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From the President’s Desk A visit, today, to the Allison-Antrim Museum should make each visitor look differently at our yesterday and in some way change how they think about our tomorrow. Hopefully, each person, young or old, will say, "Wow, I never thought about that," about just one thing that they see in the museum on each visit. That, "Wow," might be the realization that Dr. Adam Carl attended to wounded Confederate soldiers on their retreat back through Greencastle from the Battle of Gettysburg and more than likely used his medicine kit that’s on exhibit in the large parlor. Contemplating on that fact leads to a larger realization - Dr. Carl upheld a part of the Hippocratic Oath by tending to the needs of a human being ignoring the fact that, that person’s beliefs were very different from his own. Doctors of our today do the same thing as will the doctors of our tomorrow. There’s a connection. Each docent’s interpretation of the same artifact will be somewhat different because each person brings to the museum a different perspective and insight into each item. What one of our young docents sees in an object will be quite different than one of our older docents who may actually remember the person behind the object or remembers stories about the object from his/her childhood. Visit the museum again and take a fresh look at our yesterday and make a connection for yourself. Bonnie A. Shockey
Report on the Docent Workshop
Although the group is small, we now have a core group on which to build our docent staff. Other AAMI members may still be called upon to help fill in during the year at open house times. This will at least be an annual event with possibly one other continuing education workshop day at some other time of the year.
Pennsylvania Governors’ Signatures Knowing that Tom Brumbaugh started his collection as a young boy, I thought it would be appropriate to ask if one of the elementary classes would like to take on the project of adding to our collection. Mr. Tritle’s fourth grade class (fourth grade is when G-A students study PA state history) has agreed to accept the task of writing letters to secure the missing signatures. From the last century, there were only three signatures that were missing that would complete the list for the 20th century. Those of Gov. Samuel W. Pennypacker, who served from 1903-1907; Gov. Robert P. Casey, 1987-1995; and Gov. Tom Ridge, 1995 to present. From 1852 – 1900 we are missing just two signatures. And we do not yet have Benjamin Franklin’s signature, namesake of our county. I am excited to report that Mr. Tritle’s class has obtained Gov. Ridge’s signature as well as that of Pennypacker and they are working on Gov. Casey’s. As of press time, I do not have the details of how they obtained the signatures. I would like to make the presentation of the addition of the most recently obtained signatures an event by inviting those involved to a press conference.
Focus on the Library The newest addition, a gift, "Kriegegefangener (Prisoner of War 312598), by William A. Diehl as told to Edwin R. Smith, EdD. "Kriegegefangener" is an account that takes the reader from Diehl’s childhood growing up in Shady Grove to graduation, life in the Army in WW II, his story as a POW in Stalag IV B, escape and return to civilian life. We have the four-book, Conrad and Alexander collection that includes: From Terror to Freedom; Conococheague – A History of the Greencastle-Antrim Community 1736 – 1971; Glory Land; and When War Passed this Way. Titles of other books on our shelves include: History of Franklin County 1887; Franklin County, PA – The First 200 years; The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania; The Scotch-Irish in America; The Big Spring Presbyterian Church; The First Reformed Church of the Revolutionary Period; Drummer Boys of the Civil War; Principles of Railroad Transportation; papers written by Jack Burns on the Conestoga wagon industry in this area; Cumberland Valley Barns Past and Present; An Age of Barns by Eric Sloane; The Burning of Chambersburg (first-hand account) by Rev. B. S. Schneck, D.D.; Underground Railroad printed by the National Park Service; Pennsylvania Dutch and Other Essays by Phebe Gibbons; Hopeful Journeys – German Immigration, Settlement, and Political Culture in Colonial America, 1717-1775 by Aaron Fogleman; Historic Carlisle Barracks; Robert McClellan (First Paper and Second Paper) by Prof. John L. Finafrock; The Eisenhowers – Gettysburg’s First Family by Stan Cohen. Research may be done using any of the above by calling and making an appointment. In the next newsletter, we’ll continue the focus on the library.
Wish List Tom and Alice Brumbaugh, brother and sister, were the first ones to approach the museum and ask with what might they be able to help as far as the needs and wants of the museum went. Through their generosity all 15 Walter Washington Smith paintings in our collection have been restored and/or cleaned. Now, the next step is to get proper museum lighting installed so that the paintings may be viewed in appropriate illumination. Roy and Ada Leckron also made a contribution by donating a period hall light for our entrance at the main door. This was a different kind of contribution, but helped the museum to check off one of the needed items on our Wish List. We are still seeking a period light for the upstairs hall ceiling. The pine floors are original to the 1860 house. They’ve faired fairly well for being 140 years old but they are in bad need of restoration work after having been carpeted for a number of years. In the recovered room upstairs, you can’t tell where the pieced boards and gouges were in the newly restored floor. The downstairs floors, stair treads, and upstairs hall floor will not be sanded and refinished but restored by staining the scratches to match the color of the existing floor. The finish will be smoothed out with a special preparation in order to preserve the antique patina. A few damaged boards will need replaced and holes left from different heating systems over the years will be plugged and stained. Upstairs, the remaining "bedroom" floors will have their borders repainted the original colors. The Henson family gave Philip Baer’s grand piano to the museum as a memorial gift. But, it is not in playing condition and needs restoration work done. It would be nice to hear the sound of the piano during an open house. To properly conserve the items housed in the museum, the building needs to have a climate controlled heating and air conditioning system installed. The system would monitor the temperature and amount of humidity present at all times. Currently we do not have enough wall space to display all of the Smith paintings as well as paintings by other artists from Greencastle’s past. When the museum does a special exhibit, display panels have to be borrowed. We would like to have free-standing display panels available for such occasions. For the benefit of any handicapped visitors to the museum, we would like to have a combination TV/VCR so that upstairs exhibits could be video taped and then viewed by the visitors who are unable to climb the stairs. The unit could also be used to look at the Reminiscing tape series started in Old Home Week 1998. Landscaping of the property will be down the road after the archaeologists have completed their digs.
Calendar of Events: Thursday, May 11, 2000: Sunday, May 14, 2000: Thursday, June 8, 2000: Sunday, June 11, 2000: Sunday, July 9, 2000: Thursday, July 13, 2000: August 10, 2000: Sunday, August 13, 2000:
Recent Acquisitions
What’s Been Happening
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Did You Know… "Supporting America’s museums will help build communities, tell stories of the human experience, bring the wonders of the natural world to all, and provide a rich, educational experience for all generations." 1999 AAM Guide to Museum Giving
Have You Seen… … the very large wooden nuts and bolts? Where were they used?
The answer to March’s "Have You Seen…" is, they are tooth extractors. The cycle shaped end was hooked in at the gum line and then the handle was turned, extracting the tooth.
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