Dave Taylor’s online record of local history is even more sprawling than its title: “Timeline of Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County Area History including its many Tragedies, Crises, Disasters, and Shocking News.” The retired school guidance counselor started davetgc.com/Ann_Arbor_Tragedies.html about three years ago. It would now fill more than 1,700 pages if printed.
Taylor started davetgc.com in 1999. Its meticulously detailed pages address everything from college and career readiness to Taylor’s favorite movies (listed by year). But the history page has taken on a life of its own. It’s spawned a Facebook group with nearly 600 followers, and Taylor reports that it gets “close to 50,000 hits a day.” He still regularly adds both current and historical events to it during the four to five hours he spends “computering” each morning.
Describing himself as a “closet history teacher,” he hopes the page will be a
useful resource–potentially in book form at some point. “I’m sixty-six now,” he says. “As long as I’ve got enough energy to continue to do this, I’m going to be updating and adding.”
“I guess one of the dangers of living is to have a curious mind,” he says. “This is my venue to do it.”
