Marcus D. Ellison
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Latest Articles
Using Cultural Framing to Make Local-History Storytelling More Memorable
Reading Time: 6 minutesSome local-history stories stay with readers long after the details fade. Others are read once, appreciated politely, and forgotten almost immediately. The difference is rarely the age of the source material or the importance of the event alone. More often, it comes down to whether the story helps people understand what a place means, not […]
Why Landmark Bridges Become Tourism Engines
Reading Time: 6 minutesSome structures do their job so efficiently that people stop noticing them. Others begin the same way and then take on a second life. They appear on postcards, shape weekend plans, anchor local festivals, and slowly become shorthand for an entire region. The New River Gorge Bridge belongs to that second category. It is not […]
Historic Homes We Lost: A Timeline of Demolitions
Reading Time: 5 minutesCities are living organisms. Streets change, skylines rise, neighborhoods evolve, and buildings disappear. Yet among all the transformations that shape urban landscapes, the demolition of historic homes carries a special kind of loss. These houses were more than structures of wood, brick, or stone. They held stories—of families, craftsmanship, architectural traditions, and community identity. Over […]
Civil War Monuments – Preserve or Reinterpret?
Reading Time: 9 minutesCivil War monuments sit at the intersection of history, memory, identity, and public space. For some people, these statues and plaques are reminders of family sacrifice, local heritage, and the tragedy of a divided nation. For others, they represent a public endorsement of values and power structures that caused harm and exclusion. The controversy is […]
Restoring a Historic Theater: For Locals or Tourists?
Reading Time: 4 minutesWhen scaffolding rises around a historic theater, it signals more than construction. It signals a city deciding what kind of future it wants. The faded marquee, the peeling velvet seats, the cracked plaster ceiling — these are not just architectural details. They are fragments of memory. Yet restoring a historic theater inevitably raises a difficult […]
The First Europeans in Florida: New Archaeological Findings
Reading Time: 4 minutesThe history of European presence in Florida has long been shaped by written chronicles, expedition reports, and later historical interpretations. For centuries, these sources defined who the “first Europeans” were, when they arrived, and where they traveled. In recent decades, archaeology has begun to refine, challenge, and sometimes complicate these narratives. New discoveries across Florida […]
Gaetz Condemns Sessions’ Marijuana Crackdown
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn early 2018, U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz publicly criticized then–Attorney General Jeff Sessions following a shift in federal policy related to marijuana enforcement. The response came after the Department of Justice moved to rescind guidance that had limited federal prosecution in states where marijuana laws had been relaxed. The policy change drew reactions from lawmakers […]