The LCHS Archives “Our Very Own Time Machine” By Barbara Coyner As the editor of Preservation Moscow, the annual newsletter for the Moscow Historic Preservation Commission, I certainly know the value of the archives at the Latah County Historical Society. After the Commission members select a local historical theme as its focus, I get to do the research for the annual newspaper insert released each fall. Automatically the quest for photos and content leads me to the LCHS coll

The circus was a very special event across American in the early 20th Century.  I was recently researching the circus and its effect on Latah County when I came across this wonderful circus route across the United States in 1912. So I decided this was a great opportunity to map the route of the Sells-Floto Circus in 1912. Below you will find the map. Please note that the different colors represent different months. Click on any pin to see the city and date that the circus was

As a build up to the Latah County Historical Society’s World War One coverage we are taking a look at WW1 events and headlines across Latah County. Look forward to these posts once per month to set the scene for life and news across Latah County 100 years ago. Prior to and Including July 1916 The United States did not suddenly find itself involved in the Great War in Europe. Nor was the impending war the only ongoing circumstance causing concern. There were other conditions a

The Latah County Historical Society marks 40 years carrying on a local tradition whose origins date back over a century when it hosts its annual ice cream social this Sunday, July 26th, at the McConnell Mansion in Moscow. The event, held from 1:00-4:30 P.M. at 110 South Adams Street, is expected to attract several hundred guests to the Historical Society’s primary public venue. The Historical Society hosts several such community events every year– including a harvest dinner,

If you’re looking for a great party, look no further than Kendrick, Idaho.  Saturday April 25th marked a festive celebration in Kendrick, Idaho.  The Juliaetta-Kendrick Heritage Foundation opened their permanent museum.  This museum is the culmination of years of hard work to obtain and preserve the Fraternal Temple building in Kendrick.  Entering the museum you go into a large open space that just screams for large events to be hosted there.  This space had wonderful exhibi

On December 13th, 2014 the Latah County Historical Society had our annual Victorian Christmas party.  The party was well attended by folks from Latah County and beyond, with over 200 people in attendance.  We think this event was a great way to show off the McConnell Mansion in all of its Christmas splendor.  In case you missed it, the Mansion is open from Tuesday-Friday from 1pm-4pm and is available for tours. The fantastic holiday party took place in the afternoon.  The eve

The McConnell Mansion has a new feeling once the decorations go up.  The Mansion seems like it has been refreshed after a long year and is ready to welcome new visitors for the holiday season.  Below are some photos of the LCHS events committee preparing the house for what is sure to be a fantastic holiday season.  I want to take this opportunity to invite everyone for our Victorian Christmas event on Saturday (12/13) from 1pm-4pm.  I’m sure this event will be at least as gre

This year Latah County Historical Society has been a recipient of a Northwest History Network Microfunding Grant.  This article is written to inform our membership and the Northwest History Network of the progress we have made with the new archival boxes provided by this grant. In January of 2014 I joined the Latah County Historical Society (Latah County, Idaho with our office and historic house located in Moscow) in capacity as museum curator.  As many of you are aware, work

It’s that time of year again for the Latah County Historical Society Harvest Dinner!  This year our Harvest Dinner broke from tradition and was offered in a new location, the Moscow High School.  The Harvest Dinner was a great success, thanks to our many volunteers who worked very hard to make it happen.  A special thanks goes out to our great events committee who organized the event.  Below are some photographs from the event.  We look forward to another great event next yea

Looking back on the most recent election makes us proud here at LCHS.  We believe in the importance of voting and its impact on our lives.  Here in Latah County there has been a long standing tradition of voting and its importance.  In researching our archives we came across the following photos of the voting process. While the voting process is important, there is not much about voting that is more important than the actual ballot.  These ballots were from the election held

On Saturday morning the University of Idaho Center for Volunteerism and Social Action sponsored the Make A Difference Day.  Saturday nine UI student volunteers descended upon the McConnell Mansion to help LCHS on some special projects. These students and I worked hard on two projects, one of which would not have been possible without the help of Ryan from Guardian Comprehensive Home Services.  This project was the outside clean-up of the McConnell Mansion.  As you might have

Here at the Latah County Historical Society we are serious about our volunteers.  On Thursday 10/23 LCHS hosted some of our volunteers for chili with fixins, vegetables, brownies and cheesecake at the historic McConnell Mansion.  This lunch was a great way for us to recognize our volunteers.  This was also a great opportunity for the volunteers to meet each other.  The lunch was well attended by approximately 20 LCHS volunteers.  Here at LCHS we would like to sincerely thank

October, as some of you may know, is American Archives Month.  To get you in the archival mood, I thought I would begin Archives Month by discussing the Latah County Historical Society archives.  When I talk about archives, I am speaking about documentary history.  Historic papers (also referred to as records) stored in acid free folders and in acid free boxes so that they can be preserved as long as possible. The LCHS archives are housed in our Centennial Annex.  The LCHS ar