Public History

Public history is a branch of history which deals with the study which describes the wide range activities undertaken by the society or people with some training on the field of history who are usually working outside of the particular academic settings. Public history practice mainly concentrates in the fields of archival science, historic preservation, museum curatorship, oral history, and other related disciplines.  The term Public history started to be used in the Canada and United States in the late 1970s, and the discipline has become greatly professionalized from that time. A few of the general settings for the public history are the historic homes, museums, historic sites, battlefields, parks, television and film companies, archives and all the levels of the government.  Since it includes of wide types of practices and that takes place in several different settings, the public history has always confirmed rather resistant to being accurately defined.   The three important elements generally come from the discourse of those who recognize themselves as the public historians:

• Use of the techniques and methods of the historical discipline.
• An importance on the effectiveness of the historical knowledge in some way which goes beyond merely antiquarian or academic purposes.
• An importance on the professional practice and training.

The three important elements come across in the 1989 mission statement of the United States-based “National Council on Public History”: "To promote the use of history in social via professional practice." They are also present in a description drafted by the National Council on Public History board in the year 2007, stating, “Public history is a methodology, movement, and approach which promote the collaborative practice and study of history; its practitioners have a mission in order to make their insights accessible and helpful to the public."

Questionnaire:

• What is Public history?
• Explain more about Public history.