In the heart of Atlanta, two Georgia State graduates are bringing the city’s rich culture to life one step at a time through their love of history and storytelling.

Lisa Flaherty (M.H.P. ’15) and Amy Durrell (M.H.P. ’22), who both have extensive backgrounds as tour guides, decided to launch a historical walking tour business named History Afoot Atlanta in September 2022.

Since then, History Afoot Atlanta has been connecting with locals and tourists while visiting some of Atlanta’s historical hot spots.

The tours take stops in areas like Ponce City Market and the Old Fourth Ward, and along the Atlanta BeltLine.

“I really enjoy all the tours. Every tour is different,” Durrell said. “The tours are really about experiencing a space and sharing information with other people.”

Flaherty and Durrell’s tours highlight the contributions and accomplishments of women living in Atlanta during the mid-20th century, the beginning efforts of the civil rights movement, and explore Atlanta’s architectural history and how the city became a busy transportation hub.

Flaherty said everyone, including herself, can learn while enjoying the sights and sounds of Atlanta.

“Storytelling goes both ways,” Flaherty said. “I feel very lucky to hear all these stories from people I might not normally come in contact with. It’s a blast.”

Flaherty and Durrell were introduced to one another through Georgia State University’s Master of Heritage Preservation (M.H.P.) program.

The M.H.P. program provides students with opportunities to pursue careers related to the preservation and interpretation of cultural heritage.

Durrell, who graduated from the M.H.P. program in 2022, said it was her professors who gave her the idea to develop a walking tour business in Atlanta.

“My professors started saying to me, ‘We really need someone who brings the training of a historian to do history tours in Atlanta,’” said Durrell, who has a background facilitating biking and walking tours. “They encouraged me. I don’t think we would have done this if it wasn’t for them. They all have been so supportive of this project.”

Flaherty, who graduated from the M.H.P. program in 2015, said the program has been helpful for her career development and the development of many other students’.

“It’s been amazing to see the number of people this program has sent out in the Atlanta area and what they’ve done,” Flaherty said. “The training we’ve received and what the program has done is pretty impressive.”

Chad Keller, the director of the Heritage Preservation program, said he’s happy to see alumni using the knowledge they gained from the program in a new way.

“It’s wonderful to see M.H.P. alumni bringing new energy and perspectives into the cultural tourism scene in Atlanta. There are so many lesser-known stories that our city holds that can be shared with residents and visitors alike,” Keller said. “Our program prepares students to think creatively about how they can contribute to the work of evolving our collective historical narratives.”

Flaherty and Durrell still give back to the history program that impacted them by hosting special tours for Georgia State students. They also support local history nonprofits by sharing new historical information about the sites they visit or recommending their customers visit the local nonprofits to get different perspectives about the city.

“We’re trying to be one more part of supporting the idea that people should be learning about how our city came to be,” Durrell said.