About this blog
Hey there! I’m Matt, the creator of History with Legs. I am so pumped you decided to visit my site! My mission with this site is to inspire you to check out the history of the places you travel. I’ll do that by writing about the history of the places that I travel to in a way I hope you find entertaining.
According to a survey conducted by The Vacationer, a whopping 85% of people stated they planned to travel in the summer of 2023. That’s staggering! The reason you travel depends a lot on your interests. You may be a thrill seeker, a nature lover, or a chill finder. Or maybe you are just going to visit your Uncle Joe in the state next door.
There is another reason you may want to hop on a plane or jump in the family truckster. Per Forbes.com, nearly one third of Americans find heritage tourism (traveling to experience the places, artifacts and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past) a meaningful way to travel with the 18 to 34 crowd showing the highest interest.
History through travel
When you hear a fancy phrase like heritage tourism, your brain might imagine a grand tour of Civil War battlefields or the Operation Overlord beaches by a niche tour company. You might ask yourself, “I mean, I really like history, but not that much.” Don’t get me wrong, both of those tours are on my bucket list. But I am here to say that you can experience history anywhere you travel…even if your main goal is just to get blasted by the beach.
There are so many ways you can learn about the history of your travel destination. You can visit a museum, Uber your way to a historical site, take a history-based tour, attend a cultural festival, or study up before you travel by reading a book or watching a documentary.
The question remains, why? Why invest in the past when you want to enjoy the present? American historian Henry Glassie puts it best: “History is not the past but a map of the past, drawn from a particular point of view, to be useful to the modern traveller.” Learning the history of the place you find yourself will deepen the meaning of that place to you.
About me
I am passionate about both history and travel. I received a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Nebraska. However, I want to be clear. I am NOT a historian. Those guys are way nerdier than me (just kidding!). I am just a guy who tends to way over-research the places I travel to with my wife and two kids. My wife thinks it’s a problem. I think it’s fun. Since I do this research anyway, I figured I write about it in the hope others might be inspired to travel more and connect with history. Contact me to let me know what you think.
