PAGE 4 A LOOK AHEAD - T. REX PAGE 9 FLAPPERS AND FIZZ PAGE 10 SUMMER CAMP PAGE 15 PAGE 6 PAGE 4-5 WINTER/SPRING 2019 Contents 3 Letter from the Executive Director 4 American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith 6 After Promontory 7 Current Exhibits 9 A Look Ahead 10 Upcoming Events 12 Educational Programming 13 Boy & Girl Scout Programming 14 Birthday Parties at The Durham 15 Summer Camp 16 From the Curator 17 Experience “The Platform” 18 Development Corner 19 Calendar of Events Admission Adults $11 Seniors (62+) $8 Children (3-12) $7 Members and children 2 & under are FREE Hours Sunday: 1-5PM Tuesday: 10AM-8PM Wednesday – Saturday: 10AM-5PM Closed Mondays and Major Holidays Address 801 South 10th Street Omaha, Nebraska 68108 Contact 402-444-5071 DurhamMuseum.org [email protected] "AFTER PROMONTORY" FRONT COVER PHOTO: Drake Hokanson, Union Pacific, East North Platte, Neb., 2013, Union Pacific Railroad Letter from the Executive Director It’s hard to believe that 2018 is in the books. As with any new year, I can’t help but reflect on all that was accomplished throughout the past 12 months. We welcomed record-breaking crowds at our signature events, recorded the highest number of household memberships in our organization’s history, discovered that these walls do indeed speak with the retrieval of a “message in a bottle” during an exterior renovation project and provided an opportunity for Warren Buffet to show all of us that you’re never too old to believe in Santa. Even more inspiring is the local history that was uncovered and explored through our temporary exhibitions. From Women in Omaha: A Biographical Sketch of Persistence through History (February 3 - July 29, 2018), to Omaha in the Anthropocene (March 10, 2018 - January 27, 2019) to Fighting for the Good Life: Nebraskan Memories of World War I (August 18, 2018 - January 27, 2019), we came face-to-face with the people and ideas that shaped our community, our nation and our world. Speaking of which, I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the tremendous opportunity we were given to host the world-premiere of Thomas D. Mangelsen: A Life in the Wild (September 1, 2018 - January 6, 2019). Critically-acclaimed nature photographer and Omaha native, Tom Mangelsen took us on a journey across seven continents into the depths of earth’s great wild places…all from the comforts of the museum’s Velde Hall of American History. The journey continues in 2019 as we uncover and explore our nation’s rich and sometimes challenging past. We begin the year with American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith (March 2 - June 23, 2019). The Durham will once again be the premiere venue for a new traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution. Not only will we have an opportunity to showcase artifacts from the National Museum of American History, we will be weaving in our own local stories and content about civic engagement and the impact all voices can make. After Promontory: 150 Years of Transcontinental Railroading (March 30 - July 28, 2019), Tyrannosaurs: Meet the Family (June 8 - September 1, 2019), and Louder Than Words: Rock, Power & Politics (October 12 - February 2, 2020) will ensure that there is never a dull moment along the way. Our journey will be filled with declarations, twists and turns, deep discoveries and high notes, and we’re so excited to have you join us. Thank you for supporting The Durham Museum and we look forward to welcoming you in the year ahead! With sincere appreciation, Christi Janssen Executive Director DurhamMuseum.org 3 MARCH 2 – JUNE 23, 2019 Inspired by the new permanent exhibition at the National Museum of American History, American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith explores America’s bold experiment in a government “of, by, and for the people.” From the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) this exhibition is the centerpiece of a high-profile initiative on democracy and civics education. Featuring engaging multimedia experiences, immersive design, and artifacts from the Smithsonian and state historical organizations, American Democracy will demonstrate that democracy relies on our active participation in the quest to form a "more perfect union." Exhibit sections explore the origins of our democracy, the changing identity of eligible voters, the machinery of democracy, the right to petition and protest Opening Weekend: March 2-3 beyond the ballot, and the rights and responsibilities of citizens. Every vote counts at The Durham Museum, especially on the opening weekend of the The premier venue of this 12-city tour, Durham Museum curators Smithsonian’s newest traveling exhibition. will seamlessly incorporate Nebraska stories and artifacts into • Cast your vote for the Soda Fountain’s April ice the exhibition resulting in a unique installation that visitors will cream of the month. not see anywhere else. As an exhibition and catalyst for public • Enjoy story time featuring If I Were President. programming, American Democracy will inspire audiences, • Test your patriotic skills as you go on a flag hunt reflect the value of civics education, and spark important throughout the museum. discussions that are essential to a healthy democracy. • On Saturday, guests can meet and mingle American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith was developed by the National with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt from Museum of American History and adapted for travel by the Smithsonian Institution 10AM-2PM, or come back Sunday at 2PM for his Traveling Exhibition Service. public presentation: Arsenal of Democracy. SUPPORTED LOCALLY BY MEDIA SUPPORT #myfellowcitizens PROVIDED BY After exploring American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith, reflect on what it means to be a good citizen. Share your thoughts via social media using #myfellowcitizens. 4 Timelines Coming Soon *Franklin Delano *American Democracy with Smithsonian Curator Roosevelt’s Dr. Barbara Clark Smith Arsenal of Democracy Tuesday, March 5, 2019 Sunday, March 3, 2019 6:30PM Lecture, with book signing to follow 2-3PM Join us for an evening with Dr. Barbara Clark Smith, The date is December co-curator of American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith. 29, 1940. Franklin Delano Dr. Clark Smith specializes in 18th-century American social Roosevelt has just and political history and the American Revolution as the been re-elected to an Curator of the Division of Political History at the Smithsonian unprecedented third term National Museum of American History. Following her talk she in office. But the world is in will be available to sign copies of her book The Freedoms a crisis. Nazi Germany has We Lost: Consent and Resistance in Revolutionary America. blazed a path of destruction American Democracy Teacher Workshop across Europe, and America Tuesday, March 5, 2019, 4:30-6:30PM may soon be drawn into war. Watch this famous moment come to life, as you meet with the President just prior to his Calling all classroom teachers! Please join us for a teacher delivery of the famous Arsenal of Democracy speech. Learn workshop for our newest exhibition: American Democracy: what President Roosevelt was thinking, and listen to his plea A Great Leap of Faith with special guest Dr. Barbara Clark for the support of our Allies. Smith, co-curator of this Smithsonian exhibition. The exhibition is the perfect fit for any history or civics curriculum Neill Hartley is Franklin Delano Roosevelt in this fully and for all grade levels. Limited field trip funding is available staged historical presentation that will entertain and and teachers who attend the workshop will have the first educate audiences from school age to adult. Following the opportunity to apply. There is no cost to attend the workshop presentation, there will be time for comments and questions and refreshments are provided. Registration is required. Call with one of the most influential presidents of all time. 402-444-5027 or visit DurhamMuseum.org to register. Actor, Director, Spokesperson and Teacher, Neill Hartley earned a Master of Fine Arts from Temple University in Acting and was a faculty member there from 1989-2000. Since 1994 he has been teaching *Three easy ways to register for lectures: Speech & Voice at the University of the Arts and is a speech and dialect coach for several professional theaters. As an actor he has • Online at DurhamMuseum.org performed with Arden Theater, InterAct Theatre, and the Philadelphia • Phone at 402-444-5071 Shakespeare Festival, among others. Mr. Hartley won a Barrymore • Email [email protected] Award for Ensemble for 1812 Productions’ Batboy, The Musical. Neill is also a busy director for theaters which include Philadelphia Young Space is limited and registration is required. Regular Playwrights, University of the Arts, University of Pennsylvania, Arcadia museum admission applies; free for members. University, Isis Productions, the Brick Theater and the Luna Theater. DurhamMuseum.org 5 Coming Soon After MARCH 30 – JULY 28, 2019 On May 10, 1869, two railroads—built with haste, hope and aspiration—joined in a lonely, dry desert of northern Utah, at Promontory a place called Promontory. On that day, dignitaries from both ONE HUNDRED FIFTY YEARS OF TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROADING companies—the Central Pacific, which had built from California, and the Union Pacific, which had built from the east—gave speeches and installed ceremonial last spikes. The ceremonies were meant as a moment of self-congratulation, but the significance of the day’s events was far broader. In the ensuing decades, railroad after railroad proposed new, competing transcontinental routes—and sometimes completed them. Their construction swept away the dominance of Native American tribes, ended the open range, and restructured the West into a network of resources and industries dependent upon clusters of urban centers. To mark the 150th anniversary of the beginning of this era, the Center for Railroad Photography & Art has launched a special project, After Promontory: 150 Years of Transcontinental Railroading.