[MassHistPres] Renaming your historical society

[Russel Feldman]

The Newton Historical Society is a 501 (c)3 nonprofit that, since 1953, has collaborated with a department of the city government.  In 1984 we formalized the relationship through a memorandum of agreement to operate as a “joint board” that we renamed Historic Newton in 2006.  Formally speaking, Historic Newton is a d/b/a (“doing business as”) entity that enables us to act either as a public entity or a private nonprofit.  We’ve found this to be quite useful, if also quite complicated.
Adopting a name change, even as a d/b/a, can be helpful if it’s combined with a strong effort to communicate what the change means.  It’s less about what the old name carries with it than about a creating a brand that engages the community and recasts history in an appealing way.  By itself, changing the name won’t mean much but it can be helpful as part of a larger effort.

Russel Feldman, AIA, NCARB | Principal Emeritus | TBA Architects, Inc.

From: MassHistPres <masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu> On Behalf Of David Temple via MassHistPres
Sent: Monday, May 8, 2023 11:34 PM
To: Mass HistPres <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Subject: [MassHistPres] Renaming your historical society

There's been a trend away from the term "historical society" because it seems to connote old and fusty, not a lively, happening place.

If you changed your name to "X History Center"  or "Historic X"  or something similar - do you think the change actually accomplished anything?  Did making the change create any problems?

In your reply, please include my original message.

David F. Temple
President, Medfield Historical Society
https://medfieldhistoricalsociety.org/
Co-Chair, Medfield Historical Commission
300 South Street
Medfield, MA 02052
H-508-359-2915 M-508-613-6606
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