McLEAN COUNTY HISTORY & GENEALOGY NEWS
By Euleen Rickard
In 2001 the National Geographic Society with help from the National Trust for Preservation and the White House Millennium Council compiled and published a beautiful book called “Saving America’s Treasures.” The book features many national treasures that, in recent years, have been saved from destruction. Henry Petroski, author of one of the beautiful essays in the book wrote, “Our historic buildings are more then mere buildings, they are our ancestry. They are our connection to a past way of living and working.” Our museum members are working hard to preserve our historic Smith house and McLean County’s connection to the past by filling it with genealogy, history and artifacts.
As weather permits work continues in and around the house. You may have noticed that it (is getting, now has) a new roof. Thanks to donations we were able to get the roof. The next repair project will be heating which is needed before work inside can continue through the winter.
The membership committee is beginning a drive to enlist new members. If you can, we invite you to join in the fun of history and genealogy research. If you cannot join but would like to donate, no amount is too small.
A donation by the Miller family of a spinning wheel that belonged to Nina Miller Dame of the Stringtown community is a great asset to our collection. We thank them for placing it in our care.
Often, donations come from unexpected sources. One such donation for the museum is a framed print “Surrender House Fort Donelson” from the private collection of Mrs. Anne Fonville’Sams of Louisville. Mrs. Fonville-Sams brought the print to the Kentucky Division meeting of the Daughters of the Confederacy on October 12th seeking a home for it. McLean County native, Beverly Davis Hicklin, told her of our museum and our county’s interest in the Civil War so she chose to donate the print for placement with us. Beverly’s mother, Virginia Davis, donated a companion piece, a framed “Fort Donelson Prison” print. Mrs. Davis’ grandfather, a Colonel in the Confederate Army was a prisoner in the Fort Donelson prison.