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By Kathy Antoniotti
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 07:18 p.m. EST, Mar 05, 2009
Revisiting history can be a nostalgic walk down memory lane. But even through the murky haze of four decades, to many people, 1968 is still a really crummy year.
Dr. Greg Wilson, assistant professor of history at the University of Akron, said memories of public history, no matter how painful, help us learn from our mistakes — even those made in the late '60s.
Wilson cited a widely unpopular war that eventually cost more than 58,000 American lives before it ended in 1975.
''As a historian, it's important to remember those things so we don't repeat them. The draft was a big thing. It was the Vietnam experience that ended it,'' Wilson said.
Wilson and Judy James, manager of special collections at the Akron-Summit County Public Library, collaborated on an idea to engage students in Wilson's History, Communities and Memory class in researching how the events shaped Akron's history on the year's 40th anniversary. In September, students began conducting interviews with Akron residents and former residents about their personal memories.
Students compiled their results and provided the information that is featured in an exhibit titled The Times They Were A-Changin': Akron Remembers 1968. Excerpts from some of the 39 interviews the students conducted, plus their personal research, are featured in the exhibit at the Lock 3 Akron History Museum in downtown Akron.
Cheri Goldner, also a librarian in the special collections department, serves as volunteer curator at the museum. She took the information and quotes from the students and designed the panels in the exhibit. Along with Wilson, Goldner wrote the text and introduction for the retrospective.
''Cheri is multi-talented. She is the one who coordinated it and worked closely with the students,'' said James.
The exhibit explores the violence of 1968, including the deaths of Dr. Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, that caused political unrest and helped divide young and old, black and white.
Racial tensions erupted during a hot summer and swept through many of the nation's cities, including Akron, which caused then-Mayor John Ballard to call in National Guard troops and to issue a 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew.
''When you talk with people about memory, it's very personal. In some of the interviews I listened to, there were emotional responses while discussing civil rights, Martin Luther King's death or discrimination. Most people could remember exactly what they were doing when they heard of the assassinations of King or Kennedy,'' said Katie Chambers of Brunswick, one of Wilson's students.
But the year wasn't bad from all perspectives. It saw a country with an affluent economy, the first TV show that starred an African-American woman in a nonstereotypical role (Diahann Carroll in Julia) and an Ohio State NCAA football championship under coach Woody Hayes.
''I interviewed Judge Judith Nicely,'' said Mary Andre, of Marshallville, one of the students involved in the project.
''She was a young mother with several small children at home in 1968, and the memories she shared with me were mostly positive. She remembered being deeply concerned about the civil rights movement, equal housing, and the events taking place in Akron during the summer of '68. But she also shared fond memories; she recalled the opening of Blossom Music Center as an exciting event for Akron,'' Andre said.
Popular culture, including the music, films and local bar scene of the day were explored. Vietnam vet John Morrison of Coventry Township, one of the people interviewed for the project, said he remembered the first time he heard the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album on an eight-track tape. His reaction was included in the exhibit.
''It kind of blew my mind because it was like a year old and I hadn't heard a song off it. It was a nice introduction to 1968,'' Morrison remembered.
David Blewette of Grandmother's Video Productions and the TV Dinner Club Museum provided a display of board games based on popular television shows that include That Girl, The Monkees and Get Smart.
Fashions from the era are displayed, including the popular miniskirt, provided by the Summit County Historical Society.
Many of the photos featured in the exhibit and audio clips of interviews are available at http://www.summitmemory.org on the Web.
The exhibit will remain at Lock 3 through the year, Goldner said. Visitors are encouraged to record their own memories at the exhibit.
Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.
Revisiting history can be a nostalgic walk down memory lane. But even through the murky haze of four decades, to many people, 1968 is still a really crummy year.
Dr. Greg Wilson, assistant professor of history at the University of Akron, said memories of public history, no matter how painful, help us learn from our mistakes — even those made in the late '60s.
Wilson cited a widely unpopular war that eventually cost more than 58,000 American lives before it ended in 1975.
''As a historian, it's important to remember those things so we don't repeat them. The draft was a big thing. It was the Vietnam experience that ended it,'' Wilson said.
Wilson and Judy James, manager of special collections at the Akron-Summit County Public Library, collaborated on an idea to engage students in Wilson's History, Communities and Memory class in researching how the events shaped Akron's history on the year's 40th anniversary. In September, students began conducting interviews with Akron residents and former residents about their personal memories.
Students compiled their results and provided the information that is featured in an exhibit titled The Times They Were A-Changin': Akron Remembers 1968. Excerpts from some of the 39 interviews the students conducted, plus their personal research, are featured in the exhibit at the Lock 3 Akron History Museum in downtown Akron.
Cheri Goldner, also a librarian in the special collections department, serves as volunteer curator at the museum. She took the information and quotes from the students and designed the panels in the exhibit. Along with Wilson, Goldner wrote the text and introduction for the retrospective.
''Cheri is multi-talented. She is the one who coordinated it and worked closely with the students,'' said James.
The exhibit explores the violence of 1968, including the deaths of Dr. Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, that caused political unrest and helped divide young and old, black and white.
Racial tensions erupted during a hot summer and swept through many of the nation's cities, including Akron, which caused then-Mayor John Ballard to call in National Guard troops and to issue a 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew.
''When you talk with people about memory, it's very personal. In some of the interviews I listened to, there were emotional responses while discussing civil rights, Martin Luther King's death or discrimination. Most people could remember exactly what they were doing when they heard of the assassinations of King or Kennedy,'' said Katie Chambers of Brunswick, one of Wilson's students.
But the year wasn't bad from all perspectives. It saw a country with an affluent economy, the first TV show that starred an African-American woman in a nonstereotypical role (Diahann Carroll in Julia) and an Ohio State NCAA football championship under coach Woody Hayes.
''I interviewed Judge Judith Nicely,'' said Mary Andre, of Marshallville, one of the students involved in the project.
''She was a young mother with several small children at home in 1968, and the memories she shared with me were mostly positive. She remembered being deeply concerned about the civil rights movement, equal housing, and the events taking place in Akron during the summer of '68. But she also shared fond memories; she recalled the opening of Blossom Music Center as an exciting event for Akron,'' Andre said.
Popular culture, including the music, films and local bar scene of the day were explored. Vietnam vet John Morrison of Coventry Township, one of the people interviewed for the project, said he remembered the first time he heard the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album on an eight-track tape. His reaction was included in the exhibit.
''It kind of blew my mind because it was like a year old and I hadn't heard a song off it. It was a nice introduction to 1968,'' Morrison remembered.
David Blewette of Grandmother's Video Productions and the TV Dinner Club Museum provided a display of board games based on popular television shows that include That Girl, The Monkees and Get Smart.
Fashions from the era are displayed, including the popular miniskirt, provided by the Summit County Historical Society.
Many of the photos featured in the exhibit and audio clips of interviews are available at http://www.summitmemory.org on the Web.
The exhibit will remain at Lock 3 through the year, Goldner said. Visitors are encouraged to record their own memories at the exhibit.
Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.
Comments
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rootstown, oh
Posted 02:52 AM, 03/06/2009
it's a shame young people can't experience the same feelings we had back in '68.we felt like we had the power to change the world-in a good way.not by killing everyone who didn't agree with the administration in power.
Chagrin Falls, OH
Posted 07:55 AM, 03/06/2009
I remember the keen sense of purpose, hope and the feeling that we mattered and could make a difference. I recall(no drugs either!) a sharp awareness of the wrongdoing of "the administration" and feeling the power to change it! Those were the days....but the sadness still lingers over the assassination of MLK and I wonder what the world would look like today had he lived. Thanks for the memories!
Atlanta, GA
Posted 09:02 AM, 03/06/2009
I remember 1968
Ahhhh sorta, kinda.
But what I do remember was "far out"
Akron, OH
Posted 09:17 AM, 03/06/2009
Yes, You Can't Hide, we were all very naive and bought easily into the frenzy that we could change the world. But eventually the majority just bought into the same materialism as our parents.
For all the fanciful talk of '68, do keep in mind the mobs that marched down South Arlington around Lovers Lane smashing storfront windows and vandalizing that summer.
Posted 10:23 AM, 03/06/2009
I do not remember anything good about 1968. What I do remember is a gang of blacks looting and burning buisness on South Arlington Street, destroying an area of small buisness that has never recovered. Tell me what good came from that?
Akron, OH
Posted 11:18 AM, 03/06/2009
The Wooster Avenue small business district never recovered either. The National Guard brought an end to six days of violence on the streets of these two areas. Vital area small black businesses and neighborhood supermarkets were destroyed. And for what?
1968. Not a good year in Akron.
rootstown, oh
Posted 01:57 AM, 03/07/2009
as hard as it is for some to accept,this country is better because of upheaval in '68.read the preamble to the constitution and maybe you will realize that sometimes change has to occur by force.i love what this country stands for,but have not been too proud of our government for a while.
