Museum celebrates Boundary County's rich history

The year 2020 started out just like any other year at your museum. In January, the doors were open and visitors came to see the wonderful exhibits on display. When snow fell from the sky overhead, a “secret helper” could be seen shoveling the sidewalk for passers-by. The board sat around the table with their trusty abacuses crunching numbers to prepare the year’s budget; and the staff and volunteers were licking stamps to send out a newsletter to the membership. The annual spin-in was held in portrait hall, and the spinners got out the vacuum cleaners to clean the carpet. Rex Aitken was appointed to the board for a two-year term, joining the current six trustees.

By February, the Boundary County Fair Board had contacted the museum asking to partner on a project for the 100th anniversary of the fair. Plans were made to create historical bulletin boards for everyone to enjoy at the upcoming fair. Third-grade teacher Tonnie Kuhlman from Valley View requested local history information for her students. So, the Education Committee set about creating a lesson plan and activity book with educational activities based on Boundary County history. The Boundary County Library, wanting to create a scrapbook of the history of the “Readers’ Club,” contacted the museum for photographs and history related materials for the project.

As March marched in, “Celebrating Women” became the next project as the theme for Idaho Day, which extended throughout the year. The museum celebrated by writing two newspaper articles on notable women from our county. Amy Trice was honored for her leadership in advancing the interests of the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho. Mary Allen Wright, who was active in the Populist movement and woman suffrage in Idaho, was featured in a separate article. An updated version of the BFHS Yearbook thumb drive project was in process. The Idaho Humanities Council sponsored a “recipe round-up” contest, in which the museum entered the 1921 “Mystery Cake” which became known as the “Never Again Cake.”

On March 25, Gov. Brad Little placed the state in “lock down,” due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The museum shuttered its doors to all visitors. It was a sad day for all!

Research and projects continued throughout the next months to honor the partnerships we had formed earlier in the year. The 100th year of the fair bulletin board work took priority even as we wondered if there would be a fair or not. “From the Archives” and “This Week in History,” (Bonners Ferry Herald), and “Anglin’ With Anglen” (CdA Press) weekly submissions continued throughout the year.

New exhibits were created to display two Louis Marx train sets and Dr. Bowell’s Penn Yan car topper fishing boat. We are anxious to have visitors in the building to view these wonderful additions, when we are able to reopen.

The biggest project the staff and volunteers have taken on is the revision of the “My Town” stories, to create a book that features photos and artifacts from the museum collection. Many hours and innumerable rewrites to layout and format a “coffee table” book have kept the building abuzz. This is an exciting project that we can’t wait to unveil in 2021.

For the interest of those who miss coming into the museum, we decided to join the virtual world, by enhancing the existing website. Visual exhibits include creative “flipbooks” on several historical topics, and can be viewed in your own home at your leisure. Topics featured are: Teddy Roosevelt, logging, 100 year birthday, Kootenai cradleboards, peace monuments, Kootenai Pictionary, and the most recent, Prohibition. In lieu of the annual cemetery tour, three videos are available for taking a virtual walk through rural burial sites.

Throughout this time of closure, the society’s membership has remained constant. With their support and the support of the Boundary County commissioners, the museum stands firm and is determined to provide the community with the preservation of the rich history of this county. However, funding does come from admissions and as the building dropped from a yearly 2,000 visitors to a mere 101, (in the first two months of the year), trustees applied for the Rebound Idaho Grant, and two cycles of CARES Grants from the Idaho Humanities Council to keep the museum afloat. Bills have to be paid!

As the 2020 year has been concluded, and we are now three months into 2021, we can only hope that health and safety improve so we can reopen the doors and welcome all our friends and neighbors back into the museum. Hope to see you soon!

Sue Kemmis is curator of the Boundary County Museum.