Photos from the Children's Activity Day

Here are some pictures from our Children's Activity Day: Immigrant Holiday Customs. Everyone had a lot of fun learning some new traditions.

These kids picked out their favorite activity to pose with.

Volunteer Ruth Hupp assists with making St Lucia crowns and Star Boy Hats.

Gabriel cuts out her Christmas tree pickle.

The Mantyla family stops to smile as they create their St. Nicholas shoes.

Volunteer Diane Erickson reads the story of The Lady of Guadalupe.

Discover the Goshen-Bristol Underground Railroad

http://www.in.gov/history/3700.htm

The Elkhart County Historical Museum will host a program on Elkhart County’s Underground Railroad connection on Thursday, December 17th at 7:00 p.m. The program will be presented by Goshen College Professor Emeritus Ervin Beck.

Beck will address how the road from Goshen to Jefferson Center to Bristol to the Michigan line was the last link in Indiana for one of the two main Quaker routes that went from the Ohio River into Michigan. “The Goshen-Bristol road generally led escaped slaves to the Young’s Prairie settlement near the Quaker town of Penn in Cass County, Michigan,” says Beck.

Researching the Underground Railroad can be a difficult and time consuming process. “The secrecy of the system was crucial to better assist escaping slaves, but the lack of a paper trail makes present day research much more difficult,” says Beck. Unfortunately, the lack of information has led to some mistaken theories. Therefore, Beck will also discuss some of the fanciful, mistaken ideas that many people have about the Underground Railroad in general.

Additionally, the slave catcher trial that is the subject of the historical marker in Bristol will also be a part of the program. In 1847, a couple of Kentucky slave catchers traveled to Bristol with the mission of bringing an escaped slave home. Instead of getting what they came for, the slave catchers were charged with disturbing the peace. Beck will discuss the significance of the trial within the context of abolition.

Pre-registration for the Underground Railroad program is preferred. To register, or for more information, please contact Rebecca Oestreich at 574-848-4322 or Rebecca@elkhartcountyparks.org.

Children to Celebrate Immigrant Holiday Customs

Children are invited to the Elkhart County Historical Museum to learn about the holiday customs immigrants have brought to Elkhart County. This children’s activity day will be held on Saturday, December 12th from 10:00-4:00 and will feature crafts and activities for all to enjoy.

“The holiday season is full of fun and festive traditions and many of these traditions have been brought to us from cultures around the world,” says Curator of Education Rebecca Oestreich. “This activity day will teach kids the history behind some of their favorite customs as well as introduce them to new traditions they can take and try out at home”.

For example, children will have the opportunity to explore the Swedish tradition of St. Lucia, the African American celebration of Kwanzaa, the European practice of St. Nicholas coming to fill shoes with treats, and the German immigrant custom of hiding a pickle on the Christmas tree.

“The Christmas tree pickle is a fun game where parents hide a pickle somewhere on the Christmas tree. The first child to find the pickle gets an extra present and good luck all year long,” explains Oestreich. It was originally thought to have come from Germany, but the tradition is now believed to have been started right here in the United States by German immigrants.

The children’s activity day will also focus on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. “The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a holiday celebration brought by Mexicans to our area. It coincidentally falls on December 12th so we will be having special readings of Tomie de Paola’s book The Lady of Guadalupe throughout the day along with a craft,” says Oestreich. “Additionally, one lucky child will win the DePaola book to take home.”

Admission to the Children’s Activity Day is $1/child. For more information, please contact Rebecca Oestreich at 574-848-4322 or Rebecca@elkhartcountyparks.org.


You could win Tomie de Paola’s book The Lady of Guadalupe at the Children's Activity Day!

Museum advances re-housing project

Since last spring volunteers and staff were busy moving several thousand items from off-site storage and a small on-site storage room into a new storage annex that was constructed in 2009. Below are several photographs showing the progress thus far.

The storage facility was designed with two overhead doors to allow entry of over-sized objects into the museum. The hearse (above) was moved from off-site storage at a private residency.

The collection is stored in three separate rooms that are designated to hold items of similar material composition. The image above shows storage for textiles, including a large costume and quilt collection. Not pictured is a rolled textile storage unit for quilts and coverlets that was installed in February. The Historical Society was able to purchase used industrial shelving that was then improved by sealing the plywood shelves and creating a barrier of ethafoam to further protect the items from off-gassing.

In 2010 the project will focus on re-housing another storage room at the museum and the archives into the new storage annex. The compact shelving pictured above was recently installed by Space Management, Inc. This shelving will hold the archives, including Civil War diaries, Elkhart County Commissioner Records, census lists, genealogical materials, and other important documents of local history. Be sure to visit the museum to view the progress being made to preserve Elkhart County's fascinating history!

Museum wins Bristol Beautification Award

Historical Society Annual Meeting

The Elkhart County Historical Society will hold its annual meeting on Sunday, November 8th at 2:00pm. The meeting will take place at the Elkhart County Historical Museum and will feature guest speaker Randy Ray, Executive Director of the Northern Indiana Center for History. The program will also include the election of persons to serve on the Historical Society’s Board of Directors, as well as unveil the museum’s busy 2010 event and exhibit schedule.

Randy Ray’s speaking topic will discuss why history museums matter in a high tech world. With so much information available at our fingertips over the internet why should people still visit history museums? What can museums do to stay relevant and inspire in our ever changing world? Ray will discuss these questions and more as he breaks down how and why museums are still an important part of the 21st century landscape.

Three positions will be up for election to fill Board vacancies. Bristol High School alumna Lois Schmeling of Elkhart will fill a one-year term. Lois and the B.H.S. Alumni helped raise funds for the memorial brick walk at the museum’s entry. Karl Lehman of Goshen will fill a one-year vacancy. Karl is a certified public accountant. He received his B.A. in economics at Goshen College and a M.B.A. from Columbia University. Larry App of Bristol will fill a three-year vacancy. In addition to Larry’s Roundstone L.L.C. consultation firm, he also owns Perpetuating Remembrance, a business dedicated to recording oral history.

The new Board members will join Dean Hupp of Elkhart (President), Marcia Brenneman of Goshen (Vice-President), Ervin Beck of Goshen (Secretary), John Thompson of Granger (Treasurer), Ray Enfield of Elkhart, Robert Judson of Elkhart, Denise Kolb-Hernandez of Granger, Dick Hess of Goshen, Greg Miller of Goshen, Dan Watson of Bristol, Faye Peterson of Goshen, and Sara Smoker of Goshen.

Photos from the Barn Dance

These are some shots from our barn dance held on October 17th. Everyone from couples to families to friends gathered together in the auditorium and danced the night away to the tunes of the Barn Owl String Band. Caller Bev enthusiastically led the group through several fun contra dances that had just about everyone up and dancing the night away!