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Historical society exists only with members |
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Monday, 31 December 2007 |
Brent Peterson
Guest Columnist
The end of the year is approaching and the holiday stress is starting
to build. The trips to the in-laws and the ringing of the cash register
can really make one go crazy. Another aspect of the end of the year is
renewing memberships in worthwhile organizations such as the Washington
County Historical Society.
The historical society has depended upon its membership since it
organized in 1934. There was a drive to organize a county historical
society as far back as 1881, but because of indifference and lack of
support the idea died and it took 53 years to resurface.
In that time most of all the Civil War veterans in the county died, and
business leaders such as Elam Greeley, Michael Marsh, John McHattie,
James Middleton, John McKusick and Isaac Staples also had passed on.
Just think of the history that could have been saved!
Those people who gathered at the Stillwater Public Library in 1934 were
tired of seeing the history of one of Minnesota’s first counties fading
away. They vowed to “investigate and study the history of Washington
County,” and to “provide for the collection and preservation” of our
history.
In 1941 the Washington County Historical Society purchased from the
state the old Warden’s House of the Stillwater Prison. In June 1941,
the society opened that house as a museum, the second house museum open
to the public in the state. In 2006, the Warden’s House celebrated 65
years of continuous service to the public as a museum of history for
this county.
In 1974, the Washington County Historical Society took over the role of
operating the Hay Lake School as a museum. This one room, brick
schoolhouse was purchased by the society in 1978. It is available to
students and teachers to discover how children learned 100 years ago.
This unique rural school has preserved the heritage of the one room
school in Washington County. The pioneer log house of the Johannes
Erickson family was also refurbished on the site to serve as an example
of early days in the Scandia area. All three museum buildings are on
the National Register of Historic Places.
In 2001 the society opened a small museum in the Boutwell’s Landing
Senior Living Center, which gives a chance to display items in our
collections not suitable for the other museums. The society also
preserves family cemetery in Stillwater, the resting place of the Rev.
William Boutwell and family, now surrounded by a city park.
In the reconstructed Carriage House, behind the Warden’s House Museum,
the society has a research library for people who want to find out
about their ancestors. There are also many photographs, manuscripts,
and books that cover Washington County history from the beginning to
present day. We have invested in providing a temperature- and
humidity-controlled environment for storing valuable artifacts.
Today the society does so much more! Staff and volunteers reach out to
the county schools to bring county history to the classroom. The
historical society writes and publishes books about county history,
keeps an informative history web site (www.wchsmn.org) sponsors a
vintage baseball team (look for them in your hometown next summer), and
develops history displays, lectures and workshops at many locations
around the county.
Membership is one way that you can help support the Washington County
Historical Society. With a membership you will be able to visit the
museums for free, and be able to research in the library without paying
a research fee. You will receive a quarterly newsletter filled with
information about upcoming programs and informational articles about
some aspect of Washington County history.
Each year the society holds two membership meetings with excellent
speakers on a variety of historical subjects. A member of the
historical society also receives 10 percent off any of the books and
other items for sale in our gift shop, which has the best selection of
local histories in the county.
The cost of a membership to the Washington County Historical Society is
nominal. For seniors and students under 18 the cost is $10 per year. An
individual membership is $15, a family membership is $25, and a life
membership is only $500. If you would like to increase your annual
contribution, look into a patron ($50) or sustaining membership ($100).
There has been some talk of increasing the life membership
substantially, so this would be a perfect time to become a life
member.Please fill out the membership form on-line at www.wchsmn.org
and send it to the WCHS Membership, PO Box 167, Stillwater, MN
55082-0167.
The Washington County Historical Society runs off your donations and
memberships. If there are no members, there will be no historical
society. And without the historical society, who will there be to
preserve today for the generations that follow?
Peterson is executive director of the Washington County Historical Society.
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