John Harry: Studying beer in Washington D.C.
By Taylor J. Hale
Reporter
WASHINGTON — A former Stevens Point local is interning at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
Historian John Harry, former radio personality on WYTE-106.5 and author of the upcoming pictorial history of Point Brewery, is gearing up for his esteemed internship at one of the nation’s most respected museums.
“As I was preparing to return to graduate school I saw that the Smithsonian hired a beer historian, Theresa McCulla,” Harry explained to the Gazette. “It became a goal of mine to intern for her.”
McCulla is a renowned social and cultural historian, carrying degrees from Harvard and a diploma from the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts’ Professional Chefs program. She joined the Smithsonian’s American Brewing History Initiative in 2017 to aid in the preservation of beer and brewing history. Harry, a current UW-Milwaukee history graduate student, saw the museum’s eclectic initiative as a calling.
“I sent [McCulla] a couple of emails a few months back,” Harry said. “She asked for my resume and a writing sample, I had an interview, and there we go! It happened so quickly — it’s really taking getting used to that I’ll be in D.C. for the summer at such a prestigious institution.”
Harry’s internship, lasting from May 29 through Aug. 2, will allow him to work alongside McCulla in her research by helping her prepare for trips and editing transcribed interviews for the Smithsonian’s archives. The student-historian believes that beer has created an encompassing history that mirrors that of the country.
“Beer ties into the identity of Americans as the beer we drink and the way we consume it is reflective of us as a nation,” Harry said passionately. “We are a social people who are proud of our heritage and beer is connected to all of that.”
Contact Taylor J. Hale at [email protected] with Portage County news and information.