It's 2026 NBH Summer Museum Bingo!
Whether you plan to be near or far, make this summer an adventure that brings us closer to each other
Note from Annette
Summer’s coming, but concerns about the cost of travel may keep many of us home. Believe it or not, we can enjoy ourselves as much or even more staying closer to home, getting to know our part of the world.
Good history museums — even some bad museums — make us feel more connected to the people of the past, no matter how different they were, and to the people around us in the present.
There's much to be said for going to museums alone, and we're never alone in a museum! Chat with the gift shop lady or ranger or fellow visitors or the janitor!) There's also much to be said for bringing a friend or relative—especially a kid!— and getting to know each other better.
And everyone should come away from the experience seeing the world a little differently. So don’t be afraid to go to the Presidential Libraries of US Presidents you don’t like. Don’t totally avoid museums on subjects you don’t think you’re interested in. Certainly don’t be afraid of visiting museums about people who belong to a group that you don’t, whether we’re talking ethnic, religious, political, or whatever.
Whether you’re jetting across the globe, or, this being 2026, staying close to homebase, enrich your days with Non-Boring History’s Summer Museum Bingo!
HERE IT IS!
If you go by yourself, you will have plenty of time to browse a museum at your leisure and pace, and I recommend doing this at least sometimes. If you take a kid, or a pal you need to reconnect with, you'll also get the bonding we all need. Treat yourself or selves to afternoon tea or lunch at the museum, or an eatery nearby, and make a day of it.
And do drop your own local recommendations in the comments for others in your area!
Plus . . . History isn't just for summer! Add the joy of history to your life year-round with Non-Boring History, in which I make it my mission as a historian to bring more context for understanding and appreciating our world. Most importantly, I share my impish curiosity about the past, and show how it's all around us. As Nonnies (paying readers) know, I work very hard at this more-than-full-time job. That's why, as NBH marks its fifth birthday this month, I feel no shame in urging you to give back with a paying subscription, which really does make this work possible:
What benefits you in becoming a proper annual or monthly subscriber? Pride in doing your bit, that's important. Plus you get everything I write, including my new material in Saturday posts, my searchable library of more than 600 Non-Boring History posts, and my interpretations of historian’s stories about the past that open hope and possibility for our thinking about the future!
No prizes for winning the summer museum bingo, but Nonnies (paying readers) are warmly invited to submit your photos for possible publication at NBH: Just hit reply to any of my emails. 😀
For thos of us who are able to travel this year, this corner of Canada has an excellent line in museums. In Whistler, you'll find the Squamish-Lillooet Cultural Centre with its First Nations interpreters and the Whistler Museum and Archive - full of local history. In and near Squamish we have the Railway Museum of BC with train rides and local railway history and displays and the great Britannia Mine Museum with adventures above and below ground.
That's more than enough to fill a pre or post cruise stay. Also, if your cruise visits Skagway, be sure and ride the White Pass and Yukon Railway which lays out the Yukon Gold Rush before you.
Your area probably has many such attractions that you haven't visited lately. Go and see what's going on there. Volunteer and get involved. Have fun learning!
Well..... That got unexpectedly enthusiastic!