Perhaps you may have driven by some location with a historical site marker and taken a quick trip out of your car to read it over. These markers indicate something historic which may have happened either at that specific location or in its general vicinity. Many of these markers tend to commemorate events outside of living memory and in what may seem like the distant past. This assignment will ask you to create a series of historical site markers to commemorate the events of a time somewhat closer to our own, the period of 1968 through 1980 which this module covers.
Your task is to create the text for four historical site markers commemorating events that relate to the content from this module, Political Storms at Home and Abroad, 1968-1980. If you are not sure exactly where something covered in the text took place, feel free to consult a reliable outside source, making sure to give that source credit.
Step 1: Select four locations to honor, which are connected to an impactful historic movement or development covered in this module. You may select something relevant to a political event, a social movement, a cultural event, or an international incident. The historical site markers do not necessarily have to be located in the United States, and as long as the event is connected to the module, it does not have to be referenced specifically in the text.
Step 2: In your own words, write a 4-5 sentence text that will be written on the historical marker. This text must explain the historical event that happened here as well as its significance to the 1968-1980 period in United States history. To see some samples of what is written on historical markers, please consult Clio and use the search tool to find historical markers near you to search for specific events (such as the Kent State shooting historical marker). If you choose to write for an event that already has a historical marker, be sure that you frame it in your own words. At least one of the markers you choose to write about should be completely original, with no prior monument or marker.
Step 3: Imagine that you are the mayor of the place where this historical event occurred. Propose some kind of educational tourist attraction or memorial, such as a guided tour, park, or museum, that could be created to commemorate this event in an appropriate fashion. (For example, building a theme park on a site where a tragedy or atrocity occurred would not be in the spirit of this exercise.) Devote perhaps 2-3 sentences to pitching this idea.
Example:
| Historical Event | Location | Marker Text | Tourist Attraction |
| Richard Nixon’s “I Am Not a Crook” press conference | Contemporary Resort, Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida | At a convention center at this resort, President Richard Nixon gave a press conference on November 17, 1973 as revelations of a break-in at the Democrats’ headquarters the previous year became public knowledge. During remarks to reporters, he stated that the American people ought to know if their president is a crook, and “I am not a crook.” In the months that followed, Nixon’s role in the break-in and the subsequent cover-up in the Justice Department would be revealed to the public. Subsequently, this phrase became shorthand for political dishonesty. The scandal, and Nixon’s false profession of innocence, contributed to the erosion of trust in public institutions in the 1970s. | The animatronic of Nixon could be borrowed from the nearby Hall of Presidents attraction in the Magic Kingdom park to re-enact this press conference. Using modern technology, it is possible that the Nixon figure could also be programmed to answer questions from tourists at a mock press-conference. The waiting area for the Nixon show would have a timeline mural on the wall showing this conference’s place in the unfolding Watergate scandal. |
Assignment Grading Rubric:
Criteria |
Poor |
Good |
Excellent |
Points |
| Four suitable historical events are chosen | Not all four events are relevant to this module or are especially tangential. (0-1) | All four events are chronologically appropriate, but may not be tied closely to the content of this module. (2-3) | All four events are in the correct time frame and align with the content and learning outcomes of this module. (4) |
____/4 |
| Marker Text is completed | The text for the marker is incomplete, not in complete sentences, or historically inaccurate. (0-5) | The text for the marker struggles to connect the event to its historical significance, and does not address its context in the 1968-80 period. (6-8) | The text for the marker is not only accurate, but makes a compelling case its historical impact, identifies the persons involved, and highlights the event’s causes. (9-10) |
_____/10 |
| Location of event is listed | The location of the event is missing or inaccurate. (0) | The location of the event is too broad, such as listing a state or a region. (1-2) | The location of the event is listed with precision, noting the city, state, and possibly even the address. (2) |
_____/2 |
| An appropriate tourist attraction is posited | The attraction idea is missing, gives needless offense, or is hurtful. (0) | The attraction is flippant or unsubstantiated, and does not suggest how the public might learn from it. (2-3) | The attraction is designed to help visitors engage with the historicity of the event that took place and its context. (4) |
_____/4 |
|
_____/20 |