Harrison Smith Museum of Military History Summer Internship Blog Post 9

Week 9 of my internship with the Museum of Military History focused on the construction of the First World War exhibition trench and cataloging new items with the museums’ Past Perfect online collection, and curatoring display cabinets focused on the objects that provided historical context regarding the Second World War. The museum is undergoing many renovations between the new 28 foot merchant marine lifeboat that was recently donated and the trench system that will be built within the coming weeks.

Mentioned in my previous blog post, I am working with a museum employee named Roger Ragland. Roger is an American military history buff and jack of all trades; worked as a set designer, dramaturg, and background actor for a handful of major Hollywood productions such as Glory, Alamo: The Price of Freedom, and Ironclads. Roger constructed sets, created props, and oversaw costumes to ensure what occurred on screen was historically accurate. Roger and I have been collaborating the last fews weeks to create a walkable trench system that will be roughly 9-10 feet wide and 25-30 feet long with the First World War exhibition. The plan is to have museum visitors walk through the trench system to get a good understanding of what an Allied trench would have looked like on the Western Front. Roger and I created a final materials list of the items which will be needed to construct the basic “skeleton” of the trench system. (Corrugated metal, various lumber, brown upholstery, sandbags, etc.)The executive director Chris is going to be retrieving the materials next Tuesday and initial construction will begin next Wednesday. The goal is to have a majority of the structural construction completed within the next 2 to 3 weeks, then the museum staff will assist me in adding the weathering, and other items that immerses the visitor and places them within a trench in the Western Front. Chris has given full control of this project to Roger and myself; Roger will likely oversee and take lead majority of the major construction elements to ensure the trench system is safe for museum guests, whereas I will aid Roger in building the system, but focusing on make sure the trench is historically accurate once the structural system is set in place. The staff and I have created a construction area that will not disturb museum guests while we are working through visiting hours.

My secondary project for the week focused on various display cabinets found within the Second World War section of the museum. I assisted other museum staff in the curation of cabinets that concentrated on the Japan and German perspectives of World War II. We researched objects found within the museum collections and displayed them in a way that provided general context and a historical narrative. My main focus in this section however was on cabinet centralized around the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The museum collection has an A2 bomber autographed by pilot Paul Tibbets and navagator Theodore “Dutch” Van Kirk of the Enola Gay. These were two of the men who were aboard the B-29 when the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. I added objects including framed photos to the display that will help visitors understand who these men were in context to the jacket and the significance of lives. I would like to add some labeling to provide additional context but will need to meet with Chris and Mathus for approval. I will be returning to the Museum of Military History next week and will provide an update in my next blog post.