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Transforming the Ordinary into Extraordinary: Gary Nash and the Visions of History
David Vigilante
National Center for History in the Schools
WE HAVE WITNESSED a commitment to excellence in teaching, research, the writing of history, and the perseverance in the face of threats and character assassination during the turbulent "history wars." Through it all, Gary Nash stood as a rock giving encouragement to all who look upon history as something much more than celebratory exploits of dead white men. Gary wrote in the preface of History on Trial: Culture Wars and the Teaching of the Past:
As the century draws to a close, we are witnessing a national surge of interest in history. A major reason for this is that more democratically conceived recountings of the past are being written—ones in which all citizens of the world's most diverse democracy see their struggles, aspirations, contributions, and sacrifices (History on Trial, xi).
This is the underlying theme in Gary's many acclaimed works, such as Red, White, and Black; Forging Freedom; The Forgotten Fifth; The Unknown American Revolution; and, most recently, Friends of Liberty. |
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Through his long career, Gary has been a pioneer in opening the often-stuffy chambers of academia. He has shown a devotion to K-12 teachers throughout the nation and has ventured into their classrooms to observe, to teach, and, yes, to learn. It is all too rare for a noted historian, famous for his many seminal works, to roll up his sleeves and delve into the minds of young elementary, middle, and high school students. I would like to review these past twenty years of Gary's activities—a period during which he should have been spending more time with Cindy traveling, at their ranch, or on hikes in the Sierras. |
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Gary Nash and Charlotte Crabtree co-directed The National Center for History in the Schools (NCHS), which was established as a cooperative research program of the University of California, Los Angeles and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Center paired college and university professors of history with K-12 teachers in developing a series of teaching units, the first of which were published in 1991. There now number over 70 highly acclaimed units used in schools throughout the nation. Recently, the Center, under Gary's leadership, has worked with the Getty Institute for the Arts, Huntington Library, Council on Islamic Education, Asia Society, Philadelphia's Lights of Liberty, and the Organization of American Historians to produce additional teaching units in U.S. and world history. |
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Congress, through efforts of Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, established a national program to fund programs for teachers of American history. These "Teaching American History" (TAH) grants support projects to raise student achievement by improving teachers' knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of American history. Grant awards promote partnerships with entities that have extensive content expertise, to develop, document, evaluate, and disseminate innovative, cohesive models of professional development. These grants follow a model that Gary Nash and Charlotte Crabtree, NCHS co-directors, established over twenty years ago to promote the collaboration of public school teachers and academic historians in the development of innovative curricular materials in United States and world history. Gary has also served as co-director of nationally funded grants through the Los Angeles Unified School District and Southern California Counties Consortium. He has worked on TAH projects with the numerous California school district grants including El Monte, Glendale, Montebello, Salinas, and East San Jose. In addition, he has assisted with grants through school districts and public agencies in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and Oregon. |
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Five fourth grade teachers in one Southern California Counties Consortium TAH grant worked with Gary and several prominent historians of early California history in the development of a teaching unit on the California missions. With Gary's efforts, the unit was sent to California public elementary schools through a grant from Azusa Pacific University, the Historical Society of Southern California, and the Wells Fargo Foundation. The Historical Society of Southern California presented a special service award to Delores Hendricks, Elaine Jeche, Rosemarie McCabe, Nancy Ruiz, and Christian Williams for their efforts in developing this unit of study that goes far beyond the "sugar-cube" construction projects that have typically served as a fourth grade "study" unit on the California missions. |
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In addition to working directly with teachers in the development of teaching units and through the TAH grant programs, Gary can often be found in K-12 classrooms. Students at Franklin High School in Los Angeles, enamored by Gary's down to earth style, dubbed Gary Nash "The Nashanator," a superhero who made history come alive in their classroom by sweeping away the "fog of historical amnesia" that often conceals the heroic accomplishments of ordinary people involved in extraordinary events. |
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Gary has captivated students with his lifelong pursuit to reveal the stories of forgotten Americans who have been neglected in mainstream historical studies. Red, White, and Black: The Peoples of Early America; Forging Freedom: The Formation of Philadelphia's Black Community 1720–1840; Race and Revolution; The Forgotten Fifth: African Americans in the Age of Revolution; The Unknown American Revolution: The Unruly Birth of Democracy and the Struggle to Create America; and, Friends of Liberty: A Tale of Three Patriots, Two Revolutions, and a Tragic Betrayal of Freedom in the New Nation: Thomas Jefferson, Thaddeus Kosciuszko, and Agrippa Hull are among his many works that delve into history that previously had been relegated to footnotes or completely ignored. The foundation on which his many works are based can be found in the introduction to The Unknown American Revolution:
Only a history that gives play to all the constituent parts of society can overcome the defeatist notion that the past was inevitably determined. Historical inevitability is a winner's story, excusing mistakes of the past and relegating the loser's story to a footnote. Is it not fitting in an open and generally optimistic society that we should portray to a wide range of individuals those who did not see themselves as puppets dancing on the strings of the supposed leaders? (xxix)
However, when historians reveal the stories of those lost in the previous generations of "traditional" historical works, they are liable to be accused of being 'history bandits,' 'history pirates,' or sneeringly, 'revisionists' intent on kidnapping history with no respect for a dignified rendition of the past" (The Unknown American Revolution, xxviii). Gary faced these charges throughout the culture wars following the publication of the National History Standards. His critics seem to take on the persona of Mr. Gradgrind, the eighteenth-century schoolmaster in Charles Dickens Hard Times, who prescribed a steady diet of "facts:"
Now what I want is facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but the facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else and root out everything else... This is the principle on which I bring up my own children... Stick to the facts, sir.
Undoubtedly, Mr. Gradgrind's mind was the depository of "facts" and anyone who dared to explore beyond the confines of his cranium was guilty of being a "history bandit." |
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Gary, as one of the nation's foremost social historians, has dared to challenge traditional historical works that have neglected the inclusion of the masses. His research has brought to the forefront the efforts of ordinary persons like Ebenezer MacIntosh, Elizabeth Freeman (Mumm Bett), Timothy Matlack, George Robert Twelves Hewes, and Absalom Jones. In so doing, he has incited the ire of some, but captured the hearts of students who can now examine a more liberated inclusive history. It is only fitting that we honor Gary B. Nash, who has devoted his academic career to expanding the boundaries of historical research. |
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