that introduces the men and women who lent their names to Durham's
streets; the new Durham Digital Timeline, an online chronology of the
major events and people who helped shape Durham's past; and valuable
websites such as Open Durham, a highly interlinked archive/inventory of
information on historical people and places in Durham. Placed just below
the Durham map, this feature will be a permanent fixture that will
provide visitors to the History Hub with an overview of Durham's past
and a starting point for exploring the rest of the museum

The History Hub is creating, not only a resource for those interested in
Durham, but also an opportunity for locals to create a living history by
recording their personal stories and recollections of Durham. This City
grant will help the museum reach its financial goals, however museum
officials are continuing to use other fundraising activities, such as
their current online efforts at 
http://www.indiegogo.com/SharingDurhamsStories
<http://www.indiegogo.com/SharingDurhamsStories> .    

As part of the museum's continued efforts to invite the Durham community
into the process of creating a history museum, the museum will be
holding the second in a series of Pop-Up Museum events at the History
Hub on Thursday, December 6 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. This event is
curated and created by students from Duke University and North Carolina
Central University (NCCU). Duke students, led by Dr. Joshua Clark Davis,
and NCCU graduate students taking Museum Interpretation with Dr. Rhonda
Jones, will be creating mini-exhibits exploring topics from Durham's
past. 

About the Museum of Durham History 

The Museum of Durham History's vision is to be the starting point for
exploring the rich history of Durham's diverse and creative community.
After several years as an online entity, they will open the doors of its
first physical site in 2013. The new History Hub, located in the former
bus transfer station at 500 W. Main St., will allow expansion of the
Museum's services and add to the vitality of downtown Durham. The
History Hub is a work-in-progress that opens for special programs and
events, while the Museum prepares to install interactive exhibits and
hold regular operating hours in mid-2013. For more information, visit 
http://www.MuseumofDurhamHistory.org
<http://www.MuseumofDurhamHistory.org> , "like" on Facebook at 
http://www.facebook.com/MuseumofDurhamHistory
<http://www.facebook.com/MuseumofDurhamHistory> , or "follow" on Twitter
at http://www.twitter.com/@DurhamHistory
<http://www.twitter.com/@DurhamHistory> . 

About the Office of Economic & Workforce Development

Guided by the City's Strategic Plan, the Office of Economic & Workforce
Development helps ensure that Durham has a strong and diverse economy by
increasing the city's tax base through several revitalization
initiatives, including new development efforts in the central city area.
The department also plans and promotes cultural awareness and events,
identifies and recruits target industries as well as assesses and trains
Durham residents to fill new jobs. For more information, visit 
http://www.DurhamEconomicDevelopment.org
<http://www.DurhamEconomicDevelopment.org> , "like" on Facebook at 
http://www.Facebook.com/DurhamOEWD <http://www.Facebook.com/DurhamOEWD>
, or "follow" on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/DurhamOEWD
<http://Twitter.com/DurhamOEWD> .

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