Farm and school museums seek volunteers as they enter 60th year of living history lessons

by Agnes Geiger

Back in 1962, a small group of people gathered with the idea of saving the historical Realy family farmhouse that had longtime connections to the area.

“(They) weren’t sure what they were going to do with the place,” said Arlene Kaiser, museum director, in a YouTube piece posted on the museum’s website. “Those same 12 people knew the importance and significance of keeping the heritage.”

Now, 60 years later, the Waterloo Farm Museum and Dewey School Museum operated by the Waterloo Area Historical Society bring the area’s pioneer history to life for children and adults alike.

“People come here, they learn and they remember,” Kaiser said. “They remember their grandmother’s house, or their great-grandma’s house. They remember what it was like for our ancestors to get here.”

The Waterloo Farm Museum, 13493 Waterloo Munith Road in Grass Lake, Michigan, features an 1850s farmhouse, log house, blacksmith’s workshop, icehouse, restored wooden windmill and more.

The Dewey School Museum is a mid-1800s one-room schoolhouse. Classes were held in the building until 1956. The schoolhouse is 3 miles north of the farm.

All of these buildings reveal what life was like for area pioneers.

“You can read it in a book, but it’s not the same thing,” Kaiser said.

Each year, the Waterloo Area Historical Society sponsors four major events at the sites.
These are the Blacksmiths, Soldiers and Log Cabin Weekend in early summer, the Antique Tractor event in August, Pioneer Day in October, and Christmas on the Farm in December.

The largest of these events—Pioneer Day—draws 2,000 visitors and requires 200 volunteers. (See announcement for 2021 event details.) Proceeds from all events help to support the museum, but the effort also requires plenty of human capital.

According to Catherine Alter, a Trustee for the Waterloo Area Historical Society, “The current volunteers, who are mostly senior citizens, are beginning to age in body and spirit, and a shortage of new volunteers could put the programs offered at the farm museum and schoolhouse in jeopardy.”

Helpers are needed throughout the year to assist with a wide range of activities—from building and property maintenance to collecting admissions, leading tours, and role-playing. Other volunteer opportunities abound—from baking cookies in the bakehouse, to working in the dried flower barn, or helping out at the annual garden workbee in the spring.

Volunteers can make new holiday traditions by assisting with holiday wreaths assembly, making swags and baskets for sale on Green’s Day, or helping to decorate the farmhouse for the Christmas.

For those who like to work with schoolchildren, the Dewey school provides opportunities to show area children how to draw water from the well, grind corn, cut wood, or wash socks on a washboard.

“Outdoors or indoors, behind the scenes or in the public eye, occasionally or ongoing—volunteers have so many options to choose from. Invite a friend or family member to be with you. Make it a social event. The setting is serene and low stress,” Alter said.

In this 60th year, the historical society must also think ahead to the future. It takes many more than the original 12 volunteers to carry on the work of the society and keep the museums operating. The society can find something to suit the interests of most any volunteer. Call Catherine at 517-648-3676 for assistance in finding a perfect volunteer activity for you.

With your help, adults and children can continue to learn about the heritage of the area through living history experiences for many years to come.

Volunteers bring the area’s pioneer history to life and keep things humming at Waterloo Farm Museum and Dewey School Museum. Photos from waterloofarmmuseum.org