By Jessica Gorman
As the year comes to a close, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on the year. Let’s start with our visitors. Not everyone signs our book when they visit the museum, but those who have represent nineteen different states and two countries. We have welcomed visitors from Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, Virginia, Maine, Ohio, Indiana, Minnesota, Washington, Arizona, California, Belgium, and The Netherlands.
At the beginning of the year, a new “museum mascot” was introduced. Chaffe’s Bull was featured on our Facebook page and began taking our followers through each of our exhibits. Unfortunately, he got a little bit lost in the mix as more pressing matters took priority over social media. Keep an eye out in the new year. Hopefully, Chaffe’s Bull will return.
The museum was once again excited to announce its selection as a recipient of a Culture Care Grant from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. I cannot adequately express my appreciation for the existence of this grant. You could consider it a unicorn grant. For museums, operational grants are almost nonexistent. I find myself explaining this to people time and again as the question is repeatedly asked about whether or not we are applying for grants. If I could fund the museum by simply writing grants, it would be a dream come true, but that’s not how it works in the real world.
Earlier this year, the museum was featured as part of Dave McNamara’s “Heart of Louisiana” series. These segments air on all CBS affiliates in Louisiana during their local newscast. We appreciate Mr. McNamara taking the time to visit the museum and to highlight the history of our area. If you missed it, you can find the link on our website, http://www.dorcheatmuseum.com.
Five “Night at the Museum” speaker events were held this year. We covered topics from local outlaws to caring for our cemeteries. We had a great turnout in November as Ms. Dawn Glass so graciously shared with us stories from her life. Remember, all speaker events can be viewed on our YouTube channel. Next year’s lineup has not yet been determined, but you may see the addition of different types of community engagement events in 2025.
A new book, Minden, Louisiana: Then & Now, was released. This popular book features historic photographs of Minden paired with a current photo of the corresponding view. We publish books for a couple of reasons. First of all, it serves our mission of preserving our history and sharing it with the public. In addition, they provide a source of revenue for the museum. So, please know our book sales are important and each book you purchase directly supports operation of the museum.
In September, we held our annual fundraiser gala. This event is vitally important to the museum. We are so thankful to each and every person who played a role in making it a great success. Of course, plans are already in the works for next year’s event including some new additions that we hope you’ll be excited about.
Following the gala, we were glad to host Leadership Webster for the day. To round out the month, I was happy to visit the Lions Club to share with them a little bit about construction of the Louisiana Ordnance Plant and its impact on the area.
Just this past weekend, the museum once again participated in Christmas in Minden. This is our fourth year to partner with Visit Webster Parish for the Holiday Trail of Lights Hayride through Minden’s two historic districts. Friday night we saw a major increase with over 500 riders on the hayride. Saturday afternoon we once again partnered with the Webster Parish Library to provide ornament crafting for the kids and on Sunday afternoon we welcomed visitors for the Christmas Tour of Homes.
Of course, there is also this weekly column. I desperately try to never miss a week, but it does happen and I always feel terrible when it does. In all, 42 articles were written this year covering a variety of topics. As has been the case, these articles will be compiled, along with information from our social media posts, and published in the next installment of the Historically Speaking book series. The goal is to publish by the end of the year with books available in January.
We move toward the new year with the addition of a couple of new board members, new ideas, and the determination to do what it takes to ensure the longevity of the museum.
I’ll be honest. I’m tired. I look back with mixed feelings. In many ways, it highlights everything that has not been done, every goal that hasn’t been accomplished, and every way that I have fallen short of my own expectations. There’s a lot of work that goes into running the museum and all that comes with it. People tell me all the time they don’t know how I do it. It’s a lot for one person, but I’m committed to doing all I can to preserve and share the history of our parish, our history. I sincerely hope you will join me and look forward to seeing you in 2025.
(Jessica Gorman is Executive Director of the Dorcheat Historical Association Museum, Webster Parish Historian, and an avid genealogist.)