April 19th, 2010 Webster Parish Historian John Agan To Speak On Confederate History

Large Turnout Expected For “A Night for the Museum” with Mr. John Agan
Monday, April 19th, 2010, will be a special night for history lovers. John Agan, lifelong resident, local author, newspaper columnist, history teacher and the official Webster Parish Historian will be the guest speaker at The Dorcheat Historical Association’s “A Night for the Museum”. John is a 1976 graduate of Minden High School and earned a B.A. in History, a M. Ed. in Social Studies Education and a M. A. in History from Louisiana Tech. He did work toward his Ph.D. at both the University of Mississippi and LSU. He is currently an Instructor of History at Bossier Parish Community College. He has written four books on local history and since 2000 has written a weekly column on local history for the Minden Press-Herald. He is a member of the First Baptist Church where he has served as a Deacon. Sunday School Teacher and on the Board of Trustees. John is also am a member of the Minden Cemetery Association Board, the Germantown Colony Museum Commission, the Advisory Board of Cultural Crossroads and the Board of the Dorcheat Historical Association. Mr. Agan was appointed by the Police Jury as the designated official historian of Webster Parish.
April is Confederate History Month and in remembrance of those soldiers and the happenings in our area during that time period, John Agan will present an informative night dealing with Webster parish history during the Civil War years. Learn about the many men that fought in the War Between the States and also learn some important information about the Confederate camp located in Minden. Museum coordinators are expecting a large turnout, so you may want to bring your lawn chairs just in case of a shortage of seating! “John Agan has such a keen memory for detail. Minden is so lucky to have him and we should be so appreciative of his work and knowledge. I don’t know where I would be with some of my projects without him. “Ghost Walk”, that benefits the Minden Cemetery, would never have happened without John helping me every year with scripts and information. The Dorcheat Museum would be in the same shape, I am afraid, without John’s knowledge.” stated Brown.
For this event museum director, Schelley Brown is encouraging everyone that might have artifacts or pictures related to our area to please notify the museum. “Night for the Museum” events are held at Christopher’s located at 615 Main Street in Minden, Louisiana. Doors open at 5:30. Everyone is asked to bring a favorite snack or dessert. Refreshments will be served at 6:00 P.M. Program will begin at 6:30. Admission is $5 and everyone is welcome. For more information on “A Night for the Museum with Mr. John Agan” please contact Schelley Brown at 318-423-0192 or visit www.museuminminden.blogspot.com . Reservations not required. First come, first serve seating.

Great attendance in spite of bad weather for Reverend Ben Martin

Monday night, February 8th the 3rd season of the popular “Night for the Museum” events began with a great crowd in spite of the rain and cold weather. In celebration of Black History Month, Reverend Benjamin J. Martin was the first speaker for the 2010 season. Museum director Schelley Brown commented, “I was very pleased with the turnout. Reverend Martin’s speech was very informative on the history of the Black Race. I think everyone here took away something from the evening. Creating a museum and museum exhibits are a big responsibility. The museum Board of Directors has stated from the beginning, history is something that needs to be told. Good or bad, controversial or not, subjects come up in history that everyone needs to know about. If we don’t tell what has happened in the past, chances are events such as the Holocaust and Slavery could be repeated.”
The Dorcheat Historical Museum located at 116 Pearl Street is a timeline of not only our local area but of outside events that affected our parish. Everyone is encouraged to drop by and see what an amazing job local artist Larry Milford has done in the last 19 months. This museum is something that everyone in Minden should be very proud of and a place that everyone should visit on a regular basis. There is always something new at the museum.
March will be standing room only with football great Charlie Hennigan. April is Confederate History Month and May will be a moving tale of World War II from the Elshout and Vandernoord families. There will be a summer break in June, July and August. We will pick up again in September, with the finale set for October. The popular events will be $5 per person this year with all money benefiting the Dorcheat Historical Association Museum.
Held at Christopher’s, 615 Main St. in downtown Minden, La. Doors open at 5:30 with refreshments served at 6:00. Admission to each event is $5.00 per person. First come first serve seating. Guests are asked to provide their favorite appetizer or dessert. For more information contact Schelley Brown at 318-423-0192. For more information on the museum visit the web at www.museuminminden.blogspot.com