Pearisburg Garden Club and Boy Scouts Plant Trees

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, November 11, 2009

While visitors typically come to the Historical Society to discover the historical treasures hidden inside of the buildings, one of the things that lures them to the site are the grounds and landscaping. The Andrew Johnston House sits in the shade of old maple trees, its front walkway flanked by boxwoods like those that surround the Doctor’s Office. The dogwood trees between the house and museum show their flowers in spring and red leaves in fall. Flower gardens bloom with bulbs in spring and fall and annual and perennial flowers in summer. Love and Alex Witten’s Rose Garden provides an explosion of color in spring and fall.

One particular corner of the Historical Society’s grounds between the parking lot and the Doctor’s Office could not be described with such superlatives. Members of Pearisburg Boy Scout Troop 34 earned community service hours and learned a valuable life lesson by volunteering their time and energy on November 5 to plant trees, shrubs and perennial flowers at the Giles County Historical Society. “Part of being a Boy Scout is giving back to the community,” explains troop committee chair Brian Squibb. The new greenery was donated to the Historical Society by the Pearisburg Garden Club to help landscape an unsightly hillside at the edge of the Society’s property. Next Spring will bear witness to the scouts’ hard work, with a profusion of rhododendron, daffodil and iris blossoms.

Fresh Cider!

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, November 4, 2009

Apple and pumpkin are ingredients in many of the comfort foods of fall. Apple pie, pumpkin bread, apple streusel, pumpkin pie, apple sauce, pumpkin butter, and apple butter are all fall flavors that most of us look forward to. Apple cider is another distinctly fall flavor - not the apple cider found in today’s grocery stores that has been pasteurized to within an inch of its life, but the good, old fashioned apple cider that retains the flavors of the apples, the outdoors, and the cider mill itself.

At the Historical Society, there is an old-fashioned cider mill on display that once belonged to C. A. Lucas’ father, James C. Lucas, and was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Frank Winston. To make cider with the mill, apples were placed whole or cored into the wooden hopper at the top of the mill. The mill’s crank was turned by hand to grind the apples. Apple pulp including the skin and seeds, dropped from the bottom of the mill into a slatted, bottomless tub. When the tub was full, it was moved to the other side of the mill where a disk fitted with a large screw mechanism was placed on the tub. As the screw was turned by a crank, the disk pressed the juice out of the apple pulp. The resulting cider escaped through a hole in the bottom of the mill into jugs or other containers. Two people could work the mill at once with one making the apple pulp and the other squeezing the juice from the pulp.

The flavor of the cider varied depending on the type of apples used and the length of time that the cider aged after milling. Unfortunately, today there are concerns about bacteria in apple cider so it is pasteurized to make it safe for general consumption and inhibit fermentation caused by bacteria growth which removes some of the intensity of the apple flavoring. Apple cider is filtered to make apple juice, removing any of the remaining pulp and creating a sweeter, and further reducing the intensity of the apple flavoring.

Enter the Christmas Tree Decorating Contest!

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, October 28, 2009

The leaves are turning, the air is getting chillier, and its time to start thinking about Christmas! This year’s Christmas at the Johnston House will be a true community event. The Giles County Historical Society, Olde Towne Pearisburg, and the Giles Arts Council would like to invite your organization or civic, community, or church group to decorate a tree in our Christmas Tree Decorating Contest. Trees will be judged on creativity and imagination and first, second, and third place will be awarded. There will be a junior award for schools and youth organizations.

All trees will be on display in the Andrew Johnston House from December 6th through 31st during regular operating hours. Because space is limited to 16 trees in the House, we ask that you return an entry form indicating your intentions to decorate a tree. Entry forms are available on our website, by e-mail, or by stopping by the Historical Society. Contest rules and set up procedures are on the entry form.

The Historical Society is planning an exhibit of antique toys in the Johnston House to complement the Christmas trees. Please contact us if you have a toy that is at least 50 years old that you would like to loan for the month of December.

We look forward to the community helping us make this a memorable holiday event!

Bobbin Shuttle Tatting Class - November 6 and 13

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, October 21, 2009

Did your grandmother tat, but you never learned? Have you seen tatting kits in stores and been intrigued? Is tatting something you’ve heard of, but aren’t quite sure what it is? Now is your chance to learn the art of tatting! The next offering in the Giles Arts Council and Giles County Historical Society Needle Arts Class series is Shuttle Tatting, taught by Bernie Cossell on November 6th and 13th from 1:30 to 3:00 pm at the Historical Society.

Like other crafts based around knotting, tatting began with fishermen’s knots: large shuttles were used to weave heavy rope into fishing nets 2,000 years ago. Other knots were used in the rigging of sails and to secure anchors. Later, the same ideas were translated to yarns then finer threads to create fine lace used to embellish the clothing of royalty. During the Victorian period and into the mid-20th century, tatting was used to edge linens and to make table covers and chair linens.

A tatting shuttle is used to make tiny knots around a central thread. Loops are connected to loops and picots in various ways to make a heavy lace that is often used as an edging or an overlay on fabric. Tatting shuttles today are often plastic, but in the past were made from wood, hand-carved ivory, or precious metals. The shuttle and thread are small enough that tatting can be done anywhere, making it a very portable craft.

Call or e-mail the Historical Society to register for the Shuttle Tatting Class and learn this decorative craft!

Experimenting with Social Media...

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, October 14, 2009

Traditionally, companies have used the media outlets such as newspapers, radio, and television to make others aware of their services. Today, there are a host of other media and publicity options. It may seem obvious for computer firms and software companies to use the internet for publicity, but it also makes sense for non-profit organizations and museums to use the internet as well. Many non-profits are concerned that they aren’t attracting the younger generation as volunteers, donors, visitors, and board members. By using social media on the internet, non-profits can reach a younger crowd and more people than they can locally.

Social media provides an opportunity for people to quickly share information with others who have a shared interest. It is an internet communication medium where people can be both authors and audiences. Examples are Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and blogs, where people can read and comment on your input. Because the internet is international, your audience becomes much larger than the local newspaper market, listening area, or cable system. When you find an organization of interest on a social media site, often you’ll find other organizations or people that you would like to connect with also, quickly expanding your social network.

Like many museums throughout the country, the Giles County Historical Society is experimenting with social media to attract a larger audience of people who are potentially interested in our programs. We are using social media to advertise our events as well as let people know about interesting things that happen on the site. You can follow us on Twitter for short, 140 word updates about events and daily happenings; become our fan on Facebook and link with other people who have similar interests; read our Virginian Leader articles on our blog; or check out Flickr for photographs of our recent events. All of these sites are accessible from our website: www.gilescountyhistorical.org. We’ll look for you on the internet!

(If you're paying attention, you'll notice that we missed a week. Despite the ease of using the computer for social networking and publicity, the computer is only as smart as its user - if you don't attach the newspaper article to your e-mail, it won't get into the paper! Figures it would happen with this article too!)

New Genealogical Research Donations

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, September 30, 2009

The Research Office at the Giles County Historical Society contains books, family files, and county records pertinent to the families and communities of Giles County. We receive many genealogists throughout the year from many different parts of the country who are researching their family history. Often we can trace the path of settlement of Giles County’s families, by looking at our guest book. After leaving Giles County, early settlers headed west through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky, Ohio, and other places in the Midwest – many of our genealogy visitors now live in these states.

When genealogists with roots in Giles County finish their family histories, they often send them to the Historical Society for inclusion in the Research Office and use by other visitors. This year has apparently been especially productive for Giles County genealogists as we have received a number of new books including: Little Walker’s Creek by Rebecca Cox Sowers and donated by Peggy Hollar; “Doty/Niday Family History” by Carol Niday Doty; “William Cephas Lucas and Birdie Mae Collins Lucas Family” by Hilda McCoy Walker; “Encounters with the British in Virginia During the War of 1812,” “War of 1812 Veteran Burials at St. John’s Episcopal Church Graveyard, Richmond, VA,” and “War of 1812 Burials in Virginia” from the Society of the War of 1812 in Virginia; “Cleveland Lucas Family History” by Mary Peare; and “Kinfolk – the Stevers Family History – 1752-2008” by Heather Reynolds.

Stop by the Historical Society to look at these books and learn more about your own family history!

Knitting Class - October 2 and 9, 1:30-3pm

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, September 23, 2009

Are knitting and purling mysteries to you? Have you always wanted to knit a sweater or a pair of cozy wool socks, but haven’t known where to begin? Do all those letters and numbers in knitting patterns look like gobbledygook to you? The Giles County Historical Society and the Giles Arts Council present a Beginning Knitting Class as the next class in their Needle Arts Class series. Ellen Woodyard will teach the class on October 2nd and 9th from 1:30 – 3:00pm at the Historical Society (registration is required). You will learn to knit and purl and combine those stitches in a pattern using the garter and stockinette stitches to create a dish cloth.

At its most basic, knitting uses 2 needles to create fabric from a single strand of yarn. The earliest example of true knitting using 2 needles was a pair of socks found in Egypt dating to 1100AD. Historians believe that knitting was spread to Europe by sailors and merchants traveling in the Mediterranean. Knitting was originally a male-only occupation with knitting guilds formed in Europe to control the quality and price of knitted material sold. Socks and stockings were among the first knitted items because of the ease of molding the knitted fabric to shape of the foot. Legend says that sailors wore sweaters with family patterns knitted into them so that the sailor could be identified if he was lost at sea.

While knitting began with just the knit stitch, the introduction of the purl stitch and colors greatly expanded the patterns that could be created. Different parts of the world created their own patterns: Scandinavian knitters created elaborate and now familiar patterns with color, while the Irish are known for the elaborate cabled patterns of fisherman knit sweaters. Today, with the many different yarns and patterns available, your knitting is limited only by your imagination.

Come learn to knit and learn the fundamentals for making knitted heirlooms of your own! Shown above are a pair of knitted slipper socks for the Veteran's Slipper Sock project that you will be able to knit upon completion of the class!