Submitted by Kathy Berg
Lashburn Centennial Museum
The Veterans’ Gallery in Lashburn, part of the Lashburn Centennial Museum, is celebrating its 20th anniversary and grand reopening in its new location on Saturday, June 8.
The Veterans’ Gallery was the brainchild of Milly Carruthers (1924-2017). In the early days of Milly’s teaching career, she watched her contemporaries leave to fight in WWII. Milly corresponded with some of these young men.
When Milly was nearing retirement, she had a desire to recognize our veterans. In April, 1999, the museum passed a motion allowing Milly to design a veterans’ gallery. That month she wrote letters to veterans or their relatives, asking for veterans’ information and received 80 framed submissions, as she called them. Another 76 families were working on information.
Before long, the rest of the board felt just as passionate about this project, including Isabelle Hurlburt. She and Milly were like “two peas in a pod,” as Isabelle’s daughter remembered. And more than one remembered the frames and information that were piled high in Milly’s living room. Milly liked to boast that she had framed 200 veterans.
The museum, itself, had been founded in 1967, so a solid catalogue system was in place. This was Clara Harris’ forte, so she saw to it that the VG collection was also carefully documented. And so the Veterans’ Gallery continued to grow and be documented.
Dale Winacott bought the Legion building a few years ago and generously donated it to the museum. Over the next few years a foundation was built and eventually the legion was moved onto its present site. The ugly siding was removed revealing shiplap, which we painted. The roof was repaired and shingled. Inside it was gutted and renovated, painted and re-floored. In 2017 the renovations were completed, and in the spring of 2018 the collection was moved over.
In 2017, Bev Henry donated a large collection of items and uniforms from the 1970-1980 militia including our first female uniforms, and our first Dead Man’s Penny.
The collection consists of more than framed records of service. In the collection you will find uniforms from the Boer War up to the 1980s, a wheel chair and prosthetic legs, prison art, medals, pictures, canteens, a gas mask, a rocket launcher and much more, along with their stories.
It’s exciting when the public and our young employees get enthusiastic about the history and designing the displays. In 2018 the student employees put together a collage of WWI photographic prints. Two local women designed the front display area of our new location. Are we finished yet? No. There are still a few more upgrades. We also plan to heat the building, so we can accept a WWII model airplane collection. There is also potential for an additional display area.
By bringing this information to the public, our goals are threefold – more visits to the Veterans’ Gallery – offers of volunteering from people who share our passion – and monetary donations.
You are invited to help us celebrate on June 8, which is also Lashburn’s Community Day. We will participate in the town parade at 10:30 am. The ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at 1:30 p.m. on the steps of the Legion, which is the new home of the Veterans’ Gallery. Tours of the gallery and the museum will be available throughout the day.
