On May 16, 2022, WHS President, Becky Appleman presented the Community Service Award to Vaughn Pembroke.
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In early December of 2019 the Walworth Historical Society once again participated in the Light the Night program at Ginegaw Park!
Some of the photos of the decorated trees and other decorations are below! Thanks to all of the local organizations that participated.
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Photos from the WHS November 18 program “Soup and Spiritualism”
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Photos from the Open House on 10/6/19
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Photos from the 2019 Festival in the Park parade on July 26. The theme was “Beach Party”.
Above photo is the WHS float.
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WHS Annual Meeting on May 20, 2019 photos at the Lodge in Ginegaw Park. Steve Gallaher was honored by giving
him the WHS Community Service Award which is given for selflessness and service to the community and others.
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On Monday, March 18, those in attendance at our program got to see a “Virtual Walking Tour” of the Hamlet of Walworth. Bob Mogray, who developed it has two versions, the PowerPoint program AND a PDF document with MUCH more detail that the PowerPoint program had.
Here is the PDF version: A Walking Tour of Walworth 3-2019
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On Monday, November 19, the Walworth Historical Society sponsored a lunch that consisted of soup, bread, crackers, beverages and brownie sundaes. Then there was a program on the Women’s Suffrage Movement presented by Rosa Fox. This program was held at our museum on Academy Street and was at 1:00 PM. It was a great success and some of the photos of this event are shown below.
Upon retirement in 2014 from 30 years of teaching instrumental music at North Rose-Wolcott Middle School, Rosa Fox decided to explore the post of historian for the town of Huron. This appointment fills Rosa’s days with local history research, writing, and keeping track of the Town of Huron’s three historic buildings and their contents – just to name a few of her roles as a municipal historian. She has played a very active role in the Wayne Historians Organization and attends many of the workshops and programs on local history that are available to historians. Over the past couple of years she has worked closely with Dr. Judith Wellman and others to research local history related to the Women’s Suffrage Movement.
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Each year the Walworth Historical Society holds it’s Fall Open House at the museum on Academy Street. This year, on October 7, not only did we have an open house that featured many displays of items and photos, but also a free ice cream social for the first time, and we also had Cathy McGrath for a musical show. Her program was titled “The Heart of American Music.” Featured in the show was an authentic period dress and instruments appropriate to the era. Cathy sang and played guitars, flutes, and the banjo. There was great audience attendance and participation in the show. The photos below show some of the fun at our 2018 WHS open house.
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On September 17, 2018 the Walworth Historical Society held it’s regular September meeting at the museum on Academy Street in Walworth. On hand that night was Lucinda Collier to present a show titled “Indentured Servants in Marion, New York.” This was a story about her great grand parents Peter and Susan Magilson and how they lived seven years as indentured servants in the Marion area. The photos below are from that meeting.
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On May 21, the Walworth Historical Society held its annual meeting at the Lodge in Ginegaw Park. It began at 6:15 PM with a pot-luck supper. The actual meeting part began at 7:00 PM and included nomination and election of officers as well as the presentation of our Community Service Award. After 18 years of excellent service as WHS Treasurer, Mary Jane Devlin stepped down from that post and Linda Pembroke was elected as the new WHS Treasurer. Mary Jane was elected as a WHS trustee. Also, Judy Markowski was elected as a new trustee, replacing Marlene Slocum who retired from that post. Becky Appleman is the new publicity chairman replacing Dawn Russell. This year’s WHS Community Service Award winners were Mary Abrams and Charlie Pembroke (posthumously). The following photos are from this meeting.
Below: Mary Abrams accepting the WHS Community Service award.
Below: Gene Bavis giving the WHS Community Service award to Charlie Pembroke’s great-grandson Charlie.
The photo above is of the new WHS photo quilt, sewn together by the Quilts for
Kids group. It depicts scenes around the Walworth area.
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The latest in the Walworth Historical Society’s continuing series of “Memories” meetings was held at our museum on Sunday, April 8 and the topic was “the role of the church in our community.” These meetings are a round-table discussion of the pre-chosen topic and for this meeting, there were alot of interesting experiences that were told by the attendees. Somehow, the discussion often centered on the role of food in the church experience. There were detailed descriptions of dinners that were held by several different churches in the area. Some of the history of area churches was also discussed and we were fortunate to have Loreen Jorgensen attend this meeting. She has done extensive research and has authored a book entitled “The First Hundred Years – Churches of Wayne County, New York.” Loreen was able to add some interesting information about several churches in this area.
Our thanks to those who attended our latest “Memories” meeting. Dorothy French, Mary Jane Devlin, and Judy McMillan take extensive notes as the discussion progresses and then Dorothy organizes, catalogs, and documents the key points of these meetings. This information can then be referenced by any interested person. Below are photos from this meeting.
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Whatsit? That was the topic at the March 19 WHS meeting at the museum. At this meeting, there were some weird and unusual objects from the past and present Some of them were nearly impossible to figure out but there were some great guesses. There were many objects brought by members and guests at the meeting. There was excellent attendance and some great snacks after the meeting. Below are some photos from that meeting.
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In December of 2017 the Walworth Historical Society participated in the annual “Light the Night” program which is a celebration of the holiday season. Trees are provided in Ginegaw Park for the local organizations to decorate and display throughout December. The following photos are from this event.
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On November 20th of 2017, the Walworth Historical Society held its last meeting of the year. It was a great way to close out the year. This meeting was a celebration of the National Grange’s 150 year anniversary. As was pointed out at this meeting, the Grange was formed as a fraternal organization in the United States and encouraged families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture. Founded after the Civil War in 1867, it is the oldest American agricultural advocacy group with a national scope. At one time, the membership was about 160,000.
Walworth Grange #289 began in 1875. At one time there were 100 active members. The Honorable Lucien Theron Yeomans was the first master. Meetings were originally held at the homes of members. Then they met at the Masonic Temple and later at the Walworth Academy building. In 1929 the Grange purchased the Pacific Hotel and they held their meetings there. Their projects included forming the first Walworth library; construction of the WW II honor roll plaque; and donations to form the Walworth Food Pantry, the Walworth Historical Society, and the Walworth Fire Department.
The Walworth Grange, after 117 years of service, disbanded in 1992 because of dwindling membership, the advanced age of active members, and the inability to recruit new members. There is still a Grange in Lincoln, but it is only one of five surviving Granges in Wayne County.
For our November 2017 meeting with Mary Earlandt, Pauline Walz of the Lincoln Grange, and Carol Bailey representing the New York State Grange there was great attendance and the meeting was very informative.
Above is the national symbol of the Grange
Carol Bailey, Mary Earlandt, and Pauline Walz of the Lincoln Grange
Photo of the Grange meeting
Former meeting place of the Walworth Grange
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On Sunday, October 8, the Walworth Historical Society held our annual open house. The area surrounding our museum was filled with music when the Walworth Historical Society presented the Canaltown Chorale in concert from 2:30 – 3:30 PM. The group was formed in 1980 and is well-known in our area, having sung at the Walworth United Methodist Church and numerous other Wayne County locations. They included songs about the Erie Canal, suffragettes, WWI, and the Grange. The concert took place on the museum grounds, 2257 Academy Street, under a tent loaned by the Walworth Lions Club.
The open house was scheduled for 2 – 4 PM. Included were displays relative to the “Path Through History” weekend scheduled throughout New York State which feature hundreds of events happening at historic and cultural destinations throughout the state. Refreshments were served as always and there was very good attendance for this event. Below are some photos from the WHS open house.
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On September 18, the Walworth Historical Society, after a short business meeting, in keeping with the 100th year anniversary of World War I, presented Michael Harland who entertained and informed the members with a slide show about his grandfather, Ray DeHond. Mr. DeHond served in the military in World War I. Michael’s grandfather was one of many young men who boarded a troop train in Palmyra, New York and was send to Europe for military duty. Because Ray kept a diary, Michael was able to transcribe it, do more research about his grandfather and World War I, and form all of this as well as photos into an excellent and informative program for all to enjoy. There was excellent attendance from the WHS members for this show. After the program, refreshments were served. We wish to thank all of those who attended that night. The support of the membership is greatly appreciated at the meetings as well as to see the programs we set up. Below are some photos from this meeting.
The above photo is of Raymond DeHond, Michael Harland’s grandfather.
Pictured above is Michael Harland after his World War I presentation.
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On July 21 and 22, 2017, the Walworth Lions Club sponsored the 27th annual Festival in the Park. Friday night there was the annual parade from the Walworth-Palmyra Road, turning the corner, and proceeding down to Ginegaw Park. The theme of this parade was “Celebrating Volunteers” and there was excellent participation. Other organizations taking part in the parade included the Lincoln, West Walworth, Ontario, Walworth, and South Macedon Fire Departments. The Towpath Volunteers, the Walworth Ambulance Department, the Walworth Seely Public Library, the Walworth United Methodist Church, Mac’s Pizza Shack, and many others also were part of the parade. Our Walworth Historical Society float took the “Most Original Float” trophy. After the parade and continuing Saturday were games, a 5K race, live music, a K-9 demonstration, food, and much more. Thanks to the above mentioned groups and to the Walworth Lions Club, the Festival in the Park has become a fun part of the summer events in Walworth. The following photos are from this year’s Festival in the Park parade.
The Walworth Historical Society Float
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A wet rug in the museum’s office was our first clue that we had a major problem. The culprit was a tiny hole in the water line located between Academy Street and our kitchen area. To the rescue came long-time member Joe Englert with his backhoe and co-worker John Ward, The first priority was to have the water shut off. The next step wasn’t as easy when Joe discovered the brick foundation for our bell had been installed directly over the water line. A new trench was dug by backhoe, spade, and shovel. A replacement water line was then installed. Joe and John graded the affected area which they then seeded and mulched. Thanks to their expertise and hard work the water leak has been stopped and services have been restored to the museum. Thanks also to WHS members Dorothy French, Stan Weller, and Sonny French for their help where needed
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Joe Englert and his backhoe during the museum water leak repair.
John Ward surveys the damage to the museum water line.
After the museum water line repair. This is just before the lawn was graded and seeded. Now the leak was just a memory thanks to Joe Englert, John Ward, and other WHS members.
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On Monday, May 15th the Walworth Historical Society held its yearly main general membership meeting at the Lodge at Ginegaw Park in Walworth. The purpose of this yearly meeting is to elect officers and have a pot-luck dish-to-pass supper. A short business meeting was held and then we honored a person, persons, or group that is an example of personal service to others, with our WHS Community Service Award. This year’s winner of this award was Jim Drew. He has been a member of the Walworth Fire Department and the Lions Club for over 40 years each. There was also a short program honoring the Walworth High School class of 1947. Below are some photos from this meeting. One of the surprises was the unannounced arrival of many of the Walworth firemen to shake Jim’s hand and to congratulate him on the award.
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On Saturday, May 13th, 7 Scouts, 5 parents and Scout Leaders, Becky and Buzz Appleman, granddaughter Brooke, Gene Bavis, Larry and Judy McMillan, and others met at the WHS museum on Academy Street to do grounds work outside of the museum. They did weeding, raking, bush and tree trimming, edging, mulching, and many other activities. As a result of all of this volunteer work, the place looks great. The Walworth Historical Society depends on the hard work of such generous and hard-working volunteers to keep our museum looking great inside and out. Below are a few photos from the efforts from May 13th. (Photos by Judy McMillan).
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On Sunday, April 2 the Walworth Historical Society held another session of its “Memories” meetings. The topic for this meeting was “Where Did You Shop.” These meetings are just friendly get-togethers to discuss various topics in order to document history of the past and capture these discussions for future reference. They are a lot of fun and they capture different points of view from local residents. The attendance was great for this topic and there were a lot of fun memories that were shared by those who attended. Below are a few photos from that meeting as well as photos of some of the now defunct stores in the general area where many shopped.
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The following seven photos are from the Walworth Historical Society’s regular March meeting held on Monday, March 20th at our museum. The main show was “A Fashion Tour Through History.” It featured many of the donated old clothing of many types throughout the years.
On the left is a photo of the more stylish clothing from a few years ago. They have been on display in our museum on Academy Street for a short time as an introduction to this show.
These are two dolls wearing baby clothing. They were also part of the fashion show and were on display for a couple of weeks before the fashion show.
More semi-formal clothing was on display at the fashion show at the museum.
Shown here is part of the audience for the fashion show a few minutes before it started. For this meeting and show there was excellent attendance. The support of our members is greatly appreciated.
WHS president Jessie Keymel models some of the outer-wear donated clothing in the fashion show. She gave an excellent presentation as all of the display clothing was discussed and shown.
WHS board member Becky Appleman also demonstrated older clothing that children wore in years past.
Jessie Keymel ends the fashion show by another demonstration and by modeling clothing.
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The above photo shows the Walworth Historical Society-sponsored display that was at the Town Hall in January of this year. Judy McMillan designed and organized this display of fancy needlework. Included in the display were gloves, a purse, clothing and other items.
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February’s Walworth Town Hall display case was also sponsored by the Walworth Historical Society. It showed some photos around the Walworth area of scenery, buildings and more.
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This section contains photos from the 2016 Festival in the Park Parade
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The photos in this section are from the 2016 Walworth Historical Society May meeting at the Lodge at Ginegaw Park. Officers were elected and the WHS Community Service Award winner(s) were honored.
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The photos in this section are from the WHS November 2016 meeting with author Michael Keene.
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Photos in this section are from the March 2016 Walworth Historical Society meeting. The theme was quilts. Many of the WHS quilt collection were shown as well as quilts that guests brought.
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