Month: March 2017

If you can’t make it to the State Historical Museum of Iowa in Des Moines, it will come to you! That’s the idea behind the State Historical Society of Iowa’s new “Iowa History 101” mobile museum, a bright blue, custom-built Winnebago that travels the state’s highways and back roads to share stories from the past. The museum on wheels currently houses a 300-square-foot exhibition called “Iowa History 101” and is filled with artifacts from the State Historical Society’s collection. The mobile museum will visit Winterset on Sunday April 9th and offer free tours from 1:00 – 5:00 pm at the Madison County Historical Complex at 815 South 2^nd Ave.

Like a visit to your grandparents’ attic, the exhibition unpacks stories of Iowa’s past with nearly 50 artifacts, including:

• A battered hat from a coal miner in Boone
• A 1917 prototype of the state flag designed by Dixie Cornell Gebhardt of Knoxville
• The pen Gov. William Harding used to sign the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote
• A basketball jersey Lynne Lorenzen wore during her glory days at Ventura High School
• An Olympic medal from sprinter Natasha Kaiser-Brown of Des Moines
• A patch from a spacesuit worn by astronaut Peggy Whitson of Beaconsfield

“This exhibition shares some of the essential stories that every Iowan should know about who we are and what we’ve achieved since Iowa became a state more than 170 years ago,” State Historical Society of Iowa Administrator Susan Kloewer said. “So we’re delighted to bring this traveling exhibition to Madison County, and we encourage all Iowans to learn about our state’s rich heritage.” The traveling exhibition is sponsored by EMC Insurance Companies, Casey’s General Stores, and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. It is part of a trio of new exhibitions called Iowa 101 that digs into the bedrock stories that every Iowan should know. More information is available by contacting Jared McDonald at 515-462-2134.

Along those lines, if you’re from Winterset, here’s an event you should know: The annual Winterset Lion’s Show will be held on Thursday and Friday, April 6th & 7th, in Miller Auditorium at 7:00 pm. Friday night’s show will include our National Champion WHS Dance Team!

This Weekend

The Winterset Stage will offer its final two performances of The Shadow tonight (sold out) and Saturday night at 6:30 pm at their 405 E. Madison location. Based on the 1930s and 40s radio show The Shadow, made popular by Orson Welles, the zany characters in this all-local cast received rave reviews from last weekend’s attendees. Each show is designed as a murder mystery dinner theater featuring a 40s-era menu: spinach salad with strawberries and candied pecans, salisbury steak, roasted potatoes, Catalina vegetables, dinner rolls, and chiffon cake for dessert. Additional show dates are Saturday, March 25th; Friday, March 31st; and Saturday, April 1st. All shows start at 6:30. Tickets include dinner and the show, and can be purchased online at www.TheWintersetStage.org or by calling 515-462-5156.