History Detectives
Saturday, January 23, 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
For several years the Grand Rapids Public Library has partnered with six local historical groups, including the Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council, to present the day-long History Detectives program. The event, made up of six programs exploring various aspects of Grand Rapids history, runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, January 23, at the Main Library, 111 Library St NE, and is free and open to the public. Free parking is available in the library's parking lot.
Don't miss the first session!
Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council arranged it
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9:30 a.m.
Kindergarten and "Radical" Women in 1890s Grand Rapids
presented by Scott Bultman
Kindergarten has a history? In fact, the revolutionary nineteenth-century movement invented by charismatic German educator
Friedrich Froebel was transplanted to the U.S. Early on women from the Grand Rapids Ladies Literary Club invested in the radical new methods devised to teach young children. Former director of Froebel Foundation USA, Scott Bultman,will share his vast collection of photographs and documents to report on the
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Lucretia Willard Treat and Miss McDowell
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Grand Rapids Kindergarten Training School. It was founded in 1894 after local women lured Lucretia Willard Treat, arguably the best teacher trainer in the country, here from Chicago. Clara Marian Wheeler, daughter of Grand Rapids' first architect, devoted her life to the movement. For her and many other local women of all socio-economic levels, the idea of Kindergarten became both a "calling" and a career opportunity. The movement was built by dedicated women reformers and philanthropists nationwide and became a foundation for settlement houses, the YWCA, and
temperance and suffrage initiatives. In the microcosm, the fascinating Grand Rapids story can illustrate the overall national history. All Kindergarten was Froebelian until establishment educators a century ago staged a coup d'etat creating generic "kindergarten," like "coke" and "kleenex," and set the future course of American education.
Since 1997, Scott Bultman has promoted the Froebel Kindergarten method internationally. Currently, he is creating a documentary film on its place in the mutating story of the American school system.
Five more presentations follow
10:30 a.m. - When "Everyone Knew Everyone:" Forming a Latino Community in Mid-Century West Michigan,
presented by Delia Fernandez. Through oral histories and variety of primary source documents, Fernandez will uncover the rich history of the Latinos in West Michigan, dating back to the 1920s.
11:30 a.m. - Retail Icons: Shopping Downtown in the 1950s, presented by Michael Hauser, who will take a closer look at some of the home-grown department store icons including Herpolsheimer's, Steketee's and Wurzburg's, as well as other beloved downtown businesses.
12:15 p.m. - 1 p.m. -- Lunch A box lunch is available for $10 and must be ordered in advance by calling 988-5492 or email rsvp@grpl.org
1 p.m. - New Car Smell: Nostalgia and the Story of Grand Rapids Car Dealerships, presented by Thomas R. Wilson, who will track the movement of early automobile dealers from the confined urban spaces near downtown into neighborhoods such as Eastown and Cheshire Village, illustrating the cars they sold, including the Austin, Maxwell, Hupmobile and Studebaker.
2 p.m. - Modern Design Leader: The Story Behind Herman Miller, presented by Amy Auscherman, who will discuss the events, people, and design, and the management philosophies that have shaped the 108-year history of Herman Miller, Inc.
3 p.m. The Intoxicating History of River City Brewing,
presented by Pat Evans, who will explore the history of beer in Grand Rapids and how that history influences the multitude of today's local brewers.
From 4:30 p.m. - 6 p.m. Participants are invited to attend an after-event party at the Mitten Brewing Company. Enjoy conversation about the day over a beer or two.
Visit the
Grand Rapids Public Library
Coming Up
7 p.m. Thursday, February 11: Teaming up with the Grand Rapids Historical Society, we are presenting
Community Builders: Early African American Women in Grand Rapids at the John F. Donnelly Conference Center at Aquinas College, 157 Woodward Lane SE, with Yvonne Sims, Grand Rapids Study Club, along with Jo Ellyn Clarey.
7 p.m. Tuesday, March 1:
Women, War, & Work in 1910s Grand Rapids
Using unique archival resources, Grand Rapids Public Library local history experts Julie Tabberer, Heather Edwards, and Drew Damron will highlight women employed outside their homes when wartime opened doors both personal and professional for young women in factories, an early woman cartoonist, and the work of an example of the progressive women activists of that era. At the Grand Rapids Public Library, Main.
5 - 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 30: Our annual reception at the Women's City Club. Deirdre Toeller-Novak will present Shattering Glass Ceilings: Women's Elective History in Grand Rapids, 1888-2015, focusing on five firsts, examples of women in elective politics in Grand Rapids history, culminating with our special guest, recently-elected first woman mayor Rosalynn Bliss.
Visit our web site and watch for future email contacts with updates and further details.
