A Message From Your President
On Sunday, April 10, 2011, the Board of Directors elected me to serve as their President for the upcoming year. I want to thank them for having confidence in me to elect me to this position. I will do my best to carry out the mission of the Fond du Lac County Historical Society.
At our Annual Dinner, five Board Members were elected: two incumbents and three newcomers. Polly May and Traci Bohnsack were elected to another term on the Board. Mary Leb, Mat Mueller and John Townsend are our newcomers. We want to welcome them aboard!
2011 promises to be a very busy year for the Historical Society and the Galloway House. Our year will start in May with our Titanic Exhibit at the Postilion. Come and help celebrate the 100th Anniversary of her Launch. This educational exhibit will take you through the early years of the Titanic. Hours are 4-8 PM on weekends for the entire month of May, ending with "Dinner with the Captain" in the Chalet on June 5.
A Salute to Armed Forces opens May 21 in the Blakely Museum. This is a very exciting exhibit. Bob Kovacs, our Program Director, worked all winter putting this display together. It starts with uniforms from the Civil War and goes right through to the conflicts we are involved with today. The many artifacts on loan from various veterans and the American Legion have been a great help to Bob in this endeavor.
Also that weekend, May 21 and 22, our Civil War Re-enactment will take place. The Historic Galloway House and Village will host this event for the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. There will be four re-enactment groups on the grounds. This should be a very exciting weekend, as we will have both North and South encampments on the grounds. Any Veteran that comes in uniform, wears their dog tags or has other identification that they were in the military, either past or present, will be admitted free.
On the evening of June 21, the Fond du Lac County Board of Supervisors will be re-enacting the first County Board session held in 1839. This will be televised over our local television station. After the meeting, the County Board will be at the Postilion for a reception. This will be open to the public.
On August 13, the Fond du Lac County Historical Society, in collaboration with Fond du Lac County, will also be dedicating the Civil War Monument that is in Veterans Park. This monument was erected around the turn of the century and has never been dedicated.
Then of course, we have the Ice Cream Social on August 20 and 21. There will also be a car show and craft demonstrations throughout the grounds. This is also a salute to all area Veterans. Again, Admission is free for service men and women with proof of service.
We will end the year with "Christmas with Madame" at the Postilion.
So as you can see, we are going to have a VERY busy year. Remember to check out the Reception House & Gift Shop. You will not recognize it! Thank you to everyone that helped with this.
I want to take this opportunity to thank all our volunteers, docents and anyone who helps us in any way to make the Society run as smoothly as it does. Without all your help, it would not be possible to put on these events. Thank you.
Jim Glassel
