Can a city that doesn’t know its history properly tell its own story?

I posited that question to Columbus Underground writers Walker Evans and Susan Post this week to kick off the first installment in a series of free-flowing conversations about a variety of local news topics. Some of the best-read articles this year at CU have included the “Come Get Your Dead” series, which dives into the history of the North Graveyard.

“In Bucky’s article, he talks about that transient nature of Columbus, how there are so many people that are always coming in that don’t always know the history of the city,” explained Post. “I think that’s why this story has really struck a chord with people. People have no idea that used to be a graveyard. So I agree with him on that point, that there’s always so many new people coming to Columbus that there’s a hunger for those stories.”

Other topics discussed this week include the upcoming electionnew restaurants, and the city’s ever-changing retail landscape.

“I republished my Tuttle Mall story last week — from back in February,” said Evans. “When I did that story, I found out that Tuttle was about 30 percent vacant. So I went to Gallery Hop — and took notes and took inventory and the number I landed on was around 15 percent. Which doesn’t seem insane, but it is interesting.”

Here at The Confluence Cast, we’re booking out our fall interviews and have some really great ones coming up. But if readers or listeners have any ideas on topics they’d like to hear more about, leave a comment below or email [email protected] to make a suggestion.

Shownotes

Full transcript on page 2