The Power of People and Place
Dear Friend of the Museum –
The title for this week’s newsletter is from one of the exhibits we are organizing in the Industrial History Center. This exhibit will feature a collection of photographs of people from the region – a scrapbook of sorts.
On view will be images from different eras and in different formats. They will be formal portraits, snapshots, even reproductions. And the collection will complement our orientation exhibit and support a core message - the people of a community make its history. Everyone contributes in some way.
For this display we are using images from the museum collection, and we are inviting other organizations and individuals to share an image for the show. If you have a photograph you would like to include – please send me a message and I will follow up.
It is our community that has helped the ACM grow. Over the past five years, we have cultivated a volunteer base that includes new Board and committee members, people who help with special projects, and others just willing to help with an event. There are more than 60 people on our volunteer list. It is a remarkable group, and we totally appreciate this help.
If you are interested in joining our community of volunteers, read on below – or reach out to me. I would love to meet you, and I welcome the opportunity to tell you more about our plans for the future. Please send a message to me at the email below.
I like to say – “A museum is not a building – it is a community of people that make it happen!”
Thank you for your interest and support.
John Mayer, Executive Director
jmayer@amesburycarriagemuseum.com
Portrait of the Biddle and Smart Company office staff – out for an outing August 10, 1927. This image was made about the time when the company employed 5,000 workers and made around 40,000 bodies for the Hudson Company of Detroit. A remarkable period in Amesbury’s industrial history! (Gift of Cynthia Wojcicki.) Click to enlarge.
Some notes and a working list of volunteer opportunities –
1. Gardener(s). Now that we have grounds at the IHC, we could use some help keeping them looking good. This could be a couple hours a week working in our planting beds. And possibly joining our Building Committee to help with future plans. And maybe even leading a steering committee focused on the millyard environment.
2. Interpreters. Our walking tour program will become a core offering at the IHC. We are planning an ongoing rotation of tours for visitors and school groups. If you enjoy history and like to share your knowledge, this could be just the thing for you.
3. Committee members. We have always included members of the community on our Board committees, and often this is a gateway to joining the Board of Directors. If you would like to help our nonprofit grow and continue to achieve great things, we may have a committee for you. Collections, programs, finance, buildings, and development are core parts of the ACM.
4. Event help. Coming soon with the Amesbury Car Show, the 2021 Family Day in the Millyard, and even the opening of the IHC. We will be developing a pool of people who can help with set up to providing information or more.
5. And more. There are research opportunities, collections to study, and “things” to organize. If you are interested in learning more – please send me a message here.
With much gratitude – thank you to the many volunteers who have given their time to help us. This has been the great joy of leading our organization. Thank you all!
Stop by! On Thursdays for the rest of August, when it is not raining (insert your comment here!!) the Industrial History Center is open for a preview. Staff, Board members and volunteers are on site, and you are totally welcome to stop in, take part in a tour or an activity, or simply jump into a conversation and say hello. Our Thursday “Family Fun” events continue through August from 4:30 to 5:30 pm. Please stop by.