Friday, October 8, 2010

Join Us at ShopForMuseums.com

There is a great website out there called ShopForMuseums.com who has made connections with hundreds of on-line retailers who make a donation on a museum's behalf each time you make a purchase through the ShopForMuseums website.

Here's how it works:
  1. Go to www.shopformuseums.com
  2. Register for a free account
  3. Under "Search Stores" enter the name of the museum you'd like to support (which is, of course, "Giles County Historical Society")
  4. You can then either "Search Stores" with the name of your favorite on-line store, or "View All Stores" to see what stores are available. There's everything there from 1-800-PetMeds to Advanced Auto Parts to Amazon.com to iTunes to JoAnn's Fabrics to OfficeMax.
  5. The store listing shows how much each store will donate to the museum of your choice (which is, of course, Giles County Historical Society). Donations vary from 1% of the cost of your purchase to 25% depending on the store! A donation is made to the Virginia Association of Museums as well.
So this holiday season, ShopForMuseums.com and let your favorite retailers make a donation to your favorite museum (which is, of course, Giles County Historical Society!)

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Come to Glen Alton for the Quarterly Meeting, October 10th at 3pm

All are invited to the Giles County Historical Society quarterly meeting on Sunday, October 10th at 3pm at Glen Alton. Glen Alton is a U.S. Forest Service property in Jefferson National Forest and is located up Big Stony Creek, off of Route 635. Signs from U.S. 460 lead directly to the site. The quarterly meeting will feature a tour and presentation about the newly renovated and restored Glen Alton property given by Forest Ranger, Sheryl Lyles. After the presentation, guests may explore the grounds and enjoy refreshments.

Glen Alton was owned by Mr. C. A. Lucas, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Giles County from 1933 to 1965. Mr. Lucas and his wife, Evangeline, lived in Pembroke and considered Glen Alton to be their summer place. The lodge, or main house that has recently been restored and furnished for the time period, is the original log structure that was on the site at the time Lucas purchased the property. A caretaker’s cottage, barns, sheds, a mill, a fish pond, and other structures were built on the site to accommodate Mr. Lucas’ interests in farming and growing grapes and apples.

This summer’s ribbon cutting at Glen Alton by Cong. Rick Boucher celebrated the completion of the restoration of the lodge and grounds. Come to the Giles County Historical Society’s quarterly meeting at Glen Alton on Sunday, October 10th at 3pm and see the restoration, explore the grounds, walk the trails, and enjoy the wildlife of this treasure in our own backyard.