Symposium Takeaway: Edward Alexander
We’ve asked our ECW historians to reflect on last weekend’s symposium and share with us one or two takeaways they came away with. Next up: Edward Alexander.
“The highlight of the symposium for me was being able to sit back and enjoy Kris’s Chancellorsville tour on Sunday. It’s a battle I’m pretty comfortable with, having given tours there for a year, but I’ve never seen it receive as full of a treatment as Kris was able to provide for it in just four hours. I would strongly hope that more symposium attendees take advantage of the opportunity to spend half a day with a passionate subject matter expert. What better opportunity to get your fix of military interpretation than spending four hours on a battlefield with an author/guide currently researching a book on that topic! I can’t help but think of the Sunday tour as the highlight of the weekend rather than an ‘extra’ for those who stick around for another day.
“It was doubly nice to be able to enjoy a tour for half a day without having to worry about the details that normally accompany my time on the battlefield with groups: is everyone on the bus, is the caterer going to arrive on time, why is that gate locked, why wasn’t this tour marketed, etc.? Tagging along for Kris’s tour was a nice refresher.
“Motivated by his presentation, I’d recommend that all my colleagues take time to put themselves in the visitor’s shoes if they hit a writer’s block or need a break.”
I agree – I have attended several classes Kris has presented at our local community college – it was great to see him in action on the battlefield
Thanks Mark for the kind words. It was great seeing you again.