The annual meeting of The Traverse Area Historical Society will be held Saturday, October 19th at 1:00 pm in the McGuire room at the Traverse Area District Library, 610 Woodmere Avene, Traverse City. TAHS members are encouraged to attend and vote in the annual board of directors election.
Author: traversehistory
September 2019 TAHS Program — The Lost Doughboys of Grand Traverse County
Sunday, September 8th at 2 pm in the McGuire room of the Traverse Area District Library, Main Branch.
Who were our Grand Traverse Doughboys who went Over There and never came home? Come hear the stories of some of the nearly ninety men from our region who fought and died in the Great War and whose names are on the World War I marker in our beautiful Veterans Park. Local historian and Interlochen Arts Academy instructor Brian McCall will present this program.
August 2019 Newsletter Available
Want to keep up with TAHS’ latest projects and news? Need to find out when our tours are going to be? Want to get involved? Then check out our newsletter, a free PDF download that you can find by clicking here: August 2019 Newsletter
Newsletter for May 2019 now available!
Want to keep up with TAHS’ latest projects and news? Need to find out when our tours are going to be? Want to get involved? Then check out our newsletter, a free PDF download that you can find by clicking here: MAY 2019 Newsletter
May 2019 TAHS Program – The Changing Face of Traverse City’s Waterfronts: Past, Present and Future
Saturday, May 18th at 1pm in the McGuire room of the Traverse Area District Library, Main Branch
April 2019 TAHS Program — How Schools Changed: Traverse City Public: a Case Study by Richard Fidler
Saturday, April 20th at 1pm, in the McGuire room Traverse Area District Library, Main Branch
Local historian Richard Fidler will present on the history of education in Traverse City from 1885 to the present day: instruction, curriculum, tests, the mission of schooling, Title IX, growth of technology, and above all, the influence of the federal and state governments on school practice.
Examining student handbooks, yearbooks, school board records, eighth grade tests from 1919, state education websites, Grand Traverse Normal School records, oral histories, interviews, newspaper articles, and photographs from the Local History collection of the Traverse Area District Library, Richard Fidler will show us what schools used to be—as well as how they became what they are today. Told as a narrative focused on the Traverse City Area Public Schools, this history of education will interest all who care about children, teachers, and schools.
We hope to see you there!
Speakeasy Salon Series – March, April, & May
TAHS is hosting a new event series at the Traverse City Speakeasy, 123 W. Front Street.
A salon, as a type of intellectual gathering, can be described with both the purpose of entertaining and educating.
In a relaxed, elegant, and cozy setting, knowledgeable history ambassadors will share stories of Traverse City’s past and we welcome members of the community to join us. Attend and share your own stories, those of family members – or tales or information you have researched or heard over the years. Each event will have a theme for stories to center around, and TAHS members will help facilitate the discussions. Enjoy a creative craft cocktail as you converse with others who are enthusiastic about our area’s rich and colorful history.
Our history ambassadors will start out the conversation with a few prepared stories, and we’ll all enjoy and add to the discussion. If you have photographs or objects you’d like to bring along to discuss and share, please do!
These events will be held from 5-7 pm on the 2nd Sunday of each month, March, April, and May.
Speakeasy Salon Series events:
March 10th 5-7 pm – Uncouth Characters
The men and women of Traverse City and Northern Michigan who were known for their colorful lives and personalities.
April 14th 5-7 pm – Illicit Operations
What business and livelihoods have been prolific in the area, but perhaps running under-the-radar?
May 12th 5-7 pm – Mothers of the North
For Mother’s Day, let’s explore the lives of the women who have nurtured their families, friends and their Northern communities.
You are welcome to attend as a community member, and if you’d like to be involved further, please contact TAHS Programs and Event Chair, Jen Loup, at loup.jen@gmail.com.
TAHS Programs at TADL have switched to Saturdays!
The upcoming programs for the monthly history program series, held in the McGuire room at the Traverse Area District Library on Woodmere Ave, will take place on the third Saturday of every month instead of the third Sunday. We are avoiding some conflicts with major holidays, and we’d love to see you there — same time, different day. 1:00-3:00.
March 16th
Kathy Firestone – The Maritime History of Greilickville
April 20th
Richard Fidler – How Schools Changed: Traverse City Public: A Case Study
May 18th
Russ Soyring – Traverse City Planner
February 2019 TAHS Program: Joyeux Noel – The Christmas Truce of 1914 by Brian McCall
Joyeux Noel – The Christmas Truce of 1914 and the End of Innocence
Brian McCall will focus on the first months of fighting that culminated with the fabled cease-fire that ended the first year of the Great War and how it still resonates with us today, more than a century after the US entered the War in 1917. World War I has received increased attention and study in the past five years, including the 2018 release of the Peter Jackson documentary, “They Shall Not Grow Old”.
Brian McCall has been a member of the Interlochen Arts Academy faculty since 1998 and also has served since 2003 as an adjunct instructor in American History at both Northwestern Michigan College and Ferris State University.
January 2019 TAHS Program: Waterfront Transformations by Peg Siciliano
Sunday, January 20, 2019 – 1pm, at the Dennos Museum Center
In partnership with the Dennos Museum Center, Local historian and TAHS board member, Peg Siciliano, will present a program about the transformation of West Bay and Boardman Lake from industrial to recreational uses, and of Traverse City’s change from a lumbering and industrial hub to an outdoor mecca for tourists and retirees. Please join the TAHS for their January monthly program held in conjunction with Visions of American Life: Paintings from the Manoogian Collection, 1850 – 1940, organized and toured by the Detroit Institute of Arts. This program is free of charge thanks to a grant from Art Bridges.
The program will be held at the Dennos Museum Center (1701 E. Front St. GPS: 1410 College Drive, Traverse City, MI) on Sunday, January 20th, at 1 pm. Program is free and open to the public.
