History Unbounded: A Relaunch of the Public History Review Section

Abstract

In 1989 Thomas J. Schlereth inaugurated the Exhibition Reviews section of the Journal of American History, arguing that “museum exhibits and their related elements” were “a distinct medium for identifying, organizing, comparing, analyzing, and communicating historical information and interpretation,” and that museums had become a place where trained historians conducted research and presented scholarship. He acknowledged that museums had a profound effect on shaping public understanding of the past.