THE LINCOLN PARK HISTORICAL SOCIETY & MUSEUM NEWSLETTER Established 1955 1335 Southfield Rd, Lincoln Park, MI 48146 February, March, April 2017 313-386-3137 Hours: 1:00pm-6:00pm, Wednesday & Saturday [email protected] www.lphistorical.org/ also on Facebook FLEA MARKET FUNDRAISER SOCIETY NEWS nd SATURDAY APRIL 22 ** “Welcome Back, Lucille!” Former Historical Society president Lucille Stroh has The Lincoln Park Historical Society will be holding returned to the Board as a trustee. Lucille’s appointment its first flea market in many years, an event designed to was approved by the Society Board at the January raise funds for the Historical Museum. It is hoped that, meeting. Lucille is replacing trustee Mary Meyer who if successful, this fundraiser could become an annual retired from the board last fall. She will serve for the community event. The date is set for Saturday, April remainder of the term through April of this year. 22nd **, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. inside the Band Elections for officers for 2017-2018 will take place at the Shell building at Kennedy Memorial Center. While the Wednesday April 5th Society meeting. Nominations for st Historical Society will itself have a couple of tables of the next term of board officers will begin March 1 and th specialty items for sale, we are expecting that many close at the April 5 meeting before the vote. others will be interested in taking part that day. We concluded the year 2016 with a very successful run of “The Art of Bill Morrison” exhibit, which closed on Tables are available for a cost of $30 for the day. th Sellers will need to provide their own table coverings. December 30 . Much of January was spent uninstalling There is a maximum of 40 tables available, on a first- the exhibit and carefully packing the nearly 200 pieces to come first-served basis. Registration is available by send back to Bill’s home in California. Volunteers Sandi Horst and Merritt Solomon and custodian Robert French calling the museum at 313-386-3137 or by email at were a big help assisting curator Jeff Day with that [email protected]. The deadline for registering is project, including help with the reinstallation of exhibits Wednesday, April 19th. that were removed temporarily. One very nice outcome of the exhibit is that Bill graciously offered a number of Let’s come together his pieces to the museum for a permanent exhibit. We to make this a fun are extremely grateful for his donation. The new pieces – and rewarding – event! will fill our main case for the next month or so before finding a permanent display home. Earlier in December we held our annual holiday Open ** Please note the date change from April 29th House, which again this year featured Society member and printer Garry Summers producing holiday greeting - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - cards with assistance from his grandkids. Garry is pictured below with granddaughter Mya Summers at the vintage Chandler & Price printing press. Member Paul Zatyko stopped by recently to donate a few items from Lincoln Park’s past. He is not sure from what year or time period is this unique bracelet from Lincoln Park High School. It appears to be quite old. If any LP High School alumni out there might know, please contact us. Thank you. [For a video of the above printing press in action see the Lincoln Park Historical Museum Facebook page.] MICHIGAN’S FIRST ROAD CALENDAR of EVENTS The public is invited to all society events. What began as one of the well-worn pathways st established by the Native Americans from across the Wednesday, March 1 , 7:00 p.m. The first society region – this one traveling south from Detroit into program of 2017 will feature speaker Jim Magyari, of northern Ohio – later took on military importance with Taylor, offering an informative presentation on naturist the onset of war with the British in 1812. The roadway customs and lore of the Native Americans of this area. was improved as a plank road – or corduroy road – built Jim is the author of “Hey, Dave! You’re standing on our by U.S. troops under Commander William Hull (the lunch.” Also at the meeting, nominations for 2017-2018 Territorial Governor at the time) who marched his men Board members will begin being accepted. north from Urbana along the route to Fort Detroit in June of that year. Remnants of the old road, known as “Hull’s Wednesday, April 5th, 7:00 p.m. Trace”, are still extant, and can be seen near the Huron Society program: “Michigan’s First Road” presentation River in Brownstown Township. by Rusty Davis and Bill Saul, (see article). The April The campaign for “Michigan’s First Road” came out meeting will also include the election of new Board of a project Bill Saul and Rusty Davis embarked on to members. travel to Washington D.C. and retrieve good copies of maps that have hung in the Monroe County Historical Saturday, April 22nd, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Museum for years. After starting to assemble the maps FLEA MARKET to be held at the Kennedy Memorial Band in chronological order, what became evident was that the Shell building. Vendor registration is available by stopping road known by many people as Hull's Road is still there. at the museum, or calling or emailing us. Registration The old road is driven over each day by hundreds of deadline is Wednesday, April 19th. people without them realizing it. The two men subsequently prepared a power point presentation to Saturday, April 22nd is also the deadline for submitting th share what they had found. The program on April 5 will new orders for engraved bricks. These will be installed in the follow the historical progress of Hull's Road and explain Heritage Plaza in May. the efforts to have the road recognized by the Michigan Department of Transportation as a Historic Pure Michigan Thursday, May 18th, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Byway. The HISTORICAL SOCIETY’S ANNUAL DINNER: “Preston Rusty and Bill are Monroe-based historians and Tucker and the Tucker ‘48”, with Tucker’s grandson John research volunteers at the River Raisin National Tucker, author Steve Lehto, and Tucker collector and Battlefield Park. scholar Mark Lieberman. (See article); evening includes Check this link for more of the story: the formal installation of Board officers; held at the http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/ Lincoln Park High School cafeteria. Invitations will be sent 10/05/pure-michigan-byways/91179384/ to members in April. The dinner is open to the public. Contact us for tickets and reservations. HERITAGE PLAZA Saturday, May 20th 12 noon Dedication Ceremony for the newly-installed Heritage The Lincoln Park Heritage Plaza holds an Plaza bricks, and the Annual Memorial Bell Ringing annual installation and dedication of engraved Ceremony. Indoor reception follows. bricks each year in May on the grounds of the th museum. This May 20 ‘s event will include GRIMSHAW & MC5 EXHIBITS those bricks which are currently on order and all nd new orders received through April 22 . (see The museum’s new long-term exhibits, “Gary back of newsletter for an order form). The Grimshaw: The Master Artist’s Studio” and “MC5: engraved pavers are dedicated in honor and recognition of individuals, families, Kids With a Dream”, installed last year, continue to organizations, civic or community service, and welcome a steady stream of rock music fans and military service, past or present. interested visitors both far and near. We’ve Contact us if you’d like more information on enjoyed hearing from people who have been greatly the Heritage Plaza project. Order forms are affected by these ground-breaking artists who came also available at City Hall and the Lincoln Park out of Lincoln Park some 50 years ago and by their Public Library. continuing legacies. PRESTON TUCKER & THE TUCKER ‘48 IN MEMORIAM With the help and cooperation of the Tucker Ken Mixter Automobile Club of America (TACA) and Ypsilanti’s 1926-2016 Automotive Heritage Museum, we will be mounting a In late October we lost one of our biggest supporters with the passing of our friend, Ken new exhibit on Preston Tucker and his remarkable Tucker Mixter. Ken was hugely instrumental in the ’48 automobile in the summer of 2017. (The exact dates Historical Society’s purchase of the old post office and more information will be shared in our May building in the early 1990s, which in turn allowed newsletter.) Tucker’s grandson, John Tucker, currently us to move into a new and permanent home. serves as president of the TACA and sits on the board of Those who knew Ken know that he was the Automotive Heritage Museum. unassuming and preferred to decline any type of public recognition for his many good deeds, Preston Tucker however deserving he was. shown in a Ken not only lent to the society most of the publicity photo initial funds for the purchase of the property, he with his “Tucker ‘48” then graciously returned the interest that was paid to him over the course of six years, as a gift to the Historical Society. Ken and his wife Charollet, who passed way earlier last year, were long-term supporters and life members of the Society to whom we will always be indebted. We are ever grateful for having had their encouraging support John Tucker will be one of three speakers appearing at and enduring friendship for so many years. the Historical Society’s Annual Dinner in May (see Calendar of Events), along with Steve Lehto, author of the book, “Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow”, and Tucker scholar and collector Mark “Rouge Legacy Project” Lieberman.