In a meeting that lasted less than 30 minutes, the [Pittsfield, Ill.] council voted to pay $4,500 to buy 12 transmitters that will turn 12 historic sites in Pittsfield into "Talking Houses"Most of the 12 are notable for having a Lincoln connection. Think about that: Lincoln in Pittsfield. Is that a lost work of Carl Sandburg?
Here's something to keep in mind when touring Pittsfield: you cannot enter these houses. People live there.
The "Talking Houses" concept is a new one. A transmitter, which closely resembles a thin VCR, will be placed in each historically significant location. Visitors will be able to pull up in front of those structures, tune their radios to an AM radio frequency, which will broadcast an approximate five-minute history and/or significance narrative of the building.We are at the cusp of a heritage tourism bubble. Watch for the burst.
