Downtown McKinney Landmark to Close!

Smith Brothers Pharmacy in downtown McKinney has closed its doors -- but hopefully not forever! Community support is needed to save this important historic landmark. This piece in the McKinney Courier Gazette details why it's so important to save the drug store.

We will most definitely miss the pharmacy -- especially the Santa in the window at Christmas.

NTHC Lecture Series: Texas in Word and Food

NTHC presents its fall 2008 Lecture Series: Texas in Word and Food. Both lectures will take place at the McKinney Performing Arts Center.

September 30, 2008
Native Texan, R. Clay Reynolds, a professor of arts and humanities at the University of Texas at Dallas, is the author of twelve books and numerous articles ranging from critical studies to short fiction and poems. His novels Franklin's Crossing (1992) and Monuments (2000) both won the Violet Crown Award from the Writers' League of Texas, and he has published in Texas Monthly, the New York Times, Writers' Forum, and the High Plains Literary Review, among others. He has received grants from the Texas Commission for the Arts and is a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow.

Dr. Reynolds will speak on Texas in literature.

December 2, 2008
Rebecca Sharpless is an assistant professor of history at Texas Christian University. She is the former director of the Institute for Oral History at Baylor University and a former president of the Oral History Association. She is the author of Fertile Ground, Narrow Choices: Women on Texas Cotton Farms, 1900-1940 (1999) winner of the Texas State Historical Association's Tullis Prize for best book in Texas history and Liz Carpenter Award for the best book on Texas women. She is the co-editor of Work, Family, and Faith: Rural Southern Women in the Twentieth Century (2006) and is writing a study tentatively titled, "Cookin in Other Women's Kitchens: African Americans in the South, 1865-1960."

Dr. Sharpless will speak on Southern Women and Food.

Tickets for each lecture may be purchased through the McKinney Performing Arts Center's Website. Tickets are $6 for members, seniors, and students aned $8.50 for non-members.

Calling all storytellers!

How long have you lived in McKinney? Ten years? Twenty? Fifty?

If you've lived in McKinney for quite some time we need you! The North Texas History Center and Chestnut Square Historic Village are working hard on our October Event, The Legends of McKinney Ghost Walk, and we need your help! We are currently working on compiling spooky stories of McKinney's past and being new to the area, Sarah and I are at a loss! If you've lived in McKinney for as long as you can remember, please feel free to email me at kate@northtexashistorycenter.org I would absolutely love to hear your story and maybe schedule a time to sit down and record it.

Thanks!!

History Comes to Life -- Tickets Still Available!!

Tickets are still available for History Comes to Life, a one-man performance featuring Collin McKinney on September 13, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. at the McKinney Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $25 and include the performance and an invitation to a dessert reception (catered by Rick's Chophouse) where there will be a silent auction, live auction and a raffle drawing.

Tickets may be purchased through the McKinney Performing Arts Center. Please call 214.544.4630 or visit their website.

Farm Museum Re-Opening!

The Collin County Farm Museum, operated by the North Texas History Center, will re-open this weekend! The Farm Museum had previously been closed during the summer months, but now that the weather finally seems to have cooled down a bit, the Farm Museum is open for business. Stop by and see historic tractors, a mid-century cookshack and much, much more!

The Farm Museum is open Saturdays from 12:00-4:00 and is located at 7117 County Road 166 McKinney, Texas 75071. For more information, please visit the county's website.


If you would like to schedule a tour with your class or scout troop, please email Sarah Hatcher at sarah@northtexashistorycenter.org

NTHC Completes First Summer Mini-Cotillion

What does it mean to have good manners? Why is etiquette so important? How exactly do you hold your teacup when having high tea?

These questions and more were answered during NTHC's mini-cotillion summer camp, July 14-18 2008. During this week-long summer program, students learned table manners, proper etiquette as it related to their lives (most notably the newly emerging field of "netiquette" and cell phone etiquette) as well as some basic dance steps. At the end of the week our summer camp participants knew when to use a cell phone, how to fold their napkin, and how to dance the foxtrot and waltz.

Below are some photographs taken from the various days of summer camp. For far more professional photographs of Friday's graduation ceremony, please visit our intern, Ryan Leach's website (and check out his other phenomenal photographs as well!)

Photographs were taken at NTHC, Alice's Tea Shoppe and Rick's Chophouse at the Grand Hotel and Ballroom.

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Independence Day to all our readers!

We are excited to announce that we've had over 1100 visitors so far this year. We are on pace to exceed previous years' attendance by leaps and bounds. Won't you stop by and help us set a new attendance record? Our weekly hours are Monday through Saturday from 11 to 4.

Good Morning Texas!

Today was a big first for the North Texas History Center, we were on TV! Page McCoy Smith graciously invited us to talk about manners and their importance on her segment, the Not So Perfect Parent. This also gave us an opportunity to plug our Cotillion (there is still time to register!) and extend our thanks to our partners at Alice's Tea Shop, the Grand Ballroom, and the Art of Dance studio.

Kathleen and her students at At of Dance deserve special thanks for battling their way to Dallas early in the morning to be on the show. They looked and behaved beautifully--I'm so proud of all of them.

The segment is posted at wfaa.com. If you would like to know more about our Cotillion send myself or Kate an email or give us a call at 972.542.9457. To learn more about the Art of Dance go to their website.

Thanks again to everyone involved with this morning, it was fun!

NTHC to Collaborate with Old Red Museum

Dallas, TX - Opening Saturday, June 21^st, 2008 at the Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture, The Civil War Though the Eyes of North Texans, examines the war’s effect on the soldiers who left to fight as well as those they left behind in the Dallas area. The exhibit is produced by the North Texas History Center and the Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture. The exhibit will run through August 17^th.

Opening day, June 21, will be filled with activities for the whole family as history comes alive to bring the Civil War era to downtown Dallas. Activities will start at 11:30 am and include: demonstrations by Civil War re-enactors, performances by The Heritage Brass Band, talks on “A Day in the Life of a Soldier” and “The Reality of War and Medical Treatment,” and period crafts for children. Visitors can learn how to load and fire vintage rifles as well as perform an authentic Civil War marching drill. Admission to the museum on June 21 will be half price the entire day.

The Civil War profoundly affected the history of the United States. The mechanisms of politics, media, technology and social issues were significantly changed in the era between 1861 and 1865. But what about the Texas home front? What impact did the war have on North Texans? The exhibit explores the role of North Texas in the conflict: the men, women, technologies, innovations, records and aftermath of the Civil War and their long-lasting effects on Texas and this country’s history.

Highlights from the exhibit are 1) letters and personal correspondence between John Taylor Coit and his wife Catherine, 2) a Confederate uniform jacket with bullet holes and blood stains, 3) personal effects of soldiers such as dice and playing cards, 4) a Confederate fiddle, 5) children’s dresses and clothing, 6) women’s fashion accessories, 7) weapons such as handguns, cannon shot and more.

The Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture is located in the West End of downtown Dallas at 100 South Houston Street in the beautifully restored Old Red Courthouse built in 1892. Dedicated to inspire and educate visitors about the rich and varied cultural, economic, political and social history of the Dallas County area, the 2^nd floor of Old Red is filled with interactive exhibits, 41 touch-screen computers, an educational learning center and four mini-theatres. The special exhibit gallery is located on the first floor. Admission to The Civil War Through the Eyes of North Texans is included in general admission. General admission is $8, Children ages three to sixteen are $5 and Seniors are $6. Admission to the Civil War exhibit without general admission is $3 for adults and $1 for children. The museum’s hours are Monday – Saturday, 9-5 p.m., Sunday Noon – 5 p.m. For group reservations, corporate meetings/outings or weddings call 214-745-1100. For more information go to www.oldred.org.

School's Out For Summer!

Today the North Texas History Center saw its last group of kiddos for the school year! We've had a great year, covering pioneering and the Civil War in North Texas. This year we saw a total of 7,355 kids ranging from second-fifth grade, from schools as close as McKinney ISD and as far away as Quinlan ISD. Sarah and I couldn't have done it without our fantastic volunteers, who came faithfully to help us educate young minds on a daily basis. Thanks!!

We're looking forward to our summer vacation as well, and we've got a lot of great projects lined up here to work on in the next three months. Check back to see what we're up to...

Better Know Your NTHC Staff & Volunteers! Part the Second: Erma Beeson

Welcome back to our Better Know Your NTHC Staff and Volunteers segment of the blog! Our esteemed victim du jour is Erma Beeson, a recent addition to the staff, who so nicely agreed to answer our (mostly) random questions.

1. What is your job title? What do you do with yourself all day?
“PR and Marketing Assistant.” I sit at the front desk and greet people, work on press releases and have at least once worked with the kids who come in for a school tour.

2. What were you doing before you took the job at NTHC?
I was the Tourism and Sales Manager for the McKinney Convention and Visitors Bureau.

3. What is one project you have worked on that you are especially proud of?
The work we did during the McKinney Sesquecentenial.

4. What was your favorite food as a kid?
Dairy Queen ice cream cones

5. Peanut butter: crunchy or smooth?
Crunchy – you’ve got to be able to feel it as you eat it!

6. What event will you be watching in this summer’s Beijing Olympics?
Gymnastics

7. If you could pick anything, what would be your superpower?
Physical strength

8. What do you do in your spare time?
I mainly do needlework and quilting

9. Which Hepburn do you prefer and why: Katharine or Audrey?
Katharine because she was so versatile in all of the roles she played.

10. If you lived in the supermarket, what aisle would you chose to live in?
I’d live in the produce isle.

11. If you could have dinner with any one person, living or dead, who would you dine with?
Maya Angelou

12. After you open your yogurt, do you lick the lid?
No, not usually, but it depends on how much yogurt is on the lid – I wouldn’t want to waste it!

13. What was your favorite album when you were 16?
In The Wee Small Hours – Frank Sinatra

14. Tell me about your dream vacation.
To go back to Istanbul and take the cruse from Istanbul to the Greek Isles and Turkey.

15. Where were you on September 11, 2001?
I was sitting in my living room praying that my daughter had not taken the subway that morning – her stop was at the World Trade Center. In fact, she was on a plane that morning – the one that left after the hijacked plane.

16. What do you consider appointment TV?
Dancing with the Stars.

17. Who is your favorite US president and why?
John F. Kennedy because of his engaging of the American citizenry – and I had the pleasure of meeting him when I was in college and working for the newspaper. He came in 1959 and I got to go to his reception at the governor’s mansion, which was really neat.

18. Were you named for anyone?
No, I don’t think so!

NTHC Education Department Receives Award!

The North Texas History Center was the recipient of this year’s Excellence in Historic Education Award from the Collin County Historical Commission. When asked why he nominated NTHC, McKinney’s Historic Preservation Officer, Guy Geirsch, replied “because of the excellent educational programs that NTHC has been providing covering early pioneering in Collin County and Collin County and the Civil War.”

Sarah Hatcher, Curator of Education, and Kate O’Donnell, Assistant Curator of Education, were presented with their award at the second annual awards ceremony in Farmersville on Saturday the 17^th. “We were honored that Mr. Geirsch nominated us for this award and were thrilled to be recognized for our efforts by others in the field,” said Hatcher.

The North Texas History Center’s Education Program began modestly during the 2001-2002 school year, serving just over 1100 students. Now in its sixth year serving children from across North Texas, NTHC is averaging approximately 8000 students a year. Children from Collin, Denton, Grayson, Rockwall and Dallas counties have been through the curriculum based education programs at NTHC. Second and third graders experience pioneer times and learn about not just the people who came as pioneers, but why they chose to pull up stakes and move across country. Fifth graders are immersed in the Civil War while their fourth grade counterparts are introduced to the Civil War and its impact on the cattle industry and cowboys of North Texas.

Flamingos Invade McKinney!

To promote its upcoming performance of "The Great American Trailer Park Musical," the McKinney Performing Arts Center has blanketed its yard with flamingos ... NTHC got in on the deal and adopted two of these lovely plastic creatures!

Billed as "South Park meets Desperate Housewives" by The New York Sun, The Great American Trailer Park Musical is a rip-roaring blast of southern hilarity you shouldn't miss! Check out MPAC's website for information and ticket prices.

Friday Artifact Spotlight: Civil War Jacket

This Friday Artifact Spotlight post is coming out a bit early this week, as I'll be out of town tomorrow. But this week's artifact is a real gem:


This well worn Union Army jacket (c. 1861) shows the scars of war. Patches on the forearm were the solution to the burn marks from firing a black powder handgun. Bullet holes and blood along the waist are the sad results of battle.

Clean Up Saturday

On Saturday, April 5th, NTHC staff worked tirelessly to clean up the exterior of the museum, trimming hedges, raking leaves, picking up trash and planting flowers. We would like to thank the following businesses, all of whom gave generously -- without them, Clean Up Saturday would not have happened!

• Crump's Garden & Greenhouse
• Walmart of McKinney Ranch Parkway
• Bruce Miller Nursery
• Shades of Green
• Wal-Mart Store #5311