Those Crazy Americans

Today, as I went through and transcribed some of the oral histories, I almost burst out laughing as some of the New Lanark residents recounted some of their experiences with American visitors. One man was taken aback when his group of American students were appalled at the idea of drinking coffee, while another lady was interested in a student's take on the Industrial Revolution.

At the end of the day, I began the process of looking through the digital files and adding in scans that had been lost. While this is a time consuming process, it is extremely important and I hope that my work with enable someone else to better utilize the files.

It's hard to believe that I only have 2 more weekends here in New Lanark. I am both sad and glad that this is the case. I know that I'm going to miss working here and getting to explore some of the nearby cities, but I am also quite ready to go home and see my friends and family! This weekend, I will be travelling up to Edinburgh to see some of the sites and to enjoy a bit of leisure time. Hopefully I will be able to finish up my gift shopping as next weekend will be primarily devoted to Brick City.

In working here at New Lanark, I have learned that there is a lot that goes into a historic site and you never quite know what task you are going to be given. Often times, I am handed the tasks that others just simply don't have time for. This just proves that there is always a need for volunteers to help out in places like this. The work is never ending, but these tasks have helped me to become more adaptable. I have found that I am quite good at taking a task and running with it with minimal assistance from the management.

By listening to some of the oral histories, it is obvious that this site has changed dramatically since the mill closed in the 1960's. Hopefully I can come back later in life and see what changes they have made to help preserve it for the future. Of course, I am getting ahead of myself, but it will be interesting to see where they take the site!