By ZAYNE ALI
As the new executive director of Laurel Historical Society (LHS), Kristen Norton plans to use her nonprofit development and historic research skills to create programs and events that strike a balance between accessibility and community involvement.
“We want to educate people about the great history that we have in Laurel,” she said. “The more people we can invite to participate in these webinars or walking tours … the greater chance we have of fostering a better understanding of [the city’s rich past].”
Norton, who joined LHS on April 15, is excited to acquaint herself with the community, whether it’s through face-to-face meetings or taking brisk walks around the city. With both the annual LHS gala and the Main Street Festival now under her belt, she’s busy planning the society’s 50th anniversary in November..
Norton is also focused on the society’s role as a preservation advocate. Her ambitions include reviving the organization’s role in nominating state landmarks and continuing its oral history program.
“There are a lot of significant community members that I think we should interview,” she said. “Just in the last few years, there’ve been so many … historic moments that I think it’s important that we interview the community and kind of start documenting these experiences so … we’re preserving that historical record.”
Norton’s responsibilities include ensuring the historical society’s financial health. Under the current administration, funding through federal and state grants is at greater risk than previously, which increases the need for community support.
“I think we’re really fortunate that we have a group of very dedicated volunteers and members who contribute both financially, but also … their time and talents as well,” she said.
Norton emphasized that the historical society remains committed to telling diverse and inclusive stories.
“I’m really fortunate that my predecessor, Ann Bennett …. and the boards that she worked with … continued on with that movement in general,” she said. “ I’ll just continue on carrying on and building upon it going forward.”
A graduate of Florida State University, Norton focused her master’s thesis on famed African American tennis player Arthur Ashe, whose monument had stood on Monument Avenue in his hometown of Richmond, Va., alongside statues of a number of Confederate leaders, including Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. Norton reflected on how cultural shifts led to statues being removed from that site following the murder of George Floyd, in 2020, and the protests that followed.
“The conversations I found myself having were more so about [how] these monuments weren’t necessarily a representation of … our history,” she said. “I had to kind of have the argument that, you know, these are actually more representative of what these communities deemed were worth honoring and remembering.”
Discussions like the one about Richmond’s Monument Avenue have been a crucial component of Norton’s 15-year career of preserving stories in settings across the country, including in Arizona, California and now, in Maryland.
“I think I’ve just always been obsessed with history and the personal experiences of people who’ve lived through, you know, major significant events,” she said.
Norton has extensive experience as a historian in cultural settings, including with the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience, at Florida State, at Tucson’s Pima Air & Space Museum, and with the Historic Resources Group in Pasadena, Ca.. While at Pima, Norton volunteered to catalogue items that had belonged to WWII Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs). One item, a pair of handcrafted glass wings, stood out to her. According to Norton, the women pilots made these wings in response to the not being recognized by the United States Army Air Corps.
“[Cataloging the wings] It was a really unique experience,” she said. “I think Pima was really lucky to have had items like that donated that they could include in their collections.”
The Laurel Museum, which is owned and operated by LHS, current features Laurel Rides the Rails, an exhibit exploring the city’s transit history. A temporary exhibit celebrating the historical society’s 50th anniversary is due to open later this year.
“Laurel is a unique community,” Norton said. “Before [my husband and I] moved to Maryland, we were kind of looking at our wish list of places that we wanted to live. And top on that list for me was a town with a lot of historical character and a lot of historic buildings.”