A Narrative Map of Fort Missoula: Silence, Stillness and Death in Living Cultural Memory

Author

Daniel A. Goldhamer, University of Montana, MissoulaFollow

Year of Award

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Arts (MA)

Degree Name

Anthropology

Department or School/College

Anthropology

Committee Chair

G. G. Weix

Commitee Members

Cheyenne Laue, Donna McCrea

Keywords

Public ethnography, place-based ethnography, decolonization, Japanese internment, historic preservation, placemaking

Subject Categories

Cultural History | Historic Preservation and Conservation | Social and Cultural Anthropology | Social History | United States History

Abstract

Fort Missoula is a rare site of history, memory, and narrative. This project seeks to trace the complex web of identities and relationalities at the Fort through a narrative map: a method that combines site-based ethnography and qualitative storytelling relying on first-person perspective. This methodological framework reveals that Fort Missoula’s distinct character lies in its role as a living archive of cultural memory, accessible through the past, present, and future narratives of its places and spaces. Engaging with the theories of Foucault (1972), de Certeau (1984), and Low (2017), the narrative map of Fort Missoula is a work that investigates themes of silence, stillness, and death through oral history. It investigates the stories of the past revealed by archival records, the strategies and tactics of its “placemakers” and “spacewalkers” in a contemporary landscape, and the advocacy for historic preservation for its uncertain future.

Recommended Citation

Goldhamer, Daniel A., "A Narrative Map of Fort Missoula: Silence, Stillness and Death in Living Cultural Memory" (2024). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 12431.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/12431