Blue collar doesn't have to mean drab and dull. At least, not to Troy, New York, historian Mike Esposito, who is a member of a neighborhood revitalization movement seeking to celebrate the people and events that brought diversity, prosperity, and vitality to this upstate New York community more than 100 years ago. Esposito and others invited artists and educators to open the area's history to a new audience, incorporate the arts as a partner in the storytelling process, and enlist local students in the creation of public artwork that tells the story of Troy. In this article, the Little Italy Mural Project is presented.