Category Archives: Uncategorized

A Frank History of the Hot Dog with Jamie Loftus

Historic foodways is a fan-favorite topic here on the podcast (pretzels, pizza, and many others) so we’re thrilled to have comedian, Emmy Award-nominated TV writer, podcaster, and author of Raw Dog, the Naked Truth About Hot Dogs, Jamie Loftus join us today! Jamie’s book is a blend of travelogue, culinary history, and critique of capitalism, […]

Claire McCardell: The Designer Who Set Women Free with Elizabeth Evitts Dickinson

Today we’re joined by journalist and author Elizabeth Evitts Dickinson, talking about her critically-acclaimed book, Claire McCardell: The Designer Who Set Women Free, which came out in June of 2025 from Simon & Schuster. Named a New York Times Editors’ Choice, an Amazon Editor’s pick for Best History, and a must-read book featured in Oprah […]

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival x Historic Trades with Jordan Riggs

Today we’re joined by The Campaign for Historic Trades’ Recruitment and Outreach Manager Jordan Riggs to talk about the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and The Campaign’s role in this year’s event, spotlighting the value of careers, training, and education in historic trades. The Campaign for Historic Trades, like PreserveCast, is powered by Preservation Maryland. 

Building for the Future: Cultural Heritage & Climate with Nina Jean-Louis

Today we’re talking with Nina Jean-Louis, a structural engineer passionate about bridging engineering, cultural heritage, and climate science to design culturally sensitive strategies that help communities safeguard their heritage sites from climate change impacts. Her research involves transdisciplinary methodologies merging qualitative and quantitative approaches to holistically quantify cultural landscape resilience in co-production with community relational […]

Tailcoats to Tan Suits: Presidential Fashion with Summer Anne Lee

Today’s episode threads history through the needle of style as we welcome our first-ever fashion historian, Summer Anne Lee. Based in Brooklyn and teaching at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Summer joins us to talk fashion and the wardrobes of America’s commanders-in-chief with her forthcoming book, Presidential Fashion: An Illustrated History, set to be published […]

Trades Takeover with John Chan of Durable Restoration

Trades Takeover is back! In this episode, Director of Historic Trades Natalie Henshaw speaks with John Chan, Principal and Executive VP for the Durable Slate Company. John is a nationally recognized expert in historic roofing and a passionate advocate for preserving traditional roofing methods. He started slate, tile and copper roofing at The Durable Slate […]

Giants of Urban Design with Thomas Campanella

We’re sitting down with Thomas Campanella, historian and author of the new book, Designing the American Century: The Public Landscapes of Clarke and Rapuano, 1915–1965. Tune in as we talk about two unsung giants of American landscape and urban design. Thomas J. Campanella is professor of urban studies and city planning at Cornell University and Historian-in-Residence […]

A Foundation for the Future with Benjamin Prosky from the Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation

Today we’re on with Benjamin Prosky, president of the Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation, working to advance education, innovation, and stewardship in the fields of historic preservation, decorative arts, and historic landscapes. Listen in as Ben covers his preservation journey and the resources the Foundation stewards.

All Hands on Deck: a Maritime Story with Olive Theodore

Join us as we sit down with Olive Theodore, founder of Walrus Boat Recycling, a nonprofit project centered around saving and upcycling boats, and the capital campaign manager of the Center for Wooden Boats, aiming to connect each of us to Seattle’s living maritime heritage of building, exploring, and using small boats through hands-on experiences. […]

Juneteenth at Williamsburg: Reclaiming the Story of the Bray School with Jack Gary

On this special-release episode of PreserveCast, we’re sitting down with Jack Gary from Colonial Williamsburg’s Department of Archaeology to discuss the opening of a “new” site at Colonial Williamsburg. Today, on Juneteenth, Colonial Williamsburg is opening a powerful chapter of American history,  the Williamsburg Bray School, the nation’s oldest-known schoolhouse used to educate enslaved and […]