#MN A-Z Posts
Learn a little more about WCHS with #MNMuseumAlphabet! Between March 19-April 13, 2020, staff Facebook and Instagram posts focused on a different letter representing an artifact or story from our collection, keeping you connected with us even though our doors were closed to the public.
A is for Archives
We preserve everything from marriage records to family bibles, photographs to certificates, and so much more.
Here we have a Wright County auditor’s record book starting in 1873 and the 1925 tax lists from Corinna Township. The bindings and handwriting are beautiful, but these books are also useful research tools.
B is for Bison
WCHS participates in the local community’s ‘Buffalo Roam’ activity—a herd of 21 life-size bison statues found in businesses, parks, storefronts and public spaces. Each is individually designed & painted with a story to match so, we’re often asked, why is our statue still white? What’s our story?
Contrary to popular belief, bison did not roam this area as it was originally nearly all timber with natural grassy meadows and, more important to this story, lakes well stocked with fish. Buffalo fish, to be precise, named for their large size. Buffalo Lake was named by the Sioux or early traders on account of the large number of buffalo fish in the lake. The area was a famous camping ground of the Sioux who came in summer for fishing and gathering cranberries and in the winter for hunting deer. While they had no established village on the shore of Buffalo Lake, years later many Winnebago inhabited a large village which they named, ‘Buffalo’, in reference to the lake, not bison.*
So why is our statue unpainted? After much deliberation and a need to stay true to the history of the entire county, staff realized that statue was perfect the way it was for two main reasons:
1. A white bison is considered sacred amongst many Native tribes; keeping the statue white would denote honor and an acknowledgement of those who first inhabited this area.
2. This blank canvas reminds each one of us that Wright County’s history—our collective ‘story’--is waiting to written by us all, and WCHS will be here to collect, preserve, and share that history.
*from D.R. Farnham’s History of Wright County, pp 136-137.
C is for Cannon
This cannon, a muzzle loading fired frame with army musket cap, took 1/2-3/4 pounds of black powder rammed with paper wads to make it fire. A fifty foot rope attached to the firing pin so the person firing the can could stand far enough away when the gun powder exploded!
It was made in 1876 by George Washington Magoon Drake.
D is for Darkness
Collections storage spaces are kept in the dark when not in use. This isn’t to save on electricity (though that’s nice, too), it’s to protect the things in our collection. You might be surprised at how something as easy as turning off the lights can help preserve history.
Light of any kind can cause fading, cracking, and other damage. That’s just one of many risks our archivist and curator work to prevent.
E is for Exhibits
When people visit the museum, they usually only see the finished exhibits. But new exhibits don’t just pop up overnight. What does it take to make it happen?
Even a fairly small exhibit can takes months or years to plan and install. We have to come up with an idea, conduct research, plan out each area, write and design labels, move and sometimes create walls and cases, pull artifacts from the collection, and put everything together in a way we hope looks interesting. And many of these steps are done multiple times as we revise and improve upon first drafts.
Today’s photos show a blank wall ready for a new display, a rough floor plan for an upcoming exhibit (we keep it old school at WCHS with pen and paper), and the layer upon layer of file folders required to keep all the pieces of an exhibit in some semblance of order.
F is for Festival of Trees
The Festival of Trees just finished its 13th year with more than 60 individually decorated trees, holiday exhibits and many hands-on activities for all. More than 3000 people visited the FOT during the five weeks it was open, a far cry from the 20 trees & 80 visitors for the inaugural 2007 opening!
Staff work year-round on FOT ideas, developing themes and creating tree decorations for the 4-week transformation of the Hands on History Gallery to a winter wonderland. In fact, this staff member's home has been transformed into a mini-Santa's workshop as sequestered adults are busy at work creating masterpieces for our upcoming 2020 season. If you've never visited and want to see what you're missing, please visit WCHS' YouTube Channel for 2019's brief walk-through of our main FOT gallery HERE.
G is for ginseng
Did you know ginseng played an important economic role in our county's history? In fact, the Wright County Historical Society used to have ginseng on its' logo!
Direct from D. R. Farnham's 'History of Wright County':
"While we (early settlers of Wright County)were supplied with many comforts from the hand of Nature, there were other things necessary to complete the list of comforts formerly enjoyed by the settlers. Clothing and groceries required money, and this was so scarce that many families were destitute- and in the spring of 1859 were discouraged.
On the evening of May 18 two gentlemen from Richmond, VA, Colonel Blaine and Major Goshorn, drove into the village. They asked if ginseng grew in the woods. They thought, from the maple and basswood, it would be plentiful in this timbered country, and they had come from Virginia to buy it. They would prepare it for the Chinese market by washing, clarifying and drying, a process used at that time in preparing the roots for the Chinese trade.
On the morning of July 19 Mrs. Beebe, my cousin, Frank Ames, and I went into the woods in search of ginseng. It was the writer's good fortune to find the first plant. We dug it and carried it to Colonel Blaine. He pronounced it a fine specimen, and said they would pay gold for all that could be dug. We passed the top and root from one to another, that they might know it in the woods. The digging was done with a narrow hoe made for the purpose. Agencies were established at Buffalo, Watertown and Hassen, for the convenience of the diggers. In a few days the chief occupation was digging ginseng. The price paid in the spring was five cents per pound, and eight and ten cents in the fall, for green roots. Whole families dug. Some good diggers would dig five dollars worth in a day. We dug like a lot of miners, with expectation of finding rich digging every moment. Many of the settlers paid for their land with the money that came with the ginseng."
H is for Hubert Horatio Humphrey
Hubert H. Humphrey was born in Wallace, South Dakota and attended the University of Minnesota. Humphrey became involved in Minnesota politics, serving as Minneapolis mayor from 1945-1948, as a U.S. Senator from 1949-1964, and running in various presidential and vice presidential bids between 1952-1964. Humphrey served as Vice President to Lyndon B. Johnson, but lost the following presidential race against Richard Nixon.
In 1956, Humphrey and his family built a lakefront home in Waverly, MN, where he died in 1978. The Humphrey family became part of the community and were known to be good neighbors. The house is now a chemical dependency center.
WCHS has a large collection of HHH items, from his snowmobile to campaign memorabilia. It’s on display in our Main Gallery. We hope you get to see it soon.
I is for Ice
Cutting ice from frozen lakes was one way people handled refrigeration before electricity. Much of the ice cut in Wright County was used to cool rail cars. Local harvesting ended in 1968 as refrigerated rail cars became more common.
Harvested pieces of ice were called cakes, which were then cut down into blocks. The Annandale Ice Company cut and stored 2,000 tons of ice in 1950.
This photo shows Harry Anderson's cutting crew.
J is for James griffin
Wright County has had few African American settlers, but one that made his mark in Buffalo was James Griffin. He was born a slave in Price George County, Maryland, in 1822 or 1824. According to tradition in order slave owning families, Griffin served in place of his master in the US Navy aboard a ship.
The following was originally published in the Northern Stateman’s (Monticello, MN) ‘Around The Town’ column on April 11, 1868, and describes the ceremonial move of Wright County’s Seat from Monticello to Buffalo. Note that James Griffin, as both a drayman and respected citizen, was honored with leading the parade of dignitaries.
"Griffin, the first settler at the Seat, was on hand with two vehicles with which to transfer the honorable body, the county Chattels and effects, to Buffalo hereafter the center of gravitation for Wright County. Griffin, (sly dog,) knew very well that now was the appropriate time to make a speech of welcome to the assembled official dignity, and a proffer of the freedom of the city of “Buffalo” after they got out there, providing they behaved in a demure manner. Mr. Griffin’s impressive remarks were ably and neatly responded to by the Auditor, who by virtue of a new suit of clothes and gutta percha cane, had been unanimously chosen leader and spokesman for the crowd."
Learn more about this story here.
K is for Key
Both of these keys were used in the Wright County Courthouse.
The large brass key was for the door to a jail cell. The jail door was installed in the new courthouse in 1959 and removed in 1991.
The smaller silver key was used by Jerome Specht from 1952-1967 while he acted as a county agent.
The variability of the size, shape, metal type, and complexity of keys make them interesting and beautiful objects even without the history!
L is for Library
The WCHS library is full of wonderful resources. To start, we have a dedicated research librarian working every week day. Cindy and Kay are available to help you in your quest to find more about your family history or local organization.
The library is free to all Wright County residents, including access to a multitude of online genealogy programs, original plat maps, language dictionaries, newspapers on microfilm, and more!
We strive to be a valuable and up-to-date resource for people in Wright County and beyond.
M is for Map
WCHS has plat maps covering many decades. Plat maps are one way to track land ownership over time. They can also show shifting demographics as names on plots change and plots are split or combined.
The books and maps are also their own little pieces of art. It can be fun to page through maps from different eras and see how the pages were decorated and colored.
N is for Nelsonian
We’ve shown off parts of the Nelsonian on social media before, but there’s so much to see. Albert Nelson played 32 instruments through his one man band. And he built the whole thing himself! Nelson spent years adding and adjusting his invention. It is truly one of a kind.
O is for Operations
Like any organization (and your home!), behind-the-scene operations make up for the majority of the manager's work. Some of the daily tasks include bill payment, supply orders, communication with members, website updates, Facebook posts, securing vendors, creating programs, running events, making sure the facility is operating and many other administrative needs. Every day is different, requiring different skills, which makes museum operations a most challenging and interesting position--such as driving WCHS's white bison down Hwy 25 to be coated for outside placement.
P is for Party Line
So many of the words we use today carry over from older technology. From ‘hanging up’ to ‘ring tone’, our telephone vocabulary largely predates cell phones. One thing that did not survive the transition is the party line.
Party lines were local loop telephone circuits that were shared by multiple users. Shared lines were easier to build and were cheaper than private phones. However, the more economic option came with a big inconvenience. Everyone could pick up their phone and hear any call that was taking place! Gossipy neighbors were quick to share news, from hospital trips to personal spats.
You can see and touch the technology used for party lines in our Hands On History Gallery, including a switchboard and a crank magneto phone (notice the lack of dial or numbers).
Q is for Quilters…and other groups who meet at WCHS
The Wright County Heritage Center--the home of WCHS--consists of about 15,000+ sq ft. The library is the most used location for most of the year, but the room with the most foot traffic is the Activity Room. Non-profit groups - such as the Peace-by-Piece Quilt Club and Allina's Baby Cafe - use this space on a scheduled basis, while programs and presentations such as the History of Tractors draw in many hundreds more throughout the year.
R is for Resort
The many lakes of Minnesota led to many more lake resorts. They could be anything from rustic campgrounds to lovely cottages. Some of the earliest resorts in Wright County started off as side businesses for settlers. The Haffner Resort is a prime example.
Anthony Haffner moved from Germany to Minnesota in 1864. He and his family build a farm along Lake Charlotte, which turned out to be a wonderful fishing spot. Visiting friends soon gave way to strangers asking to for a place to stay while they fished. By 1910, the resort had grown to include a collection of cottages, hotel, dance pavilion, ice house, and a fleet of boats.
The Haffner Resort closed in the 1930s due to low water levels. The family split farm work and running the seasonal resort over several decades and retained fond memories of their many visitors.
S is for Speakers
After a 2008 presentation by David Grabitzke (formerly of MNHS local history services), WCHS felt inspired to dedicate itself to become an engaging community service organization, providing free gallery & library admissions and quality programming for all. Even though our speakers are given an honorarium (thanks to targeted fundraising efforts and donors) WCHS proudly provides free admission to all in-house programs and presentations and, though many of our spring speakers have been cancelled due to the continuing pandemic, WCHS is coming up with creative solutions to keep our patrons' history cravings fulfilled.
T is for Town Hall
There are 17 cities and 18 townships that exist in the county, which have a total estimated 2013 population of 128,459. Many of the township buildings have changed over the years but an example of the classic style exists on WCHS property--the old Chatham Township Hall--which is open to the public each summer.
U is for Underwear
This corset is from Lantto’s Store. While you won’t find anything like this in stock today, corsets made sense when Lantto’s was founded as a general store in 1908. WCHS has a collection of items from the store that were saved from a 1928 fire.
This second item might be less familiar. Before elastic socks were an option, people had to find ways to hold their stockings up. Garter belts were commonly worn around the waist or calf with clips to hold the tops of stockings. Roll garters changed the game by allowing women to place the band at the top of the stocking and roll it down to whatever length they wanted. No more clips and belts! Roll garters were especially popular in the 1920s when they were used to hold stockings just below the knee, which could reveal a bit of bare leg when sitting in those scandalously short knee-length flapper dresses.
V is for Volunteer
We love our volunteers and are dependent on them for successful operations. Whether it’s once-a-year, like Matthew Scherber taking photos of our inaugural Heritage Festival (more on this in a future post) or our board of directors, our dedicated volunteers are dependable, history-minded individuals.
Did you know the IRS sets the value of one volunteer hour at over $22? To us, each one is priceless—and we miss them all!
W is for Women of Wright County
The first Women of Wright County book was compiled and printed between 1982-83 and, in doing research for our upcoming Suffrage Movement exhibit, we decided it was time for an update.
Starting Tuesday, April 14, WCHS will be accepting online nominations for an updated Women of Wright County 2020-21. There are multiple categories so put your thinking caps on, and check back here and on our website for the online link next week.
X is for X-ray
This chest and stomach X-ray was donated by Dr. Waldo Anderson (though the person pictured in the X-ray is a mystery). We also have an x-ray machine from Dr. F.E. Ellison, who practiced in Monticello.
Would finding something like this in a storage room be a fun discovery or too spooky?
Y is for Yearbook
This 1986 yearbook comes from the Monticello Junior/Senior High School. While yearbooks can be a wonderful source of nostalgia, they also have broader historical value. They show changes in fashion and graphic design. They can help guide genealogists looking into family history. And they give a good sense of what everyday life was like for teenagers over many decades.
Z is for Zion United Methodist
Wright County has three Zion United Methodist Churches located in Buffalo, Hanover, and South Haven. Each is represented in our collection through annual publications and church histories.
The word Zion represents several places and ideas. It is sometimes used to refer to Jerusalem and to Israel. It also can be used as term for all of Christianity. This depth of meaning makes it a popular church name across denominations.