Museum opens April 20

New exhibits for music, wartime, firefighting

Drew Lawson, The Record-Times | Last updated May 11, 2023 10:30am0

Drew Lawson | The Record-Times count

This World War I and II memorabilia is part of the military equipment exhibit at the Lincoln County Museum, which opens for the summer season Saturday, May 20.

DAVENPORT - The local Historical Society, which consists of over 30 volunteers, is preparing for this season's opening of the Lincoln County Museum at 600 Seventh Street. This year, the season begins at noon Saturday, May 20.

Hours will be noon-4 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday through Sept. 30.

Several new exhibits will be on display, director LaVon Stiles said.

"We have a brand-new firefighting equipment exhibit," she said.

She also noted that the train exhibit in the museum will be remodeled to create a new exhibit for this year's visitors.

There is also a new music exhibit, and Steve Whiteside is expected to perform in June (open to the public) and August (members only) using the old-time instruments, president John Stiles said.

The military exhibit has expanded. Artifacts from the Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I and World War II are among the displayed.

Admission to the museum is on a donation-basis. One can become a member of the Historical Society with a one-time $25 purchase, which includes benefits like membership to TimeTravelers, an organization that offers free or reduced admission to over 400 museums nationwide, LaVon Stiles said.

The Historical Society continues to seek volunteers, she added. Current projects include digitizing cassette tapes to create oral histories, adding items to the museum database, and becoming a museum tour guide.

There are currently 11 society committees, including accessions, collections, events, exhibits, facilities, fundraising, membership, print/social media, research, school outreach and Vintage Harvest. Interested members can apply to the Historical Society by mailing P.O .Box 585 or in-person at the museum.