A very busy month....

So October is gearing up to be one of those months at the LHS that is ridiculously busy. But it's in a good way.

We have a lot of the normal stuff going on---planning for a new exhibit, hopefully beginning the steps to get some new lighting, planning a holiday open house, and more. You know, the normal stuff.

But we also have a bunch of really exciting programs that will take place this month.

We'll start off the month's programming this Saturday with a collaboration with Venus Theatre. Venus Theatre is a small theatre in Laurel that is dedicated to setting flight to the voices of women and children. They have professional playwrights submit plays to them and all of their actors are professionals. A really cool gem in Laurel. What, you may ask, are we doing with them?

Well, we have collaborated with them to put together "Laurel: A Haunted History". It's a candlelight walking tour around Laurel. You see, one of the people at Venus has a background in giving Haunted Walking Tours in places like Gettysburg and NY City. So we worked with him using material from the Laurel Museum's collection to develop a haunted walking tour for Laurel. As far as we know, it's the first time this has ever been done. And we're really excited about it!

So if you're interested in a night of fun in Laurel, sign up.
Here's the link: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pe/8442425


But if you can't come Oct 2, don't worry. Venus Theatre is running the tour every Saturday in October. So come another day to be scared!


We quickly follow up our Oct 2 ghost walk tour with something quite different. On October 4, Mike Boivin will be giving a lecture for the LHS titled "Researching Immigrants Through the Port of Baltimore". Mike is the leader of our Genealogy Group, a group that meets monthly to discuss topics related to genealogy and help one another in their research. This group has been quite active and began about a year ago following a lot of interest in the genealogy programs we offered then.

Mike's talk is not only done as part of the LHS's regular programming, but it is done in collaboration with "Between Fences". "Between Fences" is a traveling exhibit put together by the Smithsonian for small museums throughout the country to show and build upon. This fall it is being shown at Montpelier Mansion along with "Barriers and Gateways: The Immigrant Experience" a companion exhibit that the people at Montpelier put together in collaboration with BF.

When Between Fences is brought to locations throughout the country, the hope is that the locations will work collaboratively on programming to accompany it. We've done just that with Montpelier and many of our programs this fall relate to that exhibit. Mike's program on immigrants coming through the port of Baltimore is just one iteration of that collaboration.


Not too long after Mike's talk, we have another exciting collaborative program. (Who would have guessed??). On October 9 we are partnering with Laurel Mill Playhouse. Laurel Mill Playhouse is a community theater non-profit located on Laurel's Main Street. They run plays continuously throughout the year and involve people in the community in a number of exciting and refreshing ways. Like Venus Theatre, we've partnered with them before and it has always been a pleasure.

On October 9 we are working with them again to offer another of our "Have You M.E.T." Events. Museum, Eats, and Theater in Historic Laurel has been a popular evening out every time we have done it. This time we'll begin with an all-american dinner at the Laurel Museum and continue our evening at LMP to see "The American Way." An epic take of the American immigrant experience in the early 1900s, this play is done in collaboration with Montpelier's "Between Fences" as well. So in fact, we're partnering with both Laurel Mill Playhouse and Montpelier on this program!

On October 20th we'll have our normal Book Club meeting. Last month we discussed "Outcasts United" a book that was part of the One Maryland One Book initiative. This book tied directly into "Between Fences" at Montpelier too, so it was also a part of the collaborative programming as well. This month we'll be discussing a crowd favorite, "Love in the Time of Cholera." I haven't read it yet, so please, don't post any spoilers in the comments!



We complete the month with one of our quarterly children's programs. This month is "Harvest Some Fun at the Laurel Museum: Harvest Time Traditions from Around the World." October is always a harvest themed children's program and since we have the opportunity to tie it into "Between Fences" and the idea of immigration, we thought we'd do so.

At this event children will explore Vietnamese, English, Indian, Salvadorian, and Mexican harvest traditions. Members of Montpelier's staff will be helping us as well--making it a very collaborative event.

We hope we'll have the usual kids running around having fun and eating lots of yummy food while learning a little something too.

So, as you can tell, it's going to be a really busy month. We hope to see you around the Museum, or at the playhouse, or walking along Main Street being spooked!

Happy October!

A Busy Week

I arrived back to the warm, slightly suffocating heat of sunny Maryland last Thursday.

Since then, I've been playing a bit of catch up. I was on email for the 2 weeks I was away, but I was also spending plenty of time in program sessions at AAM, visiting Museums, and to be honest, paddling around the Oceanside Harbor with the Sea Lions. (which I thought were seals until I visited the Aquarium of the Pacific and learned the difference...yay museums!!!!)

So I've been playing a bit of catch up for the last week. And I didn't necessarily have the easiest week to settle back in.

This week we were pretty busy.

Wednesday night we had several local businesses come to the Museum so we could share the great work we do with them. Thursday was our friends and family picnic--THANK YOU to all who came! And Sunday we're having another one of our kids day, this time around the theme of Picturing Yourself in History. I also had to report on a grant that wraps up this month, visit with volunteers at our monthly luncheon, and do all the other normal fun stuff we do around here!


But I had 2 great things happen this week to remind me of why I'm here.

1) Another local non-profit that serves the community approached me with some collaboration ideas. It's exciting to think that we've built the foundation of a relationship that they felt comfortable coming here and just pitching it. And guess what? One of the ideas is something I'm REALLY excited about and one I've tried to do since I arrived. So hopefully we can make it happen. (the mystery here is on purpose--I can't ruin the surprise!)

2) The Laurel High School I.B. Program dropped off some artwork they did in collaboration with the exhibit. I began talking to the IB Program people several months ago and brainstorming ways we could collaborate. I wasn't sure anything was going to happen this academic year, but I was hopeful and so were they. Tuesday, the Laurel IB Art Teacher dropped off several collages that the students made based on our exhibit. I immediately put them into the exhibit for all to see.

So the conference with it's engaging sessions, the paddle boat with it's friendly sea lions, and all of that sunny California has to offer was great.

But I'm happy to be back and working with my small museum to engage the community!

Looking At What Isn't There

In honor of last night's lecture, I am going to post a few pictures and ask you all to think about what"isn't in them."

Let me know what you think in the comments section!

A True Community Celebration

Just in case you forgot, this February we had a lot of snow. Like 3-4 feet of snow.

And also just in case you forgot, our "Grand Opening" was postponed and then basically canceled because of said snow. As someone who almost never cancels anything, this was especially difficult for me.

On February 12 as I sat with two of my board members talking about the upcoming dilemma of an opening on February 14 with 4 feet of snow on the ground and no parking outside the museum, we came up with the idea of an opening in the spring.

I tagged it a "Community Celebration" of Snapshots in Time. I wasn't sure just what I meant by a "Community Celebration", but I knew that I wanted it to be festive. I wanted people to have a reason to come see an exhibit that had already been open for 2 months.

And most importantly, I hoped that I'd get some people involved who helped put together the exhibit. I wanted to keep the community groups engaged in the LHS and this seemed like a perfect opportunity.

So this Sunday, our twice snowed out exhibit opening took place with the threat of a lot of rain. But guess what?! Mother nature decided we had had enough bad weather and she held out for the entire length of the Community Celebration.

Instead we had a true community celebration.

We had a museum filled with music provided by the Laurel School of Music.












We had a basement filled with games provided by Oseh Shalom, one of our partners in developing the exhibit.










We had visitors engaged in "Community Conversations" throughout the afternoon.















We had visitors from the Islamic Community Center of Laurel, another of our partners in developing the exhibit.











We had families enjoying themselves in the galleries.



















In the end we had 85 people join us for a fun and festive Community Celebration. Not bad for an exhibit that had already been open a couple of months.

We're thinking this isn't such a bad idea after all. We think it might be worth repeating.

So next year, even if it doesn't snow 4 feet in February, look out for a Community Celebration in the Spring

And it will be the Museum's 15th Anniversary and we think that's definitely worth a celebration!

Ever wonder what happens to the stuff you leave behind at museum?

Check out my post on the Uncatalogued Museum's blog:

http://uncatalogedmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/04/how-long-should-participation-last.html

An Intern's Perspective

Our Spring Intern, Bethany Hyers is working on helping us organize for our upcoming exhibit on the Laurel Race Track. She has been charged with scanning images from our collection and attaching the files to Past Perfect records. She also has done background research on different exhibits on racetracks.

Here is a personal perspective on how she connects to her work at the LHS:

This spring I am interning here at the Laurel Museum to learn about collections. Currently I am set with the task of helping with the 2011 upcoming Laurel Race Track exhibit by updating records so as to streamline the design process. Despite my childhood love for horses, I am not an avid horse race watcher nor do I have much previous knowledge about the Laurel Race Track specifically. I was given the task of researching past exhibits of race tracks that have been done in other museums and I realized that the Triple Crown is coming up in a couple of weeks (May 1^st to be exact)! This realization made me think of how the Laurel Race Track got other people excited for the races and what those races meant for them. I think that the online research, finding extremely interesting photographs of people at the track, and the realization of the upcoming Derby that increased my personal connection with this project.

The Kentucky Derby is becoming a new family tradition with more and more in attendance each year. My grandmother - the reason for all the excitement - used to bet on Kentucky Derby horses with her boss when she worked in Washington DC. And ever since then she has always had a love of the Kentucky Derby which has slowly become my love as well. It is always on the calendar of family events.

Derby Day. My dad is charged with the duty of making the mint juleps while my grandma prepares herself for the race by wearing her version of a Kentucky Derby hat and watching the pre-show. (Her hat is not as extravagant as the hat worn by the women at the actual derby since it is a sunhat but it does the job.)This hat, a black and white straw fiber hat that reminds me of a casual version of a church hat, always makes it debut on Derby Day.

As the horses are being led up to the gate, my grandma and I choose the ones we are going to shout for. I tend to base my choice more on the name and look of the horse while my grandma uses a more sophisticated process. (I don’t think my horse has ever won except once. Maybe I should consider changing my picking strategy?)

The opening of the gates starts the cheering and shouting for your horse. It is almost like the room holds its breath (if you can forget the shouting) while the race goes. This atmosphere reminds me of a photograph in the collections of a woman holding her binoculars with a look of anticipation and hopefulness toward the track. I feel like that is a more glamorous version of what goes on at my Grandma’s and what I imagine happens every horse race everywhere.

I think I will always have fond memories of my grandma shouting at the TV with her sunhat-Derby hat on for her horse to win. And so as I update Laurel race track records I remember the excitement of Derby Day and how the atmosphere of horse racing is captured by these photographs.

One Docent's Reflections

The LHS is powered by many different people who help turn the wheels of our organization. One of the most important groups of people turning the wheels are our docents. Our docents serve as the front-line of the museum, greeting our visitors and giving tours when we're open.

One of our docents, Ireene Ohlmacher, related an interesting front-line experience to me and I asked her to share her experience for the blog. Enjoy!

On Sunday, March 28, I worked as a guide in the Museum. As you all know, sometimes we are overwhelmed with visitors and sometime - well, it's hard not to take a nap. This Sunday I had several different groups. One had young children who thought that the idea of making collages was the most brilliant thing they had come across in a long time once I explained that they could cut out ANY picture they liked for the collage. At first they wanted them put up, but then they thought it would be more fun to take them home with them.

However, the neatest experience was when a boy scout troop of 12-16 year olds walked in with their leaders. You could just see the look on their faces when they came in - "What a waste! We have to visit a boring old museum." They had come in to get the patches which are available in the gift shop (which I didn't know at the time). I however could not let all those young minds escape me. So, 1st I shanghaied them to give them information about the mill & the house (emphasizing how many people lived in each of the apts and what ages they would have been working at). Then I explained that the idea of this year's exhibit was what makes a community - shared religion, activities, places, the games we all played growing up. THEN I showed them the games & told them - "go ahead - play them, have fun." However, I took the older boys over to the character game, explained it, gave them each a character (no boy wanted to be any of those alien creatures - girls) & we discussed how they might react to a situation in 1910 - then we did 2010. At this point, I told them "why don't you all play it - you don't need me. Just return all the cards, because I get yelled at if they aren't all returned" and I walked away. I stayed in the room to watch (and mediate if necessary). It was fantastic - They proceeded to pick up more cards & (without an adult who might give the "evil eye" if they said the wrong thing) had a great time playing out the game their way. Amazing. Then they decided to play Jacks (the scout leader & I refrained from saying mostly girls played it & we didn't explain the rules). I don't know when I have seen 3 teenage boys have so much fun, - they made their own rules. It was so much fun to watch them play. The younger boys were into yo-yo & Connect Four, but the laughter came from the older ones.

Next time, when they come in, they'll be looking for the games to play and not just thinking another dry museum trip - I hope. I don't know if that's good or bad.

Can you believe it?

We're already starting the planning for our next exhibit. No, not this one that just opened in February, the next one. The one that's scheduled to open February 2011.


It's hard to believe that we're already in the process of planning this exhibit. When I arrived in June 2008, the decision was already made that the 2011 exhibit would be on the track. So I've been waiting for this exhibit for almost 2 years.

And now we're finally here. But where is here? Where do we begin?

We know we want to do an exhibit about the track. Why? Because it will be the 100 year anniversary of the track and we think that's important. And we have A LOT of cool stuff about the track. A LOT.

So where do we go from here? We can't just throw a bunch of stuff on the wall and call it an exhibit. We need to develop themes, goals, etc. Then we start to pick objects, write text, revise text, revise text, revise text...And did I mention, revise text?

So we're doing a couple of things first. Contacting everyone we can who can help us tell the racetrack story. So if you're a person who worked at, frequented, loved, or hated the race track or you know someone who has done any of these things, let us know. We'd LOVE to talk to you.

The other thing we're doing right away is collecting data on what people want us to talk about. Yes, we're asking YOU before we go any further, what YOU are interested in. We've even put it in survey monkey so you can access it easily and give us a quick answer.

So please, visit our Survey and tell us what YOU want to hear about in the next exhibit?


<-----Is it stuff like this? Like how the race track looks and how it has evolved?









Or stuff like this? The stories of the people who worked at the races or made bets at the races ----->



YOU tell us!

One of those moments...

Today is one of those days in the small Museum field when you never feel like you have enough time. In between volunteer training, helping with a mailing, a conference call, budget work, membership programming, and more all in one day, things can feel a little hectic.

So when you hear that visitors are walking up the walk an hour after you've closed sometimes you have to take a deep breath to calm down. It is my policy that if at all possible in my schedule, I let visitors in. In the end, aren't they the reason we're here? So turning them away is something I do my absolute best to avoid.

This afternoon I took a break from catching up on emails and the long list of other stuff to field one man's questions about Laurel. He came with his two sons and he had found somewhere on the internet information quoting Gertrude Poe that had to do with an old exhibit. After trying to find the information he had found and showing him more information on that exhibit, we convinced him he should do a tour.

So I had the opportunity to show him and his two inquisitive sons around the museum. The sons were the first kids to the exhibit that I've been able to work with one on one and we did the scavenger hunt while I talked with their father about the "big" themes present in the exhibit. The father, a longtime Laurel resident, was genuinely excited to learn about the Mill and the history of the house. He marveled at how clear the images from 1910 were and the entire family was excited to see an image of the old Laurel High School, a place they are quite familiar with in their lives today.

After showing them the exhibit and the basement, I let them leave with their hands full of our kid's pamphlets, walking tours, program material, and more. It was very exciting to give a tour to a family that was genuinely interested in the history of Laurel. It almost made me forget that it is supposed to snow tonight!

Exhibit Progress Update!

The exhibit is in its final days of production. This past week we've finalized how everything is going to look with the consultants. Whew, what a relief. No more choosing images, editing text, or figuring out of captions.

So in theory, I can take a break and relax while our consultants make sure the exhibit is printed and looks pretty before they come down and we install. Oh, only in theory.

For the first time on my gmail I produced a list of tasks. It's a function I have never used because I've always thought it would stress me out more seeing the tasks just sitting there. But there is so much that needs to be done before (or very nearly before) the exhibit opens that I knew I would lose track if I didn't keep a list. So here's the list I currently have up. As you can tell--I'm making progress!

Exhibit Opening

• Exhibit Opening Basket
• Shop Postcards
• Cards for Giveaway
• Interpretive Plan
• Community Groups Interactive
• Food/Drinks/Opening Stuff
• kids booklet
• Exhibit Rack Cards
• Contributors Invitations
• Exhibit Website Info
• Lesson Plans/Scavenger Hunts

As you can also tell, there is a lot of stuff still on the list. Wish me luck!

Because I know you are all very excited to hear more about the exhibit, I've included the "long version" of our press release on the exhibit. Written by Karen Lubieniecki, it gives a great overview of what the exhibit will be about.

And if all goes well, next week I'll post pictures of the exhibit as a sneak preview!

New Exhibit Explores Community and Its Meaning.

Snapshots in Time: Our Community in 1910 and 2010 Opens February 7, 2010.

Snapshots in Time: Our Community in 1910 and 2010 a new exhibit focusing on community and its many meanings opens February 7 at the Laurel Museum in Laurel, Md. The exhibit uses photos from the Museum’s historic Sadler Collection taken in the early 1900s and contemporary photos. It challenges visitors to examine their own ideas of “What is Community?” by comparing and contrasting how these are the same or have changed in the past 100 years.

According to Laurel Historical Society Executive Director Lindsey Baker, “We are very excited about our next exhibit. In our rapidly changing society, connecting present day people with a town’s past is a major challenge for history organizations. Asking “What is a community” is one way to do that. Snapshots in Time had a lot of input from community groups during its development, but even more importantly, will continue to encourage visitor contributions. We hope those who come to the new exhibit will take the opportunity to ask themselves how they define community today and how that may be the same or different from 100 years ago.”

The exhibit begins by asking us to See Ourselves. Looking at photos ranging from a Muslim children reenacting the Hajj to children lighting a candle for the first night of Hanukah to a circa 1910 photo of friends will help visitors to consider which (or how many) of these define how they see their personal community, versus how this was reflected 100 years ago. This section will also feature a display of photographer Bert Sadler’s turn of the century cameras – and contemporary cameras illustrating how much has changed in how we document our communities.

Visitors then explore what we Value. This section explores the groups and activities that reflect our values. A local Catholic Church conducts a baptism, families gather for picnics, we remember September 11, a community celebrates Emancipation Day and a high school class graduates. Looking at photos of gatherings from the past, and today, visitors consider what activities and values we place in highest regard.

Section three looks at broader community interactions and is called Help. It suggests that communities help others in many ways. Boy Scouts bond and Girl Scouts help each other. A local pharmacist gives a shot.

Fun is the focus of the next section. Laurel’s A 1900s marathon, a recent 4^th of July parade and a quiet moment at the piano remind us of the many ways people celebrate and have fun in their community. Kids play sports – hockey and baseball.

The exhibits’ final area, Demographic, takes a closer look at population of Laurel as it stood in 1910 and 2010, exploring its changing demographics and increasingly diverse population. In 1910, for example only 7% of the population Laurel population of 2500 was African American. There were, according to the 1910 Census, two Chinese families. Today African Americans make up 43% of the population, while 11 % are of Hispanic background and 6% are Asian.

Snapshots in Time also includes a number of interactive elements including “Self Portrait”and “Your Vote Counts” which will poll visitors on their personal preferences “Are you a Redskins or Raven’ Fan?” for example, and questions designed for children.

Support for the exhibit was provided by Prince George’s County and the office of Councilman Tom Dernoga.

The Laurel Museum is open Wednesday and Fridays 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m., and Sundays 1:00-4:00 pm.Laurel Museum is located at 817 Main Street, Laurel, Md. For more information and directions visit www.laurelhistoricalsociety.org or call 301-725-7975. ## Group tours are available by special arrangement. Admission is free, and there is a museum gift shop on the lower level.

Season's Greetings

This time of year marks a number of different holidays for people of all religions and cultures.



It also marks an important time of year for the Laurel Museum. The end of December traditionally marks the closing of our exhibit and the final stages of planning for our upcoming exhibit.

This year is no different. Today is the last day to see our current exhibit, "Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll: Laurel in the 1950s". This exhibit was the first exhibit I took part in for the Laurel Museum.

In some ways, I am sad to see it go. No more poodle skirt figurines will greet me as I walk in the door each morning. No longer will I have nostalgic 50 (and 50 something) high school reunions coming back to point out all of their friends in our exhibit.

But sometimes change is good. So as we look forward to the New Year and our new exhibit I am excited about several things:

1) Our new exhibit was planned with the help of several community groups. We looked to different places of worship and service organizations to helps us identify what Laurel is like today. Along the way we met many new friends. I hope we can continue to maintain these relationships in the New Year. If we do, it will benefit us and I hope the community groups we worked with.

2) Our new exhibit is going to be much more interactive than our last. One of the things we realized in our 1950s exhibit was that people wanted to give back. People wanted to contribute their memories, their life stories to our exhibit. We had a function for that--a story book--but it led us to realize that there is so much more than we can do. So with this exhibit, you'll find that there are a number of ways you can interact and contribute to the exhibit.

3) Our new exhibit will continue to grow as it stands in the Museum. I don't want to give too much away, but our exhibit won't be static. Because of people's contributions throughout the year it is up and because we will be changing certain things, our exhibit won't be the same for the entire year. And that in and of itself, is exciting.

So, if you haven't seen our current exhibit, try to stop by in the next 3 hours. Or give me a call and arrange for a tour before we take it off the walls in January. Either way, please join us in looking forward to our next exhibit.

Oh, and we finally settled on a title for the next exhibit:

Snapshots in Time: Our Community in 1910 and 2010

An Exhibit Takes Shape....Sort Of

Every year the Laurel Museum features a new exhibit.

When I arrived, the current exhibit was "Buy It Here: Laurel Advertises". The exhibit we opened last February and which will run through this December is "Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll: Laurel in the 1950s".

Right now we're working on an exhibit that compares life in Laurel in 1910 and in 2010. We're tentatively calling it "Snapshots in Time: Our Story 1910/2010".

We know what our goals are with this exhibit:
Explore the many ways we conceive(d) of community in Laurel in 1910 and in 2010.
Have people leave with a deeper appreciation of their community.
Be interesting, engaging, interactive, meaningful, and visually exciting.


That doesn't sound too difficult? Right?

We're plugging along on the exhibit. We've done a lot of the broad research comparing Laurel in 1910 and 2010. But what we're really trying to base the exhibit on is pictures.

For 1910 we have the Sadler images. See a previous blog to learn more about Sadler. The images are great and frustrating.

The really wonderful thing about the Sadler images is that they tell 1 story of Laurel in 1910---one man's story of his family and friends. That allows us to discuss how history is saved and who defines history. This man saved his images, so his story largely defines our visual understanding of Laurel in 1910.

The not so wonderful part about the Sadler images is that they are VERY hard to scan. Apparently glass plate negatives neither like our old scanner or our new one.

I can not tell you all that we've done to try to get them to scan, but suffice it to say that I was taken off the duty of scanning because I could not control my emotions.

My wonderful coworker Monica was put on the task. She has been somewhat successful, but is seeing that success wear-off.

But that's okay. We anticipated that the scanning would be a huge task and it is. Somehow, someway, we WILL have images of 1910. We have them in our collection and we can make it happen.

But what about 2010? We want 2010 to be different--to not just have 1 man's story be the central part of the story. We want everyone in Laurel to help us tell that story.

Remember a while back when I predicted that people would think their story wasn't worth telling? Well, I think I was right.

We've put the word out through flyers, emails, newsletters, newspapers, etc and haven't had much luck. We've seen a trickle start, but definitely nothing overwhelming. I think people always assume that someone else's story is more interesting.

So here's what I have to say to that mentality:

You know you, the one sitting there reading this?I know what you're thinking...I don't have any pictures that are interesting.

Well, I bet you do. As long as they were taken within the greater Laurel area in the last 5 years we're interested. To learn more about exactly what we need, see this slightly confusing, but useful form.

I promise, we want your help. Not the guy sitting next to you in the computer lab at the library, but yours. Well, his too, but definitely yours as well.

And I promise, I won't make you try to use the scanner. All I ask is that you help us tell the story of Laurel today---your story.

Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll: Laurel in the 1950s

Our current exhibit has been up since February. It will come down in January. The exhibit talks about life in Laurel in the 1950s including subjects as varied as fashion, the cold war, segregation, and Elvis. It has a little something for everyone!

But, we only have about 4-5 months left to Shake, Rattle, and Roll. I thought now might be a good time to share some of my favorite pieces of the exhibit.


This is a fox stole located in the "In Vogue" section of the exhibit. This portion of the exhibit discusses Laurel fashion in the 1950s. The fox stole was popular in Laurel.

I specifically like this object because it draws SO much attention from visitors.

From women who remember wearing a stole themselves, to men who remember sitting behind them in church as little boys, people who were alive in the 1950s remember them fondly.

But it is the reactions of younger people that I find the most interesting. For people in younger generations, the fox stole is a point of intense interest and sometimes shrieks from the school children. Children today are much less accustomed to people wearing fur and it definitely shows!



This picture is located in a section of the exhibit where we discuss the expanding lives of teens in the 1950s. I really like this picture because of the nicknames we found on the back of the image. In the center is "Butch". Butch is actually Maryland Massey, the sister of one of our founders, Betty Compton.







This panel is in our "Living Together, Worlds Apart" section. This section discusses segregation in Laurel in the 1950s.

I really like this panel because it uses quotes from interviews with people who lived in Laurel in the 1950s to compare life on both sides of the color line.

By taking the same events and locations and using quotes from different signs of the line, a really striking image of life in the 1950s is drawn. Black and white residents remember the same places in completely different ways--an important point in helping to tell the story of life in Laurel in the 1950s.

For example, one white interviewee remembered the Fireman's Carnival held every year as the place to be, "everyone came." One black interviewee remembered having to sit on the other side of the fence and watch the action--because blacks were barred from participating.



This panel is an image of a young family in the 1950s, their home being built, and their mortgage payment booklet. It is located in the "Feds Need Beds" section which discusses the influx of Federal workers into Laurel in the 1950s. I particularly love this panel because I know the people in it, the Wilsons.

I know how they came to Laurel in the 1950s as the family of a Federal worker. I know the impact the family has had on Laurel since then. For those of us who know the Wilson family, it is hard to believe that they've only been here for 50 years. In that short time, they've become a Laurel institution. So for me, this panel shows just how much of an impact Federal workers had on Laurel--they were here to stay!

I hope you enjoyed my little sojourn into our current exhibit. Of course, if you have your own favorite part of the exhibit, feel free to leave it as a comment.

If you haven't visited--learn more about the exhibit here:
http://www.laurelhistoricalsociety.org/pages/exhibits.html

Piecing Together History

Sometimes history can be really fun.

Here at the LHS we're preparing for our upcoming exhibit comparing life in Laurel in 1910 and in 2010.

The inspiration for this exhibit is a series of photographs taken by Bert Sadler. The images he produced depict life in Laurel in the early 1900s and are really wonderful. One of those pictures is here on the right. This image of the Emancipation Day parade in the early 1900s shows a vibrant community event.

Other than this picture and some articles from the Laurel leader within the last 20 years, I didn't know much about the Emancipation Day parade tradition in Laurel.

Then I went and spoke to Miss Katie Hopkins. Boy, did I learn a lot!

As I related in a previous post, Miss Katie told me all about life in Laurel growing up 100 years ago. She told me of Emancipation celebrations that lasted for long weekends where out-of-towners were able to visit and stay with members of the St. Mark's church.

What a great story! I was so excited to hear about how much of a community event the Emancipation Celebration was. Miss Katie, as sharp as she is at a ripe 102, was able to tell me details of the celebration--baseball games, parades, barbeques.

I was excited to hear her recount her stories, but I really wanted to know even more--what exactly happened during those early fall celebrations?

Imagine my excitement when Frieda, a member of our exhibits committee brought to my attention newspaper articles from the 1910 Laurel Leader. Listed in them were a number of various events taking place in the Grove--all during the same weekend in early September. The same weekend that was always reserved for the Emancipation Celebration.

Here, in black and white, was the vibrant celebration that Miss Katie had told me about and that was depicted in Bert Sadler's image.

I was very excited to see all these clues fall into place!


Now for the fun part--piecing this story into the larger story of Laurel in 1910 and in 2010!

An Interview with Miss Katie Hopkins

Last week I had the opportunity to interview a long time member of the Laurel Community. Born in Laurel in 1906, Miss Katie Hopkins has seen Laurel go through many changes.

As we prepare for our next exhibit comparing Laurel in 1910 to Laurel in 2010, we are busy interviewing people in the community who can help us tell the story of Laurel today. Sandy Johnson, the historian of St. Mark's Church delightfully informed me that there is someone whom she knows who can speak about Laurel in 1910! So, with the help of Sandy and Jackie from St. Mark's church, it was arranged for me to meet with Miss Katie to discuss life in 1910 in preparation for our upcoming exhibit. (In reality, I was so excited to meet her that I would have been willing to talk about anything.)

I met with Miss Katie at the Laurel Rehabilitation Center and she told me some wonderful stories. She told me about her childhood spent jumping rope with friends, taking sleigh rides and traveling to Washington on the trolley for her music lessons. She painted an image of a small town where everyone knew everyone and Teaser's Ice Cream Parlor, where her father worked, had "real" ice cream. She talked about people coming from far away to celebrate Emancipation Day with St. Mark's Church. She spoke of how church members opened their homes to these visitors and of a town filled with hospitality.

I wasn't surprised at all to hear such a depiction of life in Laurel. These stories seem to come through whether you talk to people about Laurel in the 1950s or Laurel in the early 1900s.

Instead of surprising me, what the stories do is make me wonder what we'll find in our upcoming exhibit.

Will we find stories of Laurel in 2010 where the hospitality is just as great as in 1910?
Will members of our Exhibit Advisory Committee tell of us a community bound to itself, where people take care of one another?

I'm not sure what they will tell us. I don't want to push community members to tell us any story, but I know what I think. Laurel is a community that cares.

A Community Exhibit

In planning our current exhibit, "Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll: Laurel in the 1950s", we learned something very important.

We like to have community input when planning our exhibits. Interesting, right? A local museum that wants to hear from the community? Who would have thought it possible?

In our current exhibit we could have told the story of Laurel in the 1950s based on newspapers, city minutes and other documents.

But it is a lot more fun to actually talk to people. So that is what we did. In interviews with Laurelites who lived here in the 1950s we learned a lot about Laurel during that time period.

People gave us stories that we would otherwise never have known. People directed us to the important things about their lives that the papers neglected or didn't focus on. People helped us tell more of the story. And people gave history a personal touch.

So we're a little hooked. We're convinced that Laurel, as a community, has a lot to say about itself. In planning our next exhibit, we're going to do our best to listen to those stories.

What is our next exhibit? Well, we're very much in the planning stages but here is the big idea: we will pair a collection of photographs from the early 1900s with photographs from the early 2000s to begin a discussion about life in Laurel.

What defines community in Laurel? What has changed? What has stayed the same?

My hope is that we'll find amazing parallels between life in Laurel in 1910 and in 2010 that show how strong of a community we really are. We'll be able to have a conversation about an evolving population that has remained strong in its support of one another. Maybe we'll find this. Maybe we won't. That's the fun part of developing an exhibit--you never know!

It might be hard for us to talk to people who lived here in 1910, but we're doing our best to get a conversation going with people who are in Laurel now.

Our first step was to look for people to talk to. We could have walked down the street with a sign that said"The Laurel Museum wants to hear about your life in Laurel!", but we didn't. Instead we went to local community groups/religious organizations. We asked these groups to suggest someone who might be interested in helping us tell the story of Laurel in 2010.

We have now formed an Exhibit Advisory Committee. The group met last week and seemed VERY excited about telling the story of Laurel.

But this is not a surprise to me. I've known for a while now that community is important in Laurel. So I'm not surprised that these people took time out of their busy nights to come spend an evening at the Laurel Museum and munch on some cookies donated from the Ideal Bakery.

To them, helping to tell the story of their community is very important. A community without a story, without a history, without an identity is no community at all. These people know that. I only hope that we can help them tell their story and the story of our community in the best way possible.

An Important Part of the Community

Since the beginning of the Laurel Horizon Society (the precursor to the Laurel Historical Society) in the 1970s, community members in Laurel have come together to save Laurel's history.

This dedicated group became quite close as they overcame the obstacles to saving their local history. They worked hard to build a quality Historical Society. Our supporters knew of all the great things we were doing for the community preserving and presenting the history and culture of Laurel.

But there was more work to be done!

When I began here last June 2008, I was told that one of the goals of the Laurel Historical Society was to extend our reach further into the community. We needed to let everyone know what great things we had to offer here. And we also needed to know what else we could do for the community.

So for a little over a year now, I've talked to as many people as I can in the community to find out what people know about us and what we can do for them.

In these conversations, I've learned many interesting things.

1) We're often confused with the Historic District Commission.

We are not the Historic District Commission. From what I understand, they work hard to preserve the integrity of the City. From what I understand, they might be the people to contact when you want to put a 20 foot neon sign outside your business.

But I actually don't know all too much about them--because I work for the Laurel Historical Society, not the Historic District Commission. For more information about what the Historic District Commission, visit Karen Lubieniecki's blog. For more information about what the Historical Society does, visit this blog.


2) Many Laurelites don't know there is a Museum.

When I meet people in Laurel--at the dog park, at the grocery store, around town, etc I often hear the same thing: "There's a museum in Laurel?!?"

Yes, there is a Museum in Laurel. And we're here for you! For those of us who know about us, we've become a city treasure.

For those of us who don't know about us, we're a complete surprise. As one little girl told me last week: "I thought I would really hate this place, but I had so much fun!!"

Some of you might be hesitant to come into the Museum--saving it for a raining day when there isn't much else to do. For those people I say--come in! visit! You'll be even more surprised when you see all the fun you've missed out on.

3) Those who know about the Museum have placed our role in a little box. We give tours, we're a good place to drop off the stuff from Grandma's attic and sometimes you can attend a lecture at our Museum.

We're trying to break out of that box. Yes, we have an exhibit. And yes, we do have lectures. We also offer creative children, adult, and family programs. Ever been to a film series at your local Museum? How about entered into a pie-eating contest? Or sampled local businesses food? Our special events have become creative and diverse in their offerings--we'd love to see you try your hand at our next egg toss contest or sit back with some popcorn and enjoy "Invasion of the Body Snatchers."

As fun, educational, and lively as our events have become, we are trying to go beyond even the walls of our Museum. We're looking into the community to see what else we can offer to our constituency. We've built partnerships with a diverse group of community organizations. From local libraries to local schools to local businesses, we're working to provide the community with what they need. Whether it is putting together an exhibit for the Library's walls or holding a paper raiser for the local elementary school, we're working to break out of the expectations of what a local Museum should be.

No longer will we sit back and wait for you to come to us. We're coming to you. And asking you what you need. So please, let us know--we're listening.