Olive Branch tour brings past to life for kindergartners

Olive Branch officials brought history to life for the city’s kindergartners during a walking tour that featured men in top hats and a chicken named Miss Lacy.

Olive Branch Elementary School children take a tour of downtown each year, but this year historical figures were brought back from the dead to tell their stories.

Olive Branch leaders and tourism officials hope the “living history” tours can be developed for and pitched to adults, said Pat Hamilton, who is on a committee to re-imagine how the city’s historic Wesson House can be used by the public.

The house was the home of the city’s first mayor. While it is open for a Christmas event, officials discontinued it being rented for special occasions due to upkeep.

The children’s walking tour Wednesday started at Blocker Cemetery, where Sam Rikard, who was Olive Branch’s mayor for 16 years, played the part of Milton Blocker, one of the city’s founders. He dressed in a top hat and waited for the children outside the wrought-iron gate. Chief Lush-pun-tubby, who sold the land to Blocker, waited also.

The children came in waves of about 50 each, or about six groups. They were accompanied by teachers and parents, and police blocked traffic as they walked.

At City Hall, Brian Hicks with the DeSoto Museum introduced himself as Mr. Wesson, the city’s first mayor. He wore a top hat too, and he asked the children to take care of his chickens when they visit Wesson House, the home he built. He told them he was shot dead because of an argument over chickens.

The children seemed intrigued and anxious to see an animal but before getting to the house, they stopped by the fire building across the street, and the firefighters and their gear captured their full attention. The firefighters gave them plastic fire hats and showed them how a firefighter dresses to go into a house fire.

Tyler Donahoo put on his thick coat and pants and slung an oxygen tank over his back. A mask covered his face, and he demonstrated how he had to yell to be heard; even then his voice was muffled. This is how children might see and hear him if they were trapped in a house fire.

Firefighter Justin Davis walked up to Donahoo, grabbed his arm and shook him.

“The first thing we want you to do is say, ‘Hey! Hey! I’m right here,’ Davis said. “Don’t be afraid. Come to us.”

Davis then let the children loose on Donahoo. They surrounded his legs, a sea of little people in red plastic hats, and touched his rough firefighting garments and oxygen tank. At one point the crowd became so enthusiastic, Donahoo began to rock. He caught his balance and stepped to the edge of the group.

At Wesson House, Pannay Guigley with the DeSoto Museum introduced herself as Mrs. Wesson and the chicken in a cage as Miss Lacy.

She told the children that Olive Branch used to be called Cowpen because of cow pens in the area.

“Would you like it if we changed the name back to Cowpen?” she asked.

“No!” the children responded.

Miss Lacy paced her cage as Guigley talked. The shawl around Guigley’s shoulders was a handy item in the crisp cool morning air.

In the character of Mrs. Wesson, she told the children that her neighbor got so mad one day about the chickens eating his garden that he shot Mr. Wesson.

Amy Wilson, one of the kindergarten teachers, said the tour helps give children perspective on the past.