ORGANIZATIONAL HISTORIES
Every company, organization, and institution has a history. Using in-house and public archives, newspapers, and other sources, I can help your organization tell its history in a compelling narrative. Most of my past work has been with larger federal organizations, but the same principles of historical research and writing apply for organizations small and large. Below are a few examples of organizational histories I have helped to write.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District History, 1966–2016
I co-wrote an updated history of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Los Angeles District. Along with two colleagues at Historical Research Associates, Inc., I conducted research at the USACE LA District office and the National Archives branch at Riverside, California. The final deliverable for this project was a 300-page scholarly written, well-illustrated manuscript, and 325 high-resolution photographs for inclusion during production. I wrote chapters on dams and water resources and emergency response operations. The final manuscript, Fifty Years of Protecting Communities and Safeguarding the Nation: A History of the Los Angeles District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 1966–2016, was published in 2021.
In 2023, The Society for History in the Federal Government awarded my co-author, Paul Sadin, their Member Award for Fifty Years of Protecting Communities. The Society wrote, “Paul Sadin and coauthors tell a nuanced history of the Los Angeles District of the Army Corps of Engineers. The book highlights the diverse and changing work of the unit over a fifty-year period. It provides both a thorough history of work and an analysis of key themes and trends in the Corps’ work during this period, making it a particularly excellent example of federal government history. Further, it highlights both highs and lows of the agency’s history. The clear, accessible writing along with thorough research, including several original oral histories and numerous illustrative images, make this work appealing to both a general and scholarly audience.”
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District History, 1957–2017
I contributed a chapter covering the history of the USACE Far East District from 2010 to 2017 for Building Strong in Korea: A History of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District. The manuscript tracks the history of the Far East District from the end of the Korean War through the Cold War and the massive growth of the District in the 1990s and 2000s.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District History, 2000–2015
I researched and wrote sections of an updated administrative history for the Portland District of the USACE. This manuscript, Engineering in the Twenty-First Century: A History of the Portland District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, focuses on the years 2000 to 2015 and builds on a previous administrative history for the District. Topics I researched included disaster response activities and business changes adopted by the District in the twenty-first century.