Historical Society to unveil Children’s History Room

The Lorain Historical Society will debut a new Children’s History Room April 15 at the Carnegie Center.

A ribbon-cutting and community open house is from 2-4 p.m. at 329 W. 10th St. in Lorain to unveil the newest addition which brings two permanent exhibits along with a curriculum designed for children from pre kindergarten to third-grade.

“This project has been an important part of the renovation of the Carnegie Center since the early stages of planning in 2013,” said Barb Piscopo, executive director of the Lorain Historical Society. “We have known that it was essential to educate the youngest members of our community about the rich history and heritage of Lorain if the love for the city is going to be passed on to future generations.

“We are pleased and proud to showcase not only the space, but also the programming concepts to the community on Sunday, April 15.”

In the early stages of planning for the Carnegie Center, the Historical Society reached out to Roy Church, then-president of Lorain County Community College for assistance.

LCCC connected the Historical Society with Michele Henes, an early childhood education professor and coordinator of the Children’s Learning Center at LCCC, to design two exhibits, according to a news release.

The exhibits will include a working Bascule Bridge and a “cut out” of an ore freighter. These concepts were brought to life by the drawings of Christopher Cocco, along with renderings of other temporary exhibits featuring the entrepreneurial side of Lorain history as well as its heritage as “The International City.”

The curriculum designed by Henes will include learning modules integrating Lorain history in the areas of language arts, mathematics, science, social studies and the arts.

Prior to the start of the formal programming in the fall, open houses and minilessons will be conducted for small groups of children from summer school programs, summer camps and pre-schools in June and July, the release said.

The exhibits were fabricated and installed by Benchmark Craftsmen of Seville, Ohio.

Benchmark designs trade show exhibits with some of its clients including Stanley Black and Decker, BMW Motorcycles as well as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

For information, contact Piscopo at 440-245-2563 or by email at bpiscopo@lorainhistory.org.