WELLSVILLE - Wellsville Historical Society members have a jam-packed calendar for the summer and fall season, and are busy boosting membership and planning events around the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War. Society members at Thursday's luncheon meeting of the Wellsville Area Chamber of Commerce distributed brochures to Chamber members and gave some history of the Society and its home, the River Museum at 1003 Riverside Ave. Tom Davidson, Society president, gave the program. The Society was the Chamber's featured business of the month.
Davidson said the River Museum is open 1-4:30 p.m. on Sundays from June through August. The museum is also open for special events. He said the members are working on some living history encampments by American Civil War and French and Indian War re-enactors.
Davidson asked the members of the Chamber in attendance at Thursday's luncheon to display brochures in their businesses. He said Society members are seeking involvement of school- and college-age students to foster interest in local history and membership in the Society among the area's young people. Membership is $10 per year.
He said about six or seven members have been meeting for about two hours each Tuesday for the last year to inventory items and otherwise organize the River Museum.
"We have accomplished a lot," he said. "There is a lot to do. We know some of what we have, but we've been finding some things that are amazing to us."
Besides maintenance of the River Museum, the members are also working on repairs and restoration to the pottery kiln near state Route 7. He said they want to repair the kiln and coat it with a sealant, and work on the surrounding ground to prevent runoff that has been damaging the kiln.
They are working to create a library in the museum and are seeking photographs that show the history of Wellsville and the area. Davidson said members would borrow and reproduce the photos, which will then be returned.
Members are decorating the River Museum in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War. Davidson said the Society has had donations of clothing from the period and are dressing the mannequins. There are also flags and other items of the period on display. Davidson said there is a U.S. flag of the period and also a Confederate battle flag on display to honor the Americans who died on both sides of the American conflict.
Two of the programs planned for the summer are related to the American Civil War, Davidson said. Ray Vanderpool was at the battle re-enactment for the 150th anniversary of the battle of Shiloh, and will give a presentation on the battle at 2 p.m. June 3. Historian Bill Johnson is an expert on Abraham Lincoln and will speak on the effects of the Emancipation Proclamation. Also on that day there will be a display of a replica of Lincoln's casket, courtesy of the Batesville Casket Co.
Davidson said that in the works for July 2013 is a re-enactment for the 150th anniversary of Morgan's Raid. Davidson said local historical societies in Ohio are coordinating efforts with the Ohio Historical Society to plan re-enactments of the raid, starting in the Cincinnati area. The local re-enactment would be the last, since Confederate General John Hunt Morgan and his remaining raiders surrendered near Lisbon, and Morgan was taken to Wellsville. The Wellsville Historical Society has Morgan's sword in its collection.
For more information about the Wellsville Historical Society call the Society at 330-532-1018.
No comments:
Post a Comment