Museum will be decked out for the holidays
The Rockmart Historical Museum, located at 133 Marble Street downtown, will be at the center of 2014 holiday events in Rockmart.
Kicking off the Christmas season will be the second annual Festival of Trees, which will be a part of the décor at the Museum.
The tree in the History room will be decorated with homemade ornaments from the Methodist preschool children.
In the foyer will be a 9foot tree decorated with donated Christmas ornaments from the people of Rockmart. Anyone can give one of these by placing it in a collection basket at the museum.
A tree will be placed in the Welsh area and decorated with ornaments from Wales.
Additionally, a small tree will be located in front of the mirror from Marble Hill. Volunteers will decorate the interior in a festive holiday theme.
The Festival of Trees begins Saturday, Nov. 15 and continues through December 23.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, a Christmas bazaar will be held with a silent auction. Residents and visitors can pick up some special baked goods and visit with your friends on this date.
This event benefits WELSHfest and its three sponsoring organizations: Rockmart Historical Museum, Euharlee Valley Historical Society and St. David’s Welsh Society of Georgia.
The Museum will be represented with a vehicle in the Rockmart Christmas parade and will be open that Friday evening, Dec. 5.
The facility will also be open from during the Rockmart in December tour of homes on Saturday, Dec. 6 and Sunday afternoon, Dec. 7.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of World War I. Therefore, the Museum will feature a special memorial to the over 37 million military and civilian casualties of that war, with a special focus on those from Rockmart.
Additionally, the facility will be the place to visit during the fall and winter seasons.
This is a time when visitors usually arrive on the Silver Comet Trail and along the major transportation arties into Rockmart. They are often directed to the facility and come away surprised and pleased with what they learned.
“I did not realize we have so much history in this one place,” said Pricilla Owens of Atlanta. She was with her grandson who was interested in what he described as “old things”.
This included a parking meter and Bell South telephone.
“It is difficult for his generation to realize there was a time without cell phones and digital gadgets,” she smiled as she departed.
“Oh yes, we saw the sign and I had a few minutes of extra time,” she said. “I am truly glad I stopped and let him browse around. I forgot to sign the register, but I will make it a point to do so when we return.”
The local museum opened on March 24, 2011 following months of planning and moving into the building it now shares with the Polk County Chamber of Commerce.