G.A.R. MUSEUM Dispatch

Transcription

1 G.A.R. MUSEUM Dispatch Department of Michigan, James Brainerd Post # S. Main St. Eaton Rapids Mi Volume 1, Issue 3 November, 2014 Museum Hours The Museum is open 10-5 the first two Wednesdays of every month, on patriotic holidays, special events, or by appointment. Season s Greetings from the G.A.R. Museum! Nov 5, 12 Dec 3, 10 We will be open Dec 6 for Hometown Christmas GAR Museum Board of Directors President: Keith G. Harrison Vice President: Chris Allen Secretary: Deb Malewski Treasurer : James Kaiser Directors: Scott Poyer, Gary Gibson, Don Limpert Read this newsletter online at It s Official We are a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Corporation! It took about a year, and required a little help from our Congressman, Tim Walberg, but the wait paid off and we are now officially a non-profit organization with the IRS. Which means your donations to the museum, including your dues and cash donations, are now tax-deductible. It also allows us to actively pursue grants. It s the perfect time to take advantage of this situation by making a monetary donation to the GAR Museum. This will help maintain and grow the museum but also can be used for the tax credit you receive for donating to a non-profit entity. You will find a form to become an annual sponsor later in this newsletter. As always, thank you for supporting the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall & Museum in Eaton Rapids.

2 V O LU M E 1, ISSU E 3 G.A.R. M U SE U M D ISP AT C H D E P AR T ME NT O F M IC HIGAN, JAM E S BR AIN E R D P O ST # S. M AIN ST. E AT O N R AP ID S M I PAGE 2 GAR Memorial Hall & Museum One Year Anniversary September 28th, 2014, marked the first anniversary of the G.A.R. Museum. To celebrate, we had a short program and some light refreshments, and were honored to have Sandra Clark, Director of the State of Michigan Historical Center, as our guest speaker. Our volunteers were also acknowledged for their efforts. At the event Don Limpert, who started the museum with artifacts from his personal G.A.R. collection, presented the museum with a framed photo of himself and a short history of the building. You never know where you will find G.A.R artifacts! This photo was found at the MSU Surplus Store, having originally been at the MSU Museum. With no information, and being in poor condition, it was deaccessioned by the Museum and offered for sale to the public. The MSU Surplus Store generously agreed to donate it to our Museum. There is some writing on the back, apparently an order from a Mr. Henderson for an 8 x10 copy. Now, it s probably just a coincidence, but the last GAR veteran in Eaton Rapids was John Henderson...could it be the same one? We have no photo of our Mr. Henderson, so we really don t know.. The new banner we had made up for an outdoor event we attended this past summer in Grass Lake.

3 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 3 G.A.R. MUSEUM DISPATCH DEPARTMENT OF MICHIGAN, JAMES BRAINERD POST # S. MAIN ST. EATON RAPIDS MI PAGE 3 A Message from the President I am pleased to report that we have continued to make progress on several fronts since our last newsletter. Among some of the items of note is that the Museum, in addition to being the official repository for the GAR artifacts and records of the Michigan Department of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, has since become the same for the Michigan Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS). The Loyal Legion is actually a year older than the GAR, having formed in 1865 versus the GAR, which formed in Most members of the Loyal Legion were also members of the GAR. Also, since our last newsletter we have acquired over 40 additional items. One item in particular is a china cabinet that belonged to Eli and Elizabeth Cook, long time Commander of the James Brainerd GAR Post #111 and President of the James Brainerd Woman s Relief Corps (WRC) #38, respectively. The cabinet has been placed into the WRC #38 area on the second floor of the building. The cabinet was donated by the Cook s great-grandson and one of our own GAR Museum s volunteer docents, Harold Holcomb. We have been very fortunate and are indebted to many people who have helped this last year to make the GAR Museum a reality. We could not have accomplished all that we have without your assistance and generosity. Based on our first year of operation, we now have an idea as to what it will take to operate the museum on an annual basis. Given this information, and in order for us to continue to grow and keep access to the museum free and available to all, we have instituted a new fund raising program that we hope you will all embrace. The annual program is composed of eight different levels of sponsorship ranging from $25 - $200 that are available to select from. Each sponsorship level is historically tied in name to a GAR Post that actually existed within Michigan. Now that we are a federally recognized 501 (c) (3) taxexempt organization, all sponsorships and all donations in general to the museum are tax deductible. Each of you ether will be receiving or already have received a separate mailing regarding the new fund raising program. We hope that you will consider assisting us in whatever way you are most comfortable. Keith G. Harrison GAR Memorial Hall & Museum Grand Army of the Republic Department of Michigan James B. Brainerd Post 111 Memorial Hall and Museum, Inc.

4 PAGE 4 G.A.R. M U SE U M D ISP AT C H D E P AR T ME NT O F M IC HIGAN, JAM E S BR AIN E R D P O ST # S. M AIN ST. E AT O N R AP ID S M I Halloween at the Museum Brainerd Post mustered in March, 1883 The Eaton Rapids Journal This year for the first time Halloween was celebrated in downtown Eaton Rapids, and the Museum participated. They told us to expect maybe 150 kids...we guesstimate that we handed out candy to about 800 kids! What a fun event! We hope to do it again next year. It s a great way to let people know that we are there! Museum Wish List: Archival Storage Boxes Acid Free tissue paper Riker trays with batting Foam Core Board Sheet protectors WoodenPicture frames with glass Wood Shadow boxes with glass Heavy-duty Paper cutter/trimmer Scotch Tape Salt for Sidewalks (winter) Queen-size flat bed sheets (used for display table covers) Power point projector Portable Projector Screen V O LU M E 1, ISSU E 3 Sturdy Wooded Chairs (Contact Museum to find out the general type desired) Printer paper white and off white Card Stock Coffee: regular and decaf Toilet paper, paper towels, napkins Small paper plates Small Styrofoam Coffee cups Small cold drink cups Windex Toilet Cleaner Soft Scrub Wall paint Interior white or off white Paint brushes, rollers, pans, etc Sand paper - various grit

5 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 3 G.A.R. MUSEUM DISPATCH DEPARTMENT OF MICHIGAN, JAMES BRAINERD POST # S. MAIN ST. EATON RAPIDS MI PAGE 5 Thank you to the Eaton Rapids Assembly of God Church for donating 60 folding chairs to the museum! This is a huge time and energy saver for us previously we were borrowing the chairs from the Eaton Rapids Area Historical Society when we had a program, which involved bringing them down from the barn there and transporting them back and forth. A lot of work! Now we have our new chairs stored in the back room and can easily set them up when we have a program. We also have about 20 other folding chairs that were donated when the Eaton Rapids Kiwanis group disbanded. Thank you also to Express Yourself/Hamlin Square Coffee and Scott Poyer, for donating the makings for popcorn for our Hometown Christmas event! We are very grateful for the support we receive from the community! Wallpaper that was revealed in the restoration process upstairs in the Woman s Relief Corps meeting area. It s assumed to be a couple layers of the original wallpapers. We hope to be able find a close copy and apply it to the area where the women would have met, in the anteroom outside the main hall upstairs. Other items that would have been present in the room include a copy of the Gettysburg Address, and portraits of Lincoln and Washington. In anticipation of Michigan s reputation for a rough winter, our special programs are on hold until the spring. We have had several programs recently that were very well received. Rick Brown provided fascinating information regarding the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and Luther Baker. Baker was instrumental in the capture of Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth. Tobin Buhk presented an interesting and at times a bit gruesome look into the crime and punishment of the Civil War era. Jesse Lasorda illustrated the connection with the Michigan Boys Training School in Lansing and the Civil War, including information about letters found in the wall of a cabin up near Traverse City written by one of those Training School boys to his teacher about his experiences in the war. We thank all of our speakers for giving of their time and their expertise!

6 Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall & Museum 224 S. Main St. Eaton Rapids, Mi Museum Sponsorship Application Annual Sponsor Levels $ 200 President Abraham Lincoln GAR Post $ 175 Governor Austin Blair GAR Post $ 150 Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant GAR Post $ 125 Major Gen. William T. Sherman GAR Post $ 100 Major Gen. Philip Sheridan Post GAR Post $ 75 Bvt. Major Gen. Alpheus S. Williams GAR Post $ 50 Bvt. Major Gen. Russell A. Alger GAR Post $ 25 Lt. James B. Brainerd GAR Post Other Sponsor Level $ 1,000 Life-time Patron Make checks payable to Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall and Museum or GAR Museum and mail to 224 S. Main St. Eaton Rapids, MI I would like to volunteer in the GAR Memorial Hall & Museum I would like to make a donation to the GAR Memorial Hall and The Museum is open the first two Wednesdays each month, patriotic holidays, and by appointment. Museum Admission is Free. The GAR Memorial Hall & Museum is a federally recognized 501 (c) (3) tax exempt, Michigan nonprofit corporation. All donations to the GAR Memorial Hall a&d