Franklin County Historical Society
Director’s Report
July 2011
Grant
Applications
in
Progress
 Pending Rolling Stock Project. TEA-21 transportation-connected grant, and KS
Tourism Attraction grants possible. Burlington Northern Santa Fe Foundation
grant app in progress—HAVE SUBMITTED, June 15.
 Website/Digital Repository Grant. Asked Hewitt Trust for major donation to
2011 project--$5,000 (+usual $5000 for general fund.) Got $10,000
 Pending IMLS Museums for America grant application—this one on archival
assessment and cataloging. Was submitted August 23 2011; will hear late July.
 Pending NEH Conservation Help for the Small Museum, submitted
 Received Conservation Assistance Program grant, $7,190. Have consulted with
Michael Cornwell and have selected Barbara Anderson of Manhattan as the
architectural assessor and Julie Reilly of Omaha as the collections assessor. We were
the only Kansas museum that was awarded this grant this round. Have completed
extensive survey and contacted assessors in a timely fashion.
 Have completed an application (well, Sonia has) to receive a Smithsonian exhibit
either next year or the next called “The Way We Worked.” Groups who have agreed
to be co-sponsors are: Franklin Co. Convention & Visitors Bureau, Ottawa Area
Chamber of Commerce, Ottawa/Franklin County Economic Development, and the
Ottawa Library. Exhibit would come in 2012 or 13.
 Deb has applied for a scholarship from Freedom’s Frontier to attend the 2011
Annual Meeting of AASLH, or the American Assn. for State and Local History, in
Richmond VA in Sept.
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buildings and Grounds
 Parks and Recreation have finished installation of pay station and information board
for Prairie Spirit Rail Trail on west side of depot. We still need to lay brick up to it.
 The grounds of both museums look terrible, not just due to the weather, but to lack
of maintenance all season.
Exhibits
#1 “Signs of the Times—1961” Looks back on the Kansas
Centennial activities in Ottawa and around the county
#2 “Meet Me At The Fair” Looks at fairs in relation to museums. Local items at international fairs, Fr. Co. fairs, etc.
#3 “Images of the Sac and Fox” hopefully grant funded
look at several generations of photos of the tribe first in
Missouri’s Platte Purchase, then here, then in Oklahoma
Education
One room school: A very successful season! 9 groups came—Williamsburg, Lincoln,
homeschoolers, Eugene Field.
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Programming
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Plans for 2011 quarterly meetings:
Annual Meeting/ Jan. 30th Trivia contest.
Spring/ May 1 Interactive program on old vocal music to be held at
Christian Science Church (very cool site) with Sacred Harp singers from
Lawrence
Summer/July 24 The new portal.
Fall/Todd Mildfelt’s new children’s book on UGRR, songs, etc.
Summer programming at the Old Depot Museum—Lunch and Learn Series every
Tuesday lunch hour of July.
Policies
-- creation and updates
Policies calendared for revision in 2011:
Archival Collections Policies & Procedures (advise waiting for MFA)
Personnel Policy
Programming Plan & Policy
Education Policy (needs to be written)
Finance
/Endowment / Fundraising
 Plans for fundraising from hospitality and fundraising committee:
Pie Eaters event—April 9—Civil War re-enactor Jim Beckner
Bill Kurtis event with auction? – fall
Glorious Fourth event at cabin/depot—summer
Spirits in the Old Depot Museum Halloween event – fall
Kansas 150 Events/Civil War Sesquicentennial Events
 Kansas/Franklin Co. trivia contest Jan. 29 in partnership with OL
 Digital Portal
 Civil War Ball, Nov. 7 In conjunction with Veterans’ Day events. Need sponsors
to pay for band--$800.
FCHS 75th anniversary –2012
 Native American event moved from this year to next
Marketing / museum store
 Online store will be part of new FCHS website in production.
 Kim is surveying banks for deals on credit cards. She could have sold well over $100
one day last week if we had taken cards.
Dietrich Cabin
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 The cabin will open for regular hours on Sunday, June 5 and close Aug. 28.
The cabin has hardly been open at all this summer despite volunteers in hand. We’re
going to extend the season into September to get some exposure for it.
 Ottawa Library Story Time held there April 26
Administration
 Staff meetings occur weekly.
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Have attended exhibits meeting, collections
meetings.
Personnel: Phyllis has resigned as of July 1. Sonia will take her place (and perhaps
also Rosemary’s as she has indicated an unwillingness to work another winter).
Emily has started grad school, and will only be available for 2 or 3 days the rest of
the summer, so she is essentially off the books unless we get the grant.
Sonia has just gotten a job with Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area. We’ll
have to find someone else.
Deb presented our proposed 2012 budget to the Co. Commissioners, and
resubmitted another one with a county contribution of $61,000. No final report.
Deb fired the floor cleaner.
Laura, the registrar, is applying for disability and plans to volunteer when she gets on
it. She knows she’s out as of Jan.1, either way.
Membership Annual Giving 2011
 Mark Cation has gotten memberships from Colt Waymire and Tom Weigand in the
course of lobbying for the FCHS and CVB.
Community Outreach Activities
 Deb did a John Brown tour for her daughter’s Unitarian church on April 16. Visited
ODM, Tauy Jones’ house, Brown’s Station, cabin museum in Osawatomie (with 1st
person portrayal of Samuel Adair, visit to Hanway house south of Lane, and trip to
BlackJack Battlefield with portrayal of JB by Kerry Altenbernd
Freedom’s frontier national
heritage
area
We received a Star Site designation for the depot, and a Recognized Site designation
for the cabin. Working on FFNHA focus area in depot, with logo. Deb gave a
Lunch and Learn talk on FFNHA.
Deb is helping to develop its grant program.
ResearcH
 Doing research on Perry Fuller, local white-collar criminal from Civil War time.
 Morgan Williams, here for the Wall of Honor, wants me to collaborate on two
books—one on J.B. Muecke and one on Dad Martin. I’ve agreed to have the
Muecke materials cataloged when he (Morgan) gives them to us. Otherwise, I’m
making no promises. He is willing to raise money for publication of both books.
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Website/ digital
repository –In progress
 Partners’ Meeting, April 5 Attendees from Ottawa Library, Wellsville Library,
Williamsburg Library, Williamsburg Museum, Richmond Museum, Ottawa
University, Richmond Library, FC Genealogical Society (Missing only Pomona
Library and Wellsville Historical Society)
 Site went live on April 15
 Quarterly Meeting featuring it scheduled for Aug. 24
 Ottawa Library workshop featuring it planned for fall
Future
Projects
 For 2011: Finish the Historical Map of Franklin County (grant funded) and get it
printed. Learned about some interesting ways to make a clickable web map at the
same time.
 Get a memorial stone installed at Lawrence’s Pioneer Cemetery for Rufus Gilpatrick,
a doctor from Greeley who was buried there in 1863. Matt Matthews is working with
me on this. Have been working with Cleon Rickel on this project.
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