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Monroe County Historical Museum
Welcome to the Monroe County, Michigan Historical Museums! Our main Museum is located in downtown Monroe in a renovated 1909 U.S. Federal Post Office building. Our two floors are filled with displays with maps and images, plus special collections and displays. We house one of the largest Gen. George A. Custer collections, interpreted with artifacts, documents and photographs.
On the second floor is our Commission Archives, where researchers investigate genealogical and historical Monroe County subjects.
Main Museum Hours are currently 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday; Summer admission June, July & August: $2 adult $1 child
Other Monroe County supported museums are:
the River Raisin Battlefield Visitor Center, 1403 East Elm Avenue; the Navarre-Anderson Trading Post, 3775 North Custer Road; the Martha Barker Country Store museum, 3815 North Custer Road;
the Monroe County Vietnam Veterans Historical Museum at Norman Heck Park, and the Eby Log cabin at the Monroe County Fairgrounds.
These county museums are administered by the Monroe County Historical Commission, whose nine members are appointed by the Monroe County Board of Commissioners.
Please note: Museum events may be subject to last minute changes- call the main Museum for the latest times and schedules.
Address:
126 South Monroe Street
Monroe, MI 48161
Phone: 734-240-7780 Fax: 734-240-7788 View Website
Membership:
Membership Style:
Anyone Can Join. Sign up or log in to join.
Members: 6
Join Date: 10/04/2006
Profile Views: 1796
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| Mark Your Calendars- Lantern Tours, 2008 |
This year take a trip along the river to 1808 during the 2008 Lantern Tours. This year's dates are Friday and Saturday, October 17-18, and 24-25, at the Navarre-Anderson Trading Post. Cost. Reservations required: tickets go on sale Wednesday, October 1st at 10:00 a.m. For information call 734 240 7780.,
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| Vietnam Veterans Museum Open Now |
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| Visit the Museum on Wednesday or Saturday, from noon to 5:00 p.m. The Museum is staffed by actual Vietnam veterans, who are more than happy to show you their museum and tell their stories. Stop by, and walk the grounds of Heck Park, dedicated to the Vietnam War story., |
| Bronco McKart Greets Some Young Fans |
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| Boxer Bronco McKart talks to CampFire USA fans at the Grand Opening of the Bronco Exhibit June 29th in the Museum front lobby. |
| A Knockout Display of a Monroe Boxer |
Local boxer Bronco McKart is featured now at the Monroe County Historical Museum's front gallery. Born at Monroe in 1971, Bronco started boxing professionally in 1992 and has a record of 50 wins, 7 losses and 31 knockouts. A winner of multiple titles, including State of Michigan Welterweight Championship, the World Boxing Council's International Junior Middleweight Title, the North American Boxing Federation's Junior Middleweight Title, the World Boxing Organizations's Junior Middleweight World Championship, and the International Boxing Association's Junior Middleweight World Championship, Bronco has many belts and memorabilia to record his career.
Come in and view Bronco's exhibit which he has graciously allowed to be displayed at the Museum.
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| Last Weeks Now! |
Special exhibit is on now: 75 YEARS of the MONROE COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM. Located on the second floor of the museum, the display will help you appreciate one of Monroe county's gems- our great library system! (Sorry, we can't check out your books- go to your local library and read!)
Learn about the various Library branches (can you name them all, or know where they are?) and their growth into our current expansive county system.
The world is at your fingertips with a book from the Monroe County Library System!
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| Image Gallery: United We Stand:Remember the Ladies |
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| Several of the "United We Stand: Remember the Ladies" dresses were shown in the Fair Parade this year. |
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| Clothing from the first "United We Stand" and the second were worn by volunteers shown here in the Fair Parade. |
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| United We Stand: Remember the Ladies |
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© Lynn Reaume,
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| Volunteer Elayn busy at work constructing a War of 1812 era gown. Money for the project was from the State of Michigan, Rural Arts &Culture; the Monroe County Historical Society, and the Community Foundation of Monroe, 1812 Bicentennial Committee, among others. |
| THANK YOU Monroe! |
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We hope you were there for the 2nd River Raisin International Muster and viewed the class acts, including the Williamsburg Fife & Drum Corps, from Williamsburg, Virginia. These musicians have served as musical ambassadors for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation since 1958. As part of their 50th Anniversary tour, they will be including Monroe, Michigan in their tour dates- along with Basel, Switzerland and Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. These talented boys and girls, age 10-18 years, form a nearly 100 member musical group which perform around Williamsburg's historical area nearly 500 times a year! They also performed during Jamestown's 400th Anniversary celebration, and for the visit of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.
The host group for the Muster is the 1st Michigan Colonial Fife and Drum Corps, which was started by Mark and Mary Logsdon in 1974, after their visit to Colonial Williamsburg. Since that time the 1st Michigan has become renown for their high levels of musicality and professional presentation. They have performed all over the United States, and overseas. For more information on the 1st Michigan, use the link included on this page.
Also present were: D3 Fife & Drums from Canton, the Great Lakes Ancient Field Music from Romeo, the Tittabawassee Valley Fife & Drum Corps from Midland, the Plymouth Fife & Drums from Plymouth, the Bellestre Fifre et Tambour group of Port Huron (all Michigan); the 42nd Royal Highland Regiment with their bagpipes, from West Lafayette, Indiana, along with the Voyageur Ancient Fife & Drum Corps also of Lafayette.
Sponsors for the River Raisin International Muster were the 1st Michigan Fife & Drum Corps, the War of 1812 Bicentennial Steering Committee, the Monroe County Historical Society, and the River Raisin Battlefield, and the Monroe County Historical Museum. Thanks extend to the Monroe County Convention and Tourism Bureau, the City of Monroe and a host of others who helped bring this great musical event to the public- all free!
Plans are underway for next year's event, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, June 19-20th, 2009. BIG HUZZAHS to Organizer Scott Lonsdale, staffperson of the Monroe County Historical Museums for his unflagging enthusiasm- take a breather now Scott!
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| First Michigan Colonial Fife & Drum Corps |
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| Image Gallery: 2008 Archaeology Camp |
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| Former Director Ralph Naveaux talks to students about Peter Navarre, War of 1812 scout in the Museum. |
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| As a field trip, students visited another War of 1812 site- Fort Meigs in Perrysburg, Ohio. Here the new recruits to the American army are sworn in at the fort classroom before being put to any tasks. |
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| War of 1812 soldiers explain and drill the new recruits outside at Fort Meigs, Ohio. |
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| Soldiers had to do their own laundry, as demonstrated here. Camp students got to try their hand at laundry and carrying water. |
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| When all else fails, form a bayonet charge! |
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| Back at the Museum, many hands clean the dug artifacts in the Archaeology lab during final days of the camp. |
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| Students learned about compiling the final artifact data input into a computer program in the lab. Teaching was done all week by ISD & Museum staff and dedicated volunteers. |
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| At the end of the week camp boys and girls got to view and understand real War of 1812 era artifacts from previous Monroe County dig sites. |
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| Changing Fashion- Last Month! |
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© Lynn Reaume,
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| 1700's to 1815 Fashion timeline shows the changes in women's clothing from multi-piece emsemble to basic one-piece gown. |
| Battlefield Visitor Center Now Open Weekends |
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© Lynn Reaume,
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| The River Raisin Battlefield Visitor Center, 1403 East Elm Avenue, Monroe
Open weekends 10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for September and October.
No Admission! |
| United We Stand: Remember the Ladies Ending |
The Monroe County Historical Museum announces the awarding of Michigan Arts & Culture grant part two of "United We Stand: Remember the Ladies". Part one was dedicated to teaching youth to sew as the "French Town Tailors", and produced 40 black linen coats, hats and haversacks copied after those used by the Kentucky soldiers during the War of 1812. This next installment is producing over 50 women's garments from the war era, along with trade blouses, skirts and leggings used by Native American women. Come in now for the last looks at this exhibit!
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| MONROE and THE WAR |
In conjunction with the premier of film maker Ken Burns' THE WAR, we present Monroe's contribution, through its men and women, to this critical time. The front gallery is full of World War II artifacts, (featuring two large artillery pieces), uniforms, personal items, and era war posters, plus much more.
Local historian Dave Eby's published news articles on Monroe men are presented throughout the gallery. Many veterans have articles on loan- amidst the Museum's and other's- collections.
Come in now and view their stories.
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| World War II Exhibit |
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© Lynn Reaume
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| Lest We Forget the men from Monroe County who gave all during World War II. |
| Weaving Class |
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© Lynn Reaume,
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| Weavers try their "fingers" at finger weaving during the first class at the Museum, as part of the second United We Stand: Remember the Ladies. Completed woven garters and sashes will be used on staff and volunteer clothing. |
| 1812 Logo |
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| Designed by Dave Stahl, the logo graces a variety of merchandise items, available at the RRBVC and main Museum, |
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Program and Design by Computer Works of Monroe, Inc.
