Coming soon to a saloon near you
What is 'Atlas Americana?' A place to think, write, ruminate, and talk about American history, our place in it, and our future with it.
This is Atlas Americana.
According to Merriam-Webster, the word ‘atlas’ can be defined as “a bound collection of maps often including illustrations, informative tables, or textual matter.” The Cambridge Dictionary, says that “a book containing maps showing where particular things are made, found, etc.” The Oxford English Dictionary, posits that it is “a similar volume containing illustrative plates, large engravings, etc., or the conspectus of any subject arranged in tabular form; e.g. ‘an atlas of anatomical plates,’ ‘an ethnographical atlas’.” I think that these are all apt.
This collection of thoughts and research will be an atlas—with all the illustrations, informative tables, textual matter, and more.
According to Merriam-Webster, again, the word ‘Americana’ can be defined as “materials concerning or characteristic of America, its civilization, or its culture.” Cambridge says that it is comprised of “objects, especially decorative objects, that come from and are typical of the U.S.” Again, I think these are both apt.
Atlas Americana, apart from being a place for my thoughts, is a place for me to write on American history, ruminate on American politics, and talk about American culture and society. Atlas Americana seeks to craft “an ethnographical atlas of materials concerning America, its civilization, its culture, through objects, themes, history, that come from and are typical of America.” Now is not the time to hide our history, particularly when it is under attack. Now is a time to continue to dig deep into our past, to dredge up the painful answers that we so tearfully need.
Hopefully, what you find here you will enjoy. Hopefully, over time, my writing will improve. And lastly, hopefully, over time, we will win a new sunshine.
This is Atlas Americana.
Thumbnail: Greenaway, Kate, Publisher Frederick Warne, and Katherine Golden Bitting Collection On Gastronomy. A Apple Pie. [London ; New York: F. Warne, 1900] Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/85211404/.