The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
History curators to honor 40 years
Madison Historical Society anniversary party set for April 20
Thanks to the diligence and dedication of its membership over the years, the Madison Historical Society is preparing for a party that’s been four decades in the making.
The organization charged with preserving the greater Madison community’s collective biography has a 40th anniversary celebration slated for April 20, at which members plan to honor its three living founding members (although they won’t be in attendance), its officials over the years and survey the scene it’s helped create for generations to come.
“We are going to honor our three surviving board members, past presidents and we want to remember the dedication of our membership,” said Madison Historical Society President Dianne Cross. “We have a lot to be thankful for, because (our founding members) did stick with it and persevere.”
Cross, the historical society’s office manager/ membership chairperson Marje Shook and past president/longtime member Nancy Hearn spent some time March 28 at the organization’s headquarters, 136A W. Main St. in Madison Village, talking about its roots, some highlights over the last 40 years and what lies ahead for the organization of roughly 260 members.
Cross, Hearn and Shook said the MHS was
born in 1977 when locals – Louanna Billington and Donna Keyse – attended an estate sale at the Crandall family’s home on Aug. 8, 1977, where they found inspiration to preserve the community’s history.
“I think (Billington and Keyse) got hugely interested because they went to the estate sale and saw all these items leaving Madison,” Shook said. “So they are the ones who, really, (had) the fire lit under them to try and preserve (Madison’s history).”
They didn’t waste much time getting support, either.
“They got some help from the schools,” said Hearn, who is a 38-year MHS member. “They got a grant there. Then, during Old Fashioned Days, they had a card table out and just got people to sign up there.”
On Oct. 11, 1977, the group’s founders held a public meeting to discuss some specifics and, by April 19, 1978, a committee drawn from its 103 members agreed on a set of bylaws and the organization’s first slate of officers was elected the same day.
According to its current president, its mission hasn’t changed much over the years.
“Our mission is to collect, preserve, teach and share the history of Madison and its people,” Cross said.
After which Hearn chimed in: “And, boy, have we collected!”
She isn’t kidding, either. Crammed into the small storefront the organization now calls home are all manner of collections: memorabilia from Madison’s own Willow Craft Co., pieces from the William Edwards
Canning Co., the production facility of which once called Madison home, exhibits dedicated to The Madison Wheel Company and Madison native and American newspaper comic strip pioneer Frederick Burr Opper.
But what can be seen in the Madison Historical Society’s History Center and Gift Shop is only the tip of the iceberg, as far as its collection goes.
“Oh, this is just a small piece of what we’ve collected over the years,” Cross said as she pointed
out some of the artifacts on display. “We have two huge storage units full of stuff.”
Now in its fifth location, the organization has never had a permanent home, the ladies confirmed, so it’s not able to display its entire collection.
A good example is the series of scale-model, rural Ohio buildings noted Madison craftsman and homebuilder Herbert William Swaby created in the 1960s - 70s as he explored the development and decline of farm communities. Swaby crafted each one meticulously, right down to scalemodel furnishings inside each. At this point, however, they’re stuck in a storage area inside the group’s headquarters, out of the public eye.
Although the group manages its finances carefully, Shook said, it’s tough for a nonprofit organization to keep on keeping on, especially in this day of public funding cuts and tightening purse strings.
“We’re very money conscious,”
“Our mission is to collect, preserve, teach and share the history of Madison and its people.” — Madison Historical Society President Dianne Cross
she said, adding that they have to be in order to stretch their shoestring budget enough to keep current. “But, just like the boll weevil, we’re just lookin’ for a home.”
Shoestring budget notwithstanding, the MHS crew has managed to serve its public well over the years, offering services to families looking for genealogical information, prospective home buyers wanting to learn about the histories of specific properties and the occasional inquiry from a public safety agency in search of some historical facts.
Three remaining original board members include Donna Keyse, Richard Hart and Rosemary Wayman.
Reached by phone at his winter home in Florida, Hart said it’s good to know the organization he helped found is still going strong.
“I know it’s still pretty active and they try to do their best so people will know what their history is,” Hart said.
As always, the Madison Historical Society welcomes new members. For information on joining or to make use of the group’s many services, e-mail info@historicalmadison.org, visit the group’s Facebook page or call 440-417-1959.