Pandemic forces historical societies to become creative

By Eric Seiverling

eseiverling@yourmvi.com

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting restrictions and shutdowns, local museums and historical societies are proving purveyors of the past can embrace today’s technology to survive.

With state health officials limiting the number of people in businesses, setting social distancing guidelines and  warning residents of the dangers of large gatherings, historical societies have seen a reduction in the number of people visiting their shops, touring their museums and devoting their time to volunteer.

But with online tools such as Zoom and Facebook Live, historical societies say they can now reach an even bigger audience that takes them beyond the Mon Valley.

“We have tried to look for the opportunities,” said Monongahela Area Historical Society President Laura Magone. “We are changing our speaker series and holding them virtually. The opportunity for us is by attending a Zoom meeting, we can attract members all across the country. 

“We’re looking at being more of a virtual organization and to store documents in the Cloud. It’s a whole new way of thinking for us. I don’t think we’ll ever be the same organization ever again. We are reinventing ourselves. How can we bring history to people in other ways?”

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