California Historical Society Launches Online Gallery Featuring COVID-19 Stories

SAN FRANCISCO, May 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- We are living through an extraordinary moment, a crisis of historic proportions. As the official historical society of the State of California, the California Historical Society is collecting stories and images that reflect the experiences of Californians during the COVID-19 pandemic and is launching an online gallery to exhibit those stories.

Modern historians have argued that history isn't simply comprised of actions of remarkable or grand figures. The thoughts and experiences of everyday people are valuable keys to unlock what it's like to live in any era. Since its inception in 1871, the archives of the California Historical Society have attested to the power of ordinary people's testimonies through diaries, letters, scrapbooks, and oral histories. In an effort to document the history happening now, CHS has requested input from people throughout the state for its "Tell Your Story: California during the time of COVID-19" project.

"Future generations will be able to use these firsthand accounts by everyday Californians to understand what happened during this pandemic, how it changed people's lives, what it felt like, what it looked like. Our hope is that, down the line, people might also use these stories as insights into navigating the challenges of their own unique time in history," said Alicia Goehring, CHS's Executive Director and CEO.

The story collection portal, which was launched on April 13th, has already elicited more than 170 entries from across the state, representing the lived experiences of individuals, families, and communities of varying backgrounds and geographic locations. A sampling of these stories are now available to the public through an online gallery. The gallery will be updated periodically to make accessible a wide variety of California experiences.

"What we are finding is that people need a place to describe this strange experience that is at once shared and terribly isolating. It creates a sense of connection, of being heard. The online gallery will complete that loop, so that people can see what others are experiencing. Some of the stories are emotionally raw or filled with hardship, but then others are more reflective and humorous." Erin Garcia, CHS Director of Exhibitions said.

Stories can be submitted via the CHS website using the link https://californiahistoricalsociety.org/initiatives/tell-your-story-california-during-the-time-of-covid-19/

The online gallery can be viewed here: https://californiahistoricalsociety.org/exhibitions/tell-your-story-california-during-the-time-of-covid-19/

About the California Historical Society

Founded in 1871, the California Historical Society (CHS) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire and empower people to make California's richly diverse past a meaningful part of their contemporary lives. In 1979 Governor Jerry Brown designated CHS the official historical society of the State of California. Today, CHS enacts its mission with a wide range of library, exhibition, publication, education, and public outreach programs that explore the complex and continuing history of the state and represent the diversity of the California experience, past and present. Our treasured collection—documenting the history of the entire state from the Spanish Era to the present day—is brought to life through these innovative public history projects that expand and diversify our audience and broaden our public impact. Learn more at californiahistoricalsociety.org.

SOURCE California Historical Society