Museum of Memory is a public history initiative that works together with Colorado residents to co-author a shared history. We collaboratively work to reanimate, center and amplify the histories that have long existed only in the margins and create the opportunity for the community to decide how to remember its collective past.
History Colorado has assisted with nine Museum of Memory projects to date, with more to come.
Museum of Memory improves participation in civic life by building more inclusive narratives of all the many people and ways that contribute to the fabric of a community. This initiative is based on the ideal that when people see themselves as the creators and makers of their own history, they also come to see themselves as the writers of their own destinies. It gathers community together and creates space for residents to actively and energetically participate in crafting a shared historic record.
Project Phases
Remembering
Communities engage in collective memory workshops, guided by History Colorado staff. The workshops employ a variety of strategies to jog memories and facilitate storytelling within a group. While Memory Projects vary, there are generally five to eight hosted community museum workshops.
Collecting
History Colorado with the help of Community Historians work together to collect stories, oral histories, writing, documents, and photographs during the collecting phase of the project.
Sharing
The sharing phase can take a variety of forms, including museum exhibit, mural, teatro, music and song, photography, digital forms, SoundCloud, podcast, conference presentations, etc. This aspect of the project is designed to share the stories and histories of the neighborhood or community with a larger audience. It is also designed for longevity within the neighborhood or community.
The Neighborhood Memory Project is a writing and storytelling program geared towards long-term residents and new residents of a specific neighborhood. We use site-based remembering techniques to jump-start writing and storytelling that reanimates the community history of a place. Neighbors write stories of resilience and community connection that resurrect and forge stronger identities.
The Museum of Memory is an exhibit dedicated to the people within the community of Pueblo sharing their memories of Pueblo and how it has shaped Pueblo's history. We have carved out a space in the museum for the community to share their histories. Museum of Memory is a celebration of our community and an opportunity to write Pueblo's history together.
