Bob Bemis has been on the job for four days and comes to the site with 16 years of experience in historic museums.
He is schooled not only in academia but in trade as a blacksmith which will he use as part of new programming under his watch at the historic site.
“The state wants this to be the premier Revolutionary War site in the east,” said Bemis, a native of Charlotte who previously worked at Historic Brattonsville in York County, a site which stretches in scope from the American revolution to the Antebellum South and beyond.
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Bemis wants the same thing and to make it happen his mantra will be “programming, programming, programming,” along with a push to make the history in the county seat come alive with accurate depictions of life during the colonial period and beyond.
Historic Halifax will see more period-correct clothing and more programming.
He will use his blacksmithing skills as part of the programming. The state is in the planning stages of constructing a forger for the site. “It's going to take a little while to construct a forger,” he said. “There had to be a farrier here. It was important to have a blacksmith.”
In the short time he has been on the job one of the things which has impressed him is the story of Sir Archie, which went to stud under William R. Davie. “We're designing a horse racing program,” he said. “We have the land where we can simulate a 19th Century horse race.”
With his previous museum experience, Bemis said the job opening after the retirement of Monica Moody, “was the right position at the right time. I was looking for a new challenge. This is a place we want to become the center of the Revolutionary War in the East. I felt comfortable, I felt we could breathe new life.”
For this new life there will be more authenticity, he said. “If we can put two or three people in each of the houses we can make it look lived in. We want it to have something to relate to the period.”
Bemis holds a masters in history from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
A longtime graphic designer, he transitioned to museums when the economy turned in 2008. At Halifax, one of his first major duties will be overseeing Revolutionary War Days on June 18 and 19, which he said will be an annual event and will take the place of Muster Days.
Over the course of his tenure he will have special themes each year such as the occupation of Cornwallis.
Bemis said he is ready for the challenge of his job.
He wants to draw more locals to the site. “The best way is to go up and meet people. It has been my role to be the public face. I understand marketing.”
He is scheduled to speak with the Halifax Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We need to see what we can do for each other.”
He has been welcomed enthusiastically by the town. “The town has been wonderful,” he said.
