Menu:

A research plan?
Why not
just start
twiddling
on my phone?

Research planning? "Who needs a plan?" some might say. Why not just barge in, fire up the computer or phone, and start fiddling? Something interesting on the subject is bound to turn up, right? Well, for the curious mind, stumbling across random tidbits of history is fun and often sparks deeper interest. But once a casual curiosity becomes a focused historical or genealogical inquiry, the project will benefit from a research plan.

In case anyone needs to be convinced about the value of having a plan, consider this timeless wisdom from Yogi Berra: "If you don't know where you're going, you'll end up someplace else."

Research & Interpretation

The longtime mantra: "Talk is cheap. See the work."
Scroll down to links to research and interpretation projects.

Okay, you've mined your vast archives for material related to a new exhibition coming up next year. You've mobilized a great team of volunteers to extract information. They've come through again, and delivered you a mountain of simmering, tantalizing, relevant facts. But you realize that, with all your other responsibilities, by the time you digest all the material and whip it into shape, it will be the year 2038. In this situation, a real professional can help.

R.W. Bacon has been a researcher since his days as a newspaper journalist in the 1960s ... in the profession that writes "the first draft of history." Years later, during a long career as a performing artist, he researched and wrote books on arcane specialties, investigating the roots of skills that extend back to the beginnings of American vaudeville and European circus. During the decades of presenting theatrical shows packed with period flavor and content, one constant challenge was how to get the material across the footlights and connect with the contemporary audience in a fresh and immediate way. (Years later, during a graduate school lecture, he realized that what he had been doing on stage for so many years was ... by-the-book museum interpretation for the public.

Local history and family history research are particular specialties. R.W. Bacon is author of a dozen books on multifarious history topics, and from 2005 through 2018 was the editor of The Middler, the research journal and newsletter of the Society of Middletown (Conn.) First Settlers Descendants. In his years of work for a regional preservation organization, he has researched and prepared guide manuals for staff, created interpretive materials for the public, and delivered hundreds of public presentations at numerous historic house museums. (Above right: the Coffin House, Newbury, Mass., c. 1678, in a 1940 photo from the Library of Congress.)

Among his publications is The Micro-Historian's Guide to Research, Evidence, & Conclusions: Step-by-Step Research Planning & Execution. Published in 2018, this book imparts valuable guidance to today's motivated researchers who are all charged-up with enthusiasm but may not yet have a solid foundation of method. The book is now in use at more than 50 colleges worldwide. Read more about the book at the companion Variety Arts Press web site.

R.W. Bacon brings to your research & interpretation project the tenacity of a hard-digging old-school news reporter, the organizational skills of an author/historian, the clear writing of a professional journalist, and the context-aware interpretation skills of an experienced public communicator.

But talk is cheap! See relevant work samples and commentary by clicking on the links below. Don't hesitate to call or e-mail with any questions. I would be happy to discuss your project. --- R.W. Bacon.

Talk is cheap. See the work ...
... in research and interpretation.

A selection of general research resources:

History research resources:

Genealogy research libraries:

Preservation organizations:

For those interested in the finer points
of the research & interpretation professions ...