Charlevoix Historical Society - Charlevoix, Michigan

MUSEUM FALL HOURS

Again a reminder of our fall hours—the Harsha House Museum remains open until the end of the year from Tuesday through Saturday 1-4 P. M. (except Thanksgiving and Christmas Days), with the side office door open at 11 A. M. until 4 P. M. Now is the time to start thinking about Christmas shopping in the museum store. We have unique items unavailable anywhere else. (See the list of items inside. Everything on the list can be mailed). The museum will be closed January and February so the museum directors can again catch up on a backlog of unfinished work, but the side office door will remain open from 11 to 4, same days, for those who need to conduct Society business.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Dear Members,

The new road to the Depot is nearly finished, and a great improvement it is! We’re working on an arrangement of salvaged pieces of the historic old scored pavement to be placed prominently, along with an informative sign, somewhere at the bottom of the hill next to the Depot parking lot. Watch for it in the spring.

The fundraising spaghetti dinner at the Villager Pub was great! Owner and Patron Terry Left is a really good friend to do this for us. Loads of thanks to him and his crew. The take was excellent this year ($2910, surpassing last year’s record-breaking $2594—Ed.). Thanks to all of you who were there supporting us. It was another delightful evening of good food and merry greetings. Many thanks to Mick Smith for putting the event together, again, and our Society volunteer waitstaff. And congratulations to the winners of the door prizes! (Grand Prize: Julie Murdick, dinner for two at Terry’s Place; second prize: Jackie Riley, a 2009 Charlevoix in Historic Photos calendar; third prize: Harold Wilson, a 2008 lighthouse Christmas bulb ornament)

We all should be very proud of the condition of our lovely old Depot. It took a lot of fiscal responsibility, extensive research, and generous donations of time and expert labor, but the building and surrounding bricks are as solid and pristine as is possible for an historic structure. A lot of people have worked very hard for a long time to complete this project. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!!

In addition, fine work has also been done to stabilize the Harsha House. Director Steve Goslee noticed a sag in the library floor; the wallpaper was actually pulling loose in one corner of the entry parlor. Paul Hoelderle, our intrepid Buildings Chair, and Rudy Scharschmidt, our inestimably skilled craftsman, placed supports in the basement to prevent further sagging. Caring for old buildings can be a nightmare. If you should see these men, congratulate and thank them. They’ve really earned the recognition, much as they downplay their efforts.

Our next event, the annual Christmas dinner, is going to be a very nice—and tasty—evening at the Grey Gables. I’m looking forward to it, and to seeing you there.

Best regards to all,
Mona Bergeon

NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE SHOWS ON PBS

The Society would like to draw your attention to the upcoming showings of four programs, in conjunction with Native American History Month, that will focus on the heritage of our Native American neighbors. They will be broadcast on Central Michigan University Channel 6, our local PBS channel, on November 15, 18, 22, and 23. Check your newspaper listings or TV Guide for times.

CHRISTMAS COLLECTIONS TO BE DISPLAYED AT HARSHA HOUSE

Since we were offered only nine Christmas collections for a planned exhibit over the Thanksgiving weekend at the Depot, not reaching the desired goal of twenty, we have decided to display some of them at the Harsha House over the holidays instead. Particularly valuable items will be placed in the formal parlor behind the barrier rope. Anyone who would like to participate with a loan of ornaments, nutcrackers, old cards, crèche figures, etc., please call Karen Pierce at 547-6004, or Betsy Reynolds at 547-4640.

EARL YOUNG BOOK TO BE PUBLISHED NEXT YEAR

Late last spring, a small book of color photos titled “Charlevoix, the Beautiful” was published by Mike Barton of Boulder, Colorado. Mike’s parents are seasonal residents and Society Patrons Graham and Betty Barton of Park Avenue. The book has sold extremely well, and now Mike has come up with another, a beautiful full color exploration of the works of our legendary builder Earl Young as they appear today. The rough proofs just arrived, and your editor will be working with Mike going over the text and making sure all facts are double-checked. He hopes to have the book out by early next summer. It will be just what the town has needed for years due to the constantly increasing demand for information about Young’s works, and will be equal in quality to its predecessor.

Not to say that the Society will be far behind, because by that time our DVD on “The Life and Works of Earl Young, Charlevoix’s Master Builder in Stone” will have been out, if everything goes as planned, for several months. This DVD is based on your editor’s two-hour, two-part program presented in 2007 and 2008 at the Charlevoix Public Library community room to standing room only crowds. The program traces Young’s life from his arrival in Charlevoix in 1900 at age eleven through his early years and the onset of his career at Boulder Park, with many vintage photos, several of them taken by Earl himself at the beginning of the last century. Final editing begins soon and we hope to have the disc ready by the holiday season.

DUES RENEWAL ENVELOPE TO ARRIVE SEPARATELY

In past years the annual dues renewal envelope was sent out in the December newsletter to all members, even to life and complimentary members. This was necessitated by the fact that all fourth-class mailings had to be of uniform weight, resulting in a waste of envelopes. This year we are sending out the annual envelopes individually, with a reminder letter, via first class mail. This will help us update our mailing list and give a better picture of exactly how the annual membership is composed.

We would like to remind our annual members to be aware that they can upgrade their membership to a Ralph Hamilton Circle, Life, or Patron level. The first category is a pledge of $100 annually, the second a $250 (single) or $400 (family) one-time payment, the third an annual support at various levels from $350. Life members and Patrons can also become Ralph Hamilton Circle members, and vice versa. Call the Harsha House for more information.

EXCERPT FROM UPCOMING RAILROAD BOOKLET

The Society is currently working on another booklet to follow the lighthouse publication of last year. This one will describe how the railroad came here in 1892. Following is a sample of the bombastic journalism of the day when the editors of the region’s newspapers shot verbal cannon fire at each other, making accusations of underhanded tactics used to lure the railroad through their respective towns to the detriment of many others. They showed no mercy. An indignant Willard A. Smith, editor of the Charlevoix Sentinel, here is accusing the editor of the East Jordan Enterprise of impugning our integrity. The two communities had long “watched each other from their respective back yards, each with cocked shot-guns; while each to the other has been a community of perjurers, brawlers, and blacklegs (swindlers). In their misery they now wallow in the same trough, eat from the same trough, and crawl into the same bed (uncertainty of the railroad’s plans). . . . The (railroad) people are not men to be inflamed by any false theories promulgated by agitators. . . . A column in that paper is devoted to an obtuse but studied insult to Charlevoix; a gross misrepresentation of facts under the guise of satire and contemptuous persiflage. . . . Charlevoix heeds not idle vaporings of envious rivals, or the sneers of her inferiors, and is unvexed.” In high dudgeon, Smith called the editor and his friends “asses” who wished to “crush Charlevoix.” He concluded his scathing outburst by saying of this editor, with whom he had once been on cordial terms, that it was sad to see “so noble a body contain so small a soul.” (March, 1890)

They don’t (dare) write ‘em like that anymore.

Donation for the Depot restoration received in October from: Anonymous

Donation in honor of Mona Bergeon’s presidency received in October from: Sandra Moers

Donation in memory of Jim Lewis received in October from: Sandra Moers

Donation in memory of Mel Durbin received in October from: Richard & Ellen Simmons

Correction: Last month it was reported that Edward Bemis had contributed to the Depot restoration. This should have read “Lighthouse” restoration.