Preserving the Past by Pat Mulso

Wow, here we are at fair week already! This will be a very busy time at the Freeborn County Historical Museum, Library & Village. During fair week we will open the gate by the Village Church at noon each day, at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, and close the gate at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and at 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission to the museum and village is free during the fair to all fair attendees. The museum library will be closed during the fair.

Join us at 7 p.m. Wednesday for a special lecture in the museum meeting room by Michael Luick-Thrams. The lecture is free to FCHM Members and all fair attendees. Every family has a skeleton in the closet, but historian-author Michael Luick-Thrams has unearthed an entire cemetery in his family’s 400-year history of life in North America! From a great-grandfather in the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s to a mass murdering mommy in Depression-era Albert Lea, from butchers turned frontier-lawmen to philandering Iowa farmers, his presentation will focus on one Midwest family’s improbable journeys from Europe to the American heartland and back. Along the way, they have found both disasters and redemption. Please join us for a fascinating evening.

While you’re visiting the museum you may want to sign up for one or more of our bus trips. On Aug. 12 we have a bus trip going to the National Eagle Center followed by a box lunch and a visit to Lark Toys. The bus, lunch and admissions are included in this tour. Cost is $55 for FCHM members and $65 for nonmembers. Reservation must be received by Aug. 2. The bus will depart from the museum at 8 a.m. and return at approximately 4:30 p.m. On Sept. 13, we have a bus tour to Lanesboro. The bus will depart the museum at 8:30 a.m. Upon arrival, there will be time for shopping or visiting the local museum in downtown Lanesboro and lunch on your own at your choice of a local restaurant. Following lunch we will attend a play at the Commonweal Theatre and return to Albert Lea at approximately 5:30 p.m. The cost of this trip is $55 for FCHM Members and $65 for nonmembers and includes the bus and theater ticket. We will also host a bus tour to a military museum on Oct. 14. Details will be available soon.

The museum has two fundraisers in August. The first is at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 14 at Marion Ross Performing Arts Center for “The Jeff Gordon Show.” Jeff will present a ’50s and ’60s variety music show that will bring back memories for many that love this era of music. Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 the night of the performance. Tickets will be available at the museum during fair week and up to the date of the show, unless sold out before. Seating is assigned, so get your tickets early!

The second fundraiser is our annual “Echoes from the Past… a Journey into History.”  This event will be at the museum in the meeting room at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 20.  Admission is $5. Children under 11, accompanied by an adult, will be admitted free.  “Echoes From the Past” will present the lives of four individuals who lived and were part of the history of our county. Their stories will be told by reenactors who have developed their story lines from data collected on each individual. Each presentation will be 12 to 15 minutes. The program will be followed with refreshments served by members of the Sons of Norway. Please join us. Bring a friend, rain or shine, for an entertaining evening as history comes to life!

The next Defensive Driving Refresher Class will be from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sept. 6. The cost is $20 for AARP members and $25 for nonmembers and includes the cost of class materials and an administrative host fee. You must register for the class.

Have a great week and see you at the fair!

 

Pat Mulso is the executive director of the Freeborn County Historical Museum, Library and Village, 1031 Bridge Ave.