Wonderful Quote by the Late Historian and Writer David McCullough

A free meme with a quote about history by the late writer David McCullough

David McCullough (1933-2022)

The great American historian and writer David McCullough died recently. He wrote a number of great books including 1776, and the seminal biography of John Adams. He was also the distinctive narrative voice in Ken Burns’ iconic documentary series about The Civil War on PBS.

After McCullough’s death, I watched a 1995 interview where he said, “Contrary to the notion that the past is a dead thing, in fact, wherever you scratch the surface, you find life.”

I love that. It sums up how I feel about my photographs of abandoned places too. They aren’t just photographs of ruins and detritus. They’re also photographs of places people lived and worked and loved and laughed. Sure there’s waste and decay there, but also stories of lives lived — if only we can hear them.

Feel free to download and share the above meme.

From an interview with David McCullough for the Academy of Achievement, June 3, 1995.

Thanks for reading.

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~ Keith