WINTER 2011 Produced for the members and friends of Old Cowtown Museum 1865 West Museum Boulevard Wichita, Kansas 316.219.1871 VOL.13 / NO.4 LET’S MAKE MERRY: A VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS www.oldcowtown.org Hours & Admission November 1st, 2011 to April 9th, 2012 10 am to 4 pm Tuesday-Saturday Closed Sunday & Monday Cowtown can accommodate groups and school classes yearround by reservation. ADMISSION Adults (18-61) $7.75 Seniors (62+) $6.50 Youth (12-17) $6.00 Children (4-11) $5.50 No charge for children under 4 and Old Cowtown Members Group Rates (for groups of 15 or more paying visitors) Adults (18+) $6.00 Youth (12-17) $4.00 Children (4-11) $3.00 No charge for children under 4 For more information call 316.350.3323 FIND US ON FACEBOOK AT OLD COWTOWN MUSEUM, OR FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @ WICHITACOWTOWN Carolers gather at the Dress Shop The Visitors Center ready for Christmas Dinner A lamp-lit wagon ride Join us at Old Cowtown Museum for our annual Old Fashion Christmas Celebration. Let’s Make Merry: A Victorian Christmas will be held December 2, 3, 9 and 10 from 6pm-9pm. Whether Christmas at Cowtown is an annual event for your family or a brand new adventure, there will be entertainment to evoke your sense of nostalgia as well as new events and actives to experience. As the day light dwindles, the town will come alive with music and performances, traditional Christmas crafts and activities, cookies, cocoa, and unique Christmas gifts. Have photos taken with Santa Claus himself in prairie style. Don’t forget to stop by our homes to experience Christmas traditions brought with settlers from their ancestor’s homes to the prairie. See how traditional ethnic customs merge with an early American Christmas. Nightly Highlights include: The Night before Christmas Play, Dixie Lee Dancers, Entre Nous Dancers, The Notorious Roscoe, Blind Dog Quilts, Handmade Santas by Georganna Robinson, Social Club cookies and crafts, and photos with Santa at Heller Cabin, and appearances by Wichita Choral Society, Great Plains Dulcimer Alliance and Acoustic Treasures. Christmas Dinner will be served in the Visitor Center December 9th and 10th at 6:00. Dinner menu includes: roast turkey, Beef Bourguignonne, twice baked potato casserole, tossed salad, rolls/butter, Vegetable Medley, assorted desserts (cakes, pies, cheesecakes, sugarfree), coffee, tea,lemonade & water. Dinner entertainment will be provided by Flatland String Band. The price for dinner and admission to the grounds is: Adults $26.95, Children $14.95, Members $19.95, and $11.95 for children of members. Reservations are required by calling 350-3323. THE HOLIDAYS AT S.G. BASTIAN & SONS BREAKFAST Are you looking for that “perfect” Christmas gift? Do you have a little WITH SANTA “cowpoke” that needs some new cap guns or a new badge? How about a gift that uniquely says Cowtown? Or one-of-a-kind handcrafted items from local artisans? If you answered yes to any of these questions, S.G. Bastian and Sons Mercantile in the Visitor’s Center at Old Cowtown Museum is the place for you to shop this season. The store currently has cap guns, bow and arrow sets, stuffed animals, historic reproduction toys, and more for the little ones. We have handcrafted bonnets, hand muffs, and jewelry for the ladies. And for the guys on your list, we have handmade metal work from the blacksmiths here at Cowtown, spurs, and hats. And for anyone who likes to eat, we have locally-made jams, jellies, salsas, and peanut brittle. Just in time for Christmas this year, the store will be receiving a new line of merchandise. These items will include key chains, magnets, and even sweatshirts. Currently in-stock is a large selection of mugs, shot glasses and T-shirts---all with the Old Cowtown logo. So no matter who you are shopping for this season, stop by and check out the items at S.G. Bastian and Sons. You are sure to find something you like and can’t get anywhere else in town. Our hours are Tuesday-Saturday 10 AM to 4 PM (9 PM the nights of Victorian Christmas), during regular Museum hours. We will be closed Thursday and Friday, November 24th and 25th for the Thanksgiving Holiday. Don’t forget to reserve your seat for Breakfast With Santa, perfect for little ones and their families. Held in the Visitors Center on December 3rd or 10th at 8:30am, the event is a favorite with grandparents and grandchildren. While you wait for Santa to arrive by stagecoach, you can send him a personalized telegraph and make some fun Christmas crafts. Breakfast will include pancakes, French toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and fruit salad. Adults $12.95, Children $7.95. Reservations are booking quickly. Go to www.wichitatix.com or call 350-3323. WINTER 2011 HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS CARDS Many of the Christmas traditions we celebrate were born during the Victorian era, including Christmas cards. Original Horsley Greeting Card “On behalf of the Tesla & Lovecraft Mail Order Catalogue, we would like to thank all of the ladies and gentlemen who came out for our Exposition. We hope you will mark your calendars for June 2, 2012, at which time we will once again be presenting exciting entertainment and Unique Scientifically Designed Objects For Everyday Use!” VISITORS CENTER IMPROVEMENTS The concrete goes down The finished walk The Visitor’s Center at Cowtown got an update on its entrance this season, with the addition of a second sidewalk from the parking lot to the building. One of the earth berms that surround the building was cut down to make room for the new walk. The walk was completed with the installation of removeable metal bollards in the center of both front walks. Thanks to Bill Hogan and Tom McQuillams of Cowtown Building Services for coordinating this project. Other City of Wichita public Works employees that helped complete the new walk include: James Black, Steve Bennett, Tracy Jordan, John May, Roger Whitely, Dave Palmitier, James Goodenough, Lee Brown, and Robert Burgar. The interior of the Visitors Center also recently received some upgrades thanks to a generous contribution from Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc. Drapes and shades were added to the main room along with audio-visual equipment. These additions make the Visitors Center an attractive place for daytime business meetings.  YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST! Cowtown Museum staff met recently to set the 2012 event calendar. We are already working on planning all of the 2012 events and are looking forward to new and unique ways to stage some of your favorite events. Victorian Ball Civil War Day Frozen in Time Steampunk Day Celebrate America Age of the Gunfighter Education Day County Fair Hay Hooves and Hallowe’en Breakfast With Santa Victorian Christmas February 11, 2012 April 21, 2012 May 19, 2012 June 2, 2012 June 30, 2012 September 1, 2012 October 5, 2012 October 6, 2012 October 27, 2012 December 8 and 14, 2012 December 7, 8, 14 and 15, 2012 The Cowtown Chronicle is published by Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc., the Advisory group for Old Cowtown Museum, 1865 West Museum Boulevard, Wichita, KS, 67203. It is distributed to the members and donors of Old Cowtown Museum. © Copyright 2011 Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc. ISSN 1522-7375. All rights reserved. Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc. disclaims responsibility for statements of facts or opinion made by contributors. It was customary when a person paid a formal call, to leave a calling card with the hostess. In addition, at Christmas time visitors to left written greetings on their visiting cards. In 1843, this social obligation created a problem for Sir Henry Prang 1880 Christmas Card Cole. The founder of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London had so many Christmas greetings that handwriting them seemed impossible. Cole also wanted to remind those he interacted with of the need to help the destitute on that holiday. He commissioned John Calcott Horsley to print and color a card about the size of a calling card. The text, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You” was printed over a 3 panel illustration. The center panel displayed a happy family embracing one another, sipping wine and enjoying the festivities. The side panels showed the feeding and clothing of the poor. Unfortunately his picture showed a child enjoying a sip of wine and was considered by some “fostering the moral corruption of children.” None the less, the custom became popular anyway. In the United States a similar card was made in 1851 by R.H. Pease, an engraver, lithographer, and variety store owner in Albany, New York. His card included a family scene—parents and three children with their presents, in the small cards center. In the background a servant set the table for Christmas dinner and the images on each of the card’s four corners were pictures of a “small, rather elf-type Santa Claus with fur-trimmed cap, sleigh and reindeer, a ball-room with dancers, the building marked Temple of Fancy,’ and an array of Christmas presents and Christmas dishes and drinks.” While the Horsley card wished good tidings for the season, Pease’ card added a self-promotional “Pease’s Great Varety (sic) Store in the Temple of Fancy?” While neither of these had the vision or inclination to exploit the market and published another card, others took up the idea. In 1860, a British publisher of visiting cards began mass producing cards designed especially for visits at Christmas and New Year’s, though they still were about 3 inches by 2 inches. Publishers in the United States did not create their own until 1874 when German immigrant, Louis Prang, opened the first Christmas card factory in Massachusetts. Unfortunately it was more profitable to export his entire stock to England, but a year later he published the first line of U.S. Christmas cards. His initial creations followed Victorian conventions and symbolism featured flowers and birds, unrelated to the Christmas time, along with an elegantly scripted couplet or prose Christmas greeting. Through experimentation Prang soon found that Christmas pictures and larger sized cards brought even better returns than the small Victorian ones and offered more opportunity for artistic endeavors. Prang was dedication to aesthetic values art educations and held a standard of perfection. Prang saw his cards as small works of art, affordable to nearly anyone and were a way to introduce Americans to well-known works of art at reasonable prices. He refused to follow the trend of his competitors to create some that were shaped liked fans and crescents; others were cut into the shapes of bells, birds, candles and even plum puddings. Some folded like maps or fitted together as puzzles; other squealed or squeaked. Pop-up Cards revealed tiny mangers or skaters with flying scarves gliding around a mirrored pond. FROM THE PRESIDENT FROM THE DIRECTOR What a year we have had at Cowtown. This will be my last column. A new President comes aboard January 1st. The staff has performed miracles this past year while dealing with a terribly hot summer and lousy economy. Attendance is up from last year because, I believe, the new events that have been held. Steampunk Day was a huge success with lots of parents and children attending. The board is planning two or three additional events for next year and will combine with the very successful Cowtown Wine Mosey. Also, the board will be providing bus scholarships for bringing children to Cowtown. Christmas at Cowtown is always special. Tickets for breakfast with Santa are now available. I hope each of you will be able to visit Cowtown during the holidays, and bring friends and neighbors. It has been a true pleasure to be the President this past year and made very easy with the great staff here. And a special thank you to the volunteers as they are very dedicated and a pleasure to work with at the events. I hope to see you and your friends on the grounds in the future. David Haglund, President Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc. LONG-TIME VOLUNTEER DIES Long time volunteer Roslyn Hoch passed away September 23. Roslyn was a charter member of the Social Club, a member of the original Dixie Lee Dance and Varieties Troupe, as well as one of the founding members of Entre Nous. She and her husband Phil had been fixtures at Old Cowtown since they began volunteering in 1975. Due to health issues, Roslyn had been unable to volunteer in recent years, but when she was able to be here all who knew her were charmed by her warm personality and generous nature. Survivors: husband, Phil; daughters, Cynthia “Candy” Wasser (Scott) of Ottawa, Elaine K. Hoch of Lawrence; grandson Nicholas W. Wasser (Brianna) of Seattle, WA; granddaughters Katie B. Wasser of Ottawa, Emily R. Gibby (Seth) of Auburn, AL; sister Linda Hugg of Citrus Heights, CA. Preceded in death by grandson L.Cpl. Christopher B. Wasser, USMC. COWTOWN SOCIAL CLUB IS ACTIVE GROUP The Cowtown Social Club was begun in 1976 and is a volunteer auxiliary of Old Cowtown Museum. The purpose of the group is to support the mission and programs of the museum with special projects and recruiting new volunteers. Each year, Club members donate hundreds of hours and dollars to support the museum. From its inception, Social Club members have served a variety of volunteer roles. and originated the popular Old-Fashioned Christmas event, an event they still support. Throughout the year, the Social Club creates and sells homemade goodies and crafts that are sold to support special projects of their choosing at Cowtown. In the past, these projects have included: —Sponsoring the redecoration of the Southern Hotel —Sponsoring the creation and maintenance of the Dress Shop —Funding the construction of the bandstand —Creating fresh evergreen wreaths used at Cowtown during the holiday season The Cowtown Social Club meets at the Southern Hotel on the grounds of Old Cowtown Museum. Meetings occur the last Monday of every month at 9:30am and generally include a business meeting, refreshments and programs on various topics. Anyone interested in joining this active group is encouraged to contact Jacky Goerzen, Volunteer Coordinator at 350-3317 or HYPERLINK “mailto:jgoerzen@wichita.gov” jgoerzen@wichita.gov . It’s difficult living in the 19th and 21st centuries simultaneously. Cowtown is all about the 19th century. Our buildings, collections, interpretations and many of our events focus on the settlement era from 1865-1885. It’s our reason for being. It’s what we do, and—if I do say—we do it well. But we also have to have a firm footing in the 21st century. Marketing, Development, Finance, Human Resources and Management very definitely operate in 2011. So we are required to balance what we do with the environment we are required to do it in. One 21st century phenomenon that is benefitting this 19th century establishment is the rise of social media. Facebook, Twitter and Youtube are major parts of our efforts to interest modern people in historic Cowtown. We operate on each of these sites, and you should check us out on all three. Take Facebook as an example. If you go to the official Old Cowtown Museum site, you can get the latest Cowtown news, see hundreds of photos from past events, tell us your likes and dislikes and see what events are coming up. Read the “Recommendations” from visitors, find out what our hours are and see who you know among the 1800+ people who “Like” the site. If you’ve been on the site, you would have seen the videos advertising Steampunk Day (they are really cool!) and other not-to-be-missed things. While I admit that I am beyond the age where I could ever be considered a “techie” (and I still just don’t get Twitter), the advent and rise of social media is helping us connect with a whole new audience. So if you’re computer literate, check us out on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. You’ll be surprised how much noise this group of 19th century aficionados can make in cyberspace! David Flask, Executive Director Old Cowtown Museum VOLUNTEERS NEEDED We are always interested in new volunteers to fill a variety of roles at Cowtown. Currently, specific needs include: CARPENTER We are looking for someone to teach carpentry to interested volunteers. If you have this skill, or you know someone who does, let us know so that we can bring the carpenter shop back to life. DANCERS Dixie Lee, our saloon girls, and Entre Nous, our proper Victorian dancers, are both in need of new dancers. Dixie Lee girls rehearse every Monday. Entre Nous rehearses the first and third Mondays of the month. CLEANING HELP We are always looking for volunteers to help clean the exhibits and buildings. Right now, Shermie Robinson, an extremely dedicated and hard-working volunteer, comes out by herself on Tuesdays to clean the buildings. It would be great if we could get someone that could assist her. It doesn’t have to be on Tuesdays, we can work with your schedule! If you are interested in these volunteer positions, or have other ideas, please contact Jacky Goerzen, Volunteer Coordinator, at 350-3317 or HYPERLINK “mailto:jgoerzen@wichita.gov” jgoerzen@wichita.gov . Come join the Cowtown family!! VOLUNTEER PROFILED IN LOCAL PAPER Shermie Robinson, a long time Cowtown volunteer, was recently featured in the East Wichita News. Robinson loves history and history is what Cowtown is all about. She believes that a person’s status today is affected by their past. Knowing and remembering that past is important. Robinson began volunteering at Cowtown in 2003, after retiring from USD 259 where she was a school psychologist. She spends four hours a week under the direction of Cowtown Curator Amy Loch cleaning and maintaining exhibits. She also dons a period costume on special event days and can be found interpreting either the Munger House or the Drugstore. Thank you, Shermie, for all you do at Cowtown! You are a joy to have around! THANK YOU to the following for their recent donations to the museum’s collections. --Charles Edens for donating 12 blacksmith tongs from Leo McKenzie’s shop --Sandra McCean and Jean A Walden for donation period and reproduction clothing --Phyllis MacKay for donating a sewing machine, box, and saddle bags --Francene Sharp for donation miscellaneous household goods --Frank Ruff for knitting mitts for the costume closet --Shermie Robinson for donating a rug for the Munger house Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Wichita, Kansas Permit No. 585 HISTORIC WICHITA COWTOWN, INC. 1865 WEST MUSEUM BOULEVARD WICHITA, KANSAS 67203 DATED MATERIAL PLEASE EXPEDITE DELIVERY WINTER 2011 COWTOWN FANS “I was extremely impressed with Education Day at Old Cowtown Museum last week. Hats off to the volunteers who brought history alive, creating an educational, fun and memorable experience for young and old alike. I want to express sincere appreciation for the efforts of the Cowtown staff and all those who made the event possible. My third-grade son though tit was the best field trip ever. It made me proud of Wichita. Thanks to all for a job well done.” –Michelle H. “A must see if you’re ever in Wichita. Plan on being delightfully surprised at the authenticity this museum presents to visitors. They truly love what they are doing, and it shows! Great educational experiences for the whole family.” –Linda K. ATTENTION COWTOWN MEMBERS The Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc. Board of Trustees is continuing to build the Cowtown Members email contact list. If you have not as yet provided the board with your email contact information please do the following: Send an email to the Board Secretary, Bob Garrett at the following email address: HYPERLINK “mailto:rgarrett1@cox.net” rgarrett1@cox.net. requesting to be added. It is the board’s intention to use the list to keep you informed of board activities and events as well as information and events at Old Cowtown Museum. “LOVE this local gem! We head over at least one time every month!” – Jeramie R. “Second-graders from St. Patrick Catholic School in Wichita would like to thank Anthony Horsch for the fabulous tour he provided us a Old Cowtown Museum. He treated my students to hands-on experiences of what life was like of the 1870s.” –Sharon H. MEMBERSHIP FORM Name ____________________________________________________________________________________ Street Address _____________________________________________________________________________ City/ State/ Zip ____________________________________________________________________________ E-mail _____________________________________________ Phone ________________________________ THIS IS A NEW MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL Patricia and Susanne’s Melodramatic Society wrapped up their first production at Cowtown in October. “Trapped in a Villain’s Web…or Weave Me a Loan” was staged for two consecutive weekends at the Empire House Theater. The audiences enjoyed the return of oldfashioned melodrama to Cowtown after a long hiatus. A note from the Melodramatic Society reads, in part, “Thank you for giving us this wonderful chance to perform in the Empire House Theater in Cowtown. We had a great time putting this show together, and really look forward to many more to come!” Plans are underway for Patricia and Susanne’s Melodramatic Society to return in 2012 with more of their traditional old-fashioned melodrama fun. 2011 COUNTY FAIR AWARD WINNERS FOR ARTWORK GIFT MEMBERSHIP MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS     Free admission, including special events, for one year Four issues of the Cowtown Chronicle 10% discount in the S.G. Bastian & Sons Mercantile 10% discount to Diamond W. Chuckwagon Supper ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP LEVELS $30 Basic — includes free admission for one $45 Companion — free admission for member plus a guest $ 55 Family/Grandparent — free admission for two adults and up to five children under 18 $100- $5,000 Pioneer Society — various levels and benefits, please call for more information MEMBERSHIP LEVEL ________________________________ AMOUNT ENCLOSED ____________ RETURN WITH CHECK TO: HISTORIC WICHITA COWTOWN, INC. 1865 W. MUSEUM BLVD., WICHITA, KS 67203 OR JOIN ONLINE AT WWW.OLDCOWTOWN.ORG SEE WEBSITE FOR INFORMATION ON PIONEER SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP. Grand Prize Champion William McCabe – Park Hill Elementary. – Ms Simon teacher Reserve Champion Levi Nice – Nice Homeschool – Ms. Nice teacher
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