Freeman Tilden’s 1957 publication Interpreting Our Heritage was perhaps the first book to define the principles of interpreting history and nature. This resource page will provide an entree into some of the useful resources published since. This page will be updated periodically.
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Books
- Larry Beck and Ted Cable, The Gifts of Interpretation: Fifteen Guiding Principles for Interpreting Nature and Culture, 3rd Edition (2011)
- — Interpretation for the 21st Century (2002)
- Lisa Brochu and Tim Merriman, Personal Interpretation: Connecting Your Audience to Heritage Resources (2007)
- James Chung and Susie Wilkening, Life Stages of the Museum Visitor (2009)
- Deb Ryan and Franklin Vagnone, Anarchist’s Guide to Historic House Museums (2015)
- Freeman Tilden, Interpreting Our Heritage (1957; 2008)
- Amy Tyson, The Wages of History (2013)
Videos
- Theresa Cobble, “Grieving Difficult History: There’s a Place for That”
- David Larsen, “The Gun Talk”
- Katrina Lewis, “History Moments: Interpreting a Character”
- Nina Simon, “Audience Centered Interpretation and Community Engagement”
Articles & Guides
- Margaret Biser, “I used to lead tours at a plantation. You won’t believe the questions I got about slavery.”
- Dale Jones, “Theater 101 for Historical Interpretation”
- National Park Service Foundations of 21st Century Interpretation
- Resource Page on National Park Service History & Guides on Interpretation
Journals
Interpreting Our Heritage in the 21st Century 