Tuesday, September 15, 2009

“Claiborne and Webster Parish… Once We Were One” Draws A Large Claiborne Parish Crowd for the September “Night For The Museum”



The Dorcheat Historical Association Museum, Inc. “Night for the Museum” was another huge success. The monthly event welcomed a large crowd from Shreveport, Claiborne Parish as well as the regular attendees from Minden and surrounding areas.
Monday, September 14th, 2009, Beverly Smith the ninth guest speaker for 2009 told the history of our two parishes and the close ties that bind us. Board members of the Ford Museum were on hand to support Ms. Smith in her appearance at Christopher’s in Minden. Linda Volentine, museum director of the Ford Museum was on hand to talk about the new Images of America “Claiborne Parish” book that has recently been published and is now available at the Ford Museum. Many of the guests were able to purchase a copy at the end of the evening.
Beverly Smith’s abiding interest in the history of Claiborne Parish and North Louisiana was evident. Her title of "Claiborne Parish historian," was obvious as she told the crowd of the early life of the parish and how pioneer life must have been. Smith has served three terms as president of the North Louisiana Historical Association and three terms as president of The Herbert S. Ford Memorial Museum in Homer.
The tenth and final speaker in the 2009 series will be the presentation of Cotton Valley history by Mr. Lonnie Simpson. Mr. Simpson will be speaking on October 12th, 2009. The museum already has an exciting list of speakers lined up for its history filled 2010 schedule. Each event has been recorded and made into a DVD. These DVDs are a part of the fundraising efforts of the always expanding and progressing new museum. If you have not be able to make it to these events you can purchase each yearly collection series for $75.00. With each complete set you will receive a special $20 Minden 1950s DVD as a gift to you. Speaker DVDs are also sold separately for $10 each.
The events will be held at Christopher’s located at 615 Main Street in Minden, on the 2nd Monday of the month. Doors open around 5:30 refreshments are served at 6:00 p.m. with speakers to begin at 6:30. No admission is charged for the events but donations to the museum are welcomed. If you would like to help with refreshments by bringing cake, cookies, or sandwiches please do so. It is recommended that you bring a lawn chair due to the large crowds. Seating goes quickly. For more information on the museum you can visit the web site at http://www.museuminminden.blogspot.com/ or call Schelley Brown at 318-423-0192.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

"Marathon on Broadway"

Dorcheat Historical Association Takes Part In Festival Of Memories… By Remembering the Great Depression
The Dorcheat Historical Association invites you to put your dancing shoes on for the November 6th - 7th, 2009 24 hour “Marathon on Broadway”. This dance marathon reminiscent of the marathons that became fads during the depression era will be a step literally back in time, with dancers competing for the chance to win some big money! This event will take place at the Minden Civic Center as a fundraiser for the museum. The event will be open to the public for viewing with a $5.00 admission fee. Food and drinks will be available for purchase on site. Participants will be in 3 categories with dancers as young as 12 allowed to dance with a guardian’s permission. Prizes awarded in all categories plus a Grand Prize of $1000 will be awarded to one lucky winner. Pre-registration is $20 per person, $25 per person day of event. Age divisions are as follows 12-40, 41-59, 60 plus. Museum director Schelley Brown stated, “The different age groups will be dancing for different lengths of time. But anyone that would like can dance the entire time to compete for the $1000 Grand Prize. If you dress in 1920s – 30s costume you can also earn extra break passes. This is going to be something that we hope our teens as well as our 40 plus crowd participates in!” Don’t miss lots of fun, music and food for everyone. Brown stated she also needs volunteers to help with this event. For more information please contact Schelley Brown at 318-423-0192.