Letter to the Editor

The Mower County Historical Society has been preserving the history of our county for 65 years.

We have grown from one brick building, the dream of our founders, to 17 buildings and 11 outdoor monuments at two sites. Along the way, we acquired over 25,000 items that tell their own story, and are used to create exhibits within each of our buildings and to help people discover personal stories of their family. The ownership of such a vast collection creates some unique challenges that the historical society must now begin to address.

Following the conclusion of the 2012 Mower County Fair, the historical society will begin a lengthy process of retiring exhibits, placing items into storage for an undetermined amount of time, and examining items within our collection to see if they still help us meet our mission or would be better served elsewhere at another museum or institution. To achieve professional museum standards and position the organization for future stability, MCHS will be looking for ways to create acceptable storage areas for collection items not on display and improving exhibits while downsizing our collection. These decisions will not be made spur of the moment or without due diligence. We have policies in place to ensure efficient and ethical means of removing items from our collection that meet accepted professional standards.

As the public steward of Mower County’s history, we take this responsibility very seriously.

This fall we will be scheduling dates for public forums and tours to explain the process and

answer any questions people may have about what we are doing. I encourage anyone with concerns to attend these forums or contact me directly with questions. Also, come see our buildings during the Fair. As I mentioned before, some of these exhibits or items on display will be retired or placed into storage after this season. Our goal is to move into the future in a better and stable position to continue collecting the history of Mower County for future generations.

Thank you to everyone who has supported us throughout the years and we hope that our relationships with the general public will be strengthened through this process and continue to grow.

Dustin B. Heckman

Executive Director of the Mower County Historical Society