Archival Research through the Lens of the Docent By Nancy Ruth Peterson “So, do you have any more information about the house’s history?”   “Who were the people  who lived here and what were they like? “  “What is the history of this house?” Visitors to the McConnell Mansion often asked these questions when I am the docent.  My curiosity was aroused, and it became my quest to answer those questions in the form of a tri-fold pamphlet that we could hand out when people expresse

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

October 1st marked the beginning of Archives Month, a month-long celebration of archives! The Latah County Historical Society is celebrating by sharing our collections with the world via our social media outlets: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. To see as much of the collection as possible, be sure to follow along all month long. To begin archives month, I thought it would be helpful to write about what we hold at the Latah County Historical Society (LCHS) archives. LCHS pre

The Water In Brewing exhibit opened at the Brews & BBQ event earlier this year.  However I thought I would take a few moments to explain the exhibit globally and how it was made. This exhibit was born out of a brainstorming meeting that was held with community members at the 1912 Center in order to focus the LCHS programming for the Water|Ways exhibit in December and January.  This exhibit looks at the differences in water in Latah County as they pertain to brewing beer. The

To begin our tale I would like to thank everyone who came to the McConnell Mansion last week to support the Latah County Historical Society’s Victorian Christmas party.  The party was a huge success, thank you. To fully comprehend the curious case of the curator and the Christmas tree I am here to take you on a journey back in time.  The journey takes you all the way back to November 30, 2015.  While most people were staying at home (or at their office) working on Cyber Monda

The hot and very dry days of summer are upon us, and it’s got us thinking about ways to efficiently maintain the grounds of the McConnell Mansion while also being mindful of the water needs of our entire community and region.  Such considerations seem even more important as wildfires threaten neighbors on all sides of the Palouse.  One way that we are able to conserve water is by maintaining the beautiful trees that surround the Mansion.  Earlier this spring we were pleased

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

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

In honor of Valentines Day we thought we’d share some photos from our Victorian Valentine’s Day event.  Last Saturday, February 8th, Latah County Historical Society hosted an open house at the McConnell Mansion.  To celebrate the event we opened the doors and invited the public to come enjoy cookies, crafts, and good times with us.  The Appaloosa Lace Maker’s Guild was at the event showing off their skills.  There was music at the event by the talented Juliana Witt on piano a