HISTORY AWARDS: Saginaw Castle Museum, Sanford Volunteer Win Top Honors
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Huge moving van houses Saginaw Castle Museum's "History on the Move."
Blacksmith shop and lumberjack bunkhouse are among Sanford Museum attractions.
Top honors in the Michigan Historical Society's annual history awards went to a museum, a volunteer and an article on an iconic character from the mid-Michigan area.
The awards were presented at the society's meeting in Kalamazoo last weekend, according to Larry Wagenaar, executive director.
When it was discovered that a lack of funding was discouraging students from taking field trips, the Historical Society of Saginaw County created a mobile museum called "History On The Move" that travels to local schools free of charge. Staff members also visit schools to present history-based programs to students.
Established in 1941, the Historical Society of Saginaw County is the umbrella organization for the Castle Museum of Saginaw County History.
The Society and Museum were chosen for this award because of their responsiveness to their community, said Mr. Wagenaar. In addition, the Museum hosts a number of groups that have strong ties to the community including the Saginaw Area Modular Modelers, Saginaw County Hall of Fame, Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame, Saginaw Voyageurs, and the Great Lakes Bay African American Hall of Fame.
Local universities send interns and students to the Museum for college credit.
"Our county has been hit hard in recent years, but this award is something that we can all view with pride," Castle Museum President Ken Santa told The Saginaw News, adding that it's the first of its kind received since the society was founded in 1941.
"It gives our museum credibility. Our work doesn't stop here; we're still going to push that envelope."
Mr. Santa is a former television newscaster whose career included 14 years as reporter, anchor and bureau chief with WJRT-TV Channel 12 and eight years as assistant news director, INTERNET news manager and executive producer at WNEM-TV Channel 5.
He received two Edward R. Murrow awards from the Radio-Television News Directors Association.
He also was a fundraiser for Field Neurosciences Institute, manager of media relations and communications at St. Mary's of Michigan and has been president and CEO of the Castle Museum nearly four years.
Mr. Santa earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Michigan-Flint and a bachelor's degree in telecommunications from Michigan State University.
History on the Move: All Saginaw County public, charter and private schools are eligible to host History on the Move free of charge. The mobile museum can accommodate up to six classrooms a day with each class engaging in a 50 minute hands-on program.
For more information and to schedule History on the Move for your school or event contact Sheila Hempsted at 989-752-2861, Ext. 311.
History on the Move, the award winning mobile museum and classroom, is geared for students in second through fifth grades. Among exhibits is "Saginaw Valley's Golden Age of Lumbering" Program.
"When students board History on the Move they step into the past and discover how Saginaw became the lumber capital of the world," museum officials state. This period is brought to life with the Castle Museum's collection of historic images, tools and equipment, log marks and other artifacts.
Finally, students have the opportunity to become lumber barons or baronesses through hands-on activities that reinforce their math, science, language arts and social studies skills and knowledge. Students will learn about the logging process, what life was like in the logging camp and how the logs were transported both by land and water.
Distinguished Volunteer Service: In this category, the Society recognized John F. Billingsley, 74, who has donated countless hours of professional expertise to the Sanford Centennial Museum.
His projects have ranged from creating a design for a veteran's memorial to honor the area's fallen soldiers, sailors, and airmen, to managing the construction of a covered bridge on the museum's grounds.
Billingsley also designed a barn pavilion, built numerous additions to exhibits at the museum, and regularly volunteers at museum functions.
The inaugural award in a new category for articles in Michigan History Magazine went to "Spikehorn Meyer: His Own Tall Tale," authored by Jennie Russell and featured in September/October 2012 issue of Michigan History magazine.
John "Spikehorn" Meyer was considered the 'most colorful character in the history of Clare County." He was a farmer, machinist, lumberjack, and miner, but also spent his later years as the operator of a souvenir store and wildlife park outside Harrison.
Russell's article details Meyer's antics at his private zoo, including allowing the public to feed the bears. Despite constant issues with former employees, the Michigan Department of Conservation, and the local police, Meyer's zoo and his stories kept the public interested in him until he died in 1959.
Keynote speaker at the awards banquet was Tom Dietz, curator at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum, on "The Sins of Kalamazoo -- Gambling, Saloons, and Pool Halls."
Carl Sandburg's poem, "The Sins of Kalamazoo," asserted that the sins of the city and its residents were dull and gray. In this program, Mr. Dietz explored some of Kalamazoo's alleged possible 'dens of iniquity' to see if Sandburg's description was accurate.
Sandburg, while criticizing Kalamazoo, also rhapsodized:
"I have loved the red gold smoke of your sunsets;
I have loved a moon with a ring around it
Floating over your public square;
I have loved the white dawn frost of early winter silver
And purple over your railroad tracks and lumber yards."
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