Pawtucket, Rhode Island

Don't be square!  I guess the folks at Slater's Mill didn't get the memo, because here they gave us a perfect square.  But as we all learned in school:  a good short story begins with an enticing title!  Too bad the river gets no credit at all.  [2009]

Cardiff, Wales

Don't be square!  In fact, don't even be angular.  In the British Isles, ovals and medallions seem to be used much more frequently than in the United States.  [2005]

Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

Don't be square!  'Landscape' is more common than 'portrait' when it comes to historical markers.  Nevertheless, most markers are not perfect rectangles.  Various design elements usually give them a lift at top center.  "Attracting thousands of visitors each year."  Wouldn't that go without saying?  [1995]

Hudson, Michigan

Don't be square!  Stand up tall and stay in shape.  But, we don't seem to know what the best shape is for historical markers.  To-the-point it is, but why mention Adrian when you are trying to call attention to the importance of Hudson?  [2008]

Midway, Georgia

Too much, too little, just right?  You can jam even more words onto your historical marker if you don't have to spell out 'Union' and 'Confederacy' every time you mention them.  Using flags is a clever innovation in a realm where communication is all about words and seldom about symbols.  [2010]

West Palm Beach, Florida

Too much, too little, just right?  266 words.  Maybe more than we need to know and definitely more than we are likely to read.  Read it and answer this question:  What's the "take-away" message?  Or is it just a bottomless pit of facts?  [2005]

Coldwater, Michigan

Too much, too little, just right?  122 words.  Stand still and read; it will take you about a minute.  Are all words necessary:  stately?  visible for miles?  generous?  Strangely, it's the bell and the clock that take center stage, not the courthouse or its site.  [2008]

Beckley, West Virginia

Too much, too little, just right?  78 words, including 14 numbers (a high count of numbers on a historical marker).  But what is blackdamp?  And what is this marker doing in the county seat instead of Eccles? [2010]

Fredericksburg, Virginia

Too much, too little, just right?  14 words and a simple title.  Succinct but useful for anyone following the day-to-day progress of the Civil War.  Could you read this much while driving by?  or would you have to stop?  [2010]

Cuckoo, Virginia

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate confluences of people and events as the combined engines of history.  The American Revolution could have been lost were it not for the ride of Jack Jouett, Virginia's Paul Revere.  [2007]

Cedar Key, Florida

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate confluences of people and places as the combined engines of history.  Individual achievements are shaped, in part, by geographical realities.  'Countenances of the people' also seem to be shaped by those realities.  [1997]

St. Albans, Vermont

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate confluences of places and events as the combined engines of history.  St. Albans Raid may have brought the Civil War to Vermont, but look at the date.  The Civil War was only 6 months from being over.  [2009]

Nashville, Tennessee

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate events as the engines of history.  It should come as no surprise that this marker is in Nashville, the country music capital of the world.  The Ryman Auditorium provides the backdrop.  [2009]

Emmitsburg, Maryland

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate people as the engines of history.  But only recently have women, like the United States' first native-born saint, begun to claim their share of roadside landscapes.  [2005]

Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Places, People, and Events:  Using historical markers, we commemorate places as the engines of history, often with ceremonial ado.  The installation of an historical marker in Carlisle made history a living part of the county seat's landscape.  [1982]