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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-09-14 Historical Preservation Committee Minutes September 14, 2009 CALL TO ORDER Chair, Betty Fuller, called the meeting to order at 10:04 a.m. The meeting was held at City Hall in the Pre-Council Chamber at 201 North Ector Drive, Euless, Texas. MEMBERS PRESENT Weldon Cannon, Susan Ellis, Gary Fieldsend, Dan Clark, Bill Golden, Tom Stover, Betty Fuller, Faye Stinneford, Helen Voss, Doris Brown, Iris Elliott, Troy Fuller, Donna Mickan, Sue Stover, David Massey, Veva Lou Massey, Ralph Williamson, Glenn Walker, Don Martin, Robert Nail, Beth Gathings, James Gathings, Norma Lively and Helen Gleghorn. RECOGNITION OF VISITORS Council Member Leon Hogg Barbara Collier STAFF PRESENT Ray McDonald, Director of Parks and Recreation Michael Davenport, Recreation Superintendant Ofa"Mary" Faiva-Siale, Projects Coordinator APPROVAL OF MINUTES Bill Golden made a motion to approve the minutes as is. Helen Voss seconded the motion. Motion approved. TREASURER'S REPORTS Treasurer, Robert Nail, reported a current balance of$6,382.25. A reimbursement check of$138.97 was written to Bill Byers for purchases of supplies to build displays at Heritage Park. VISITOR'S REPORT 1. Barbara Collier was introduced to the Committee; she is interested in serving on the Historical Preservation Committee. Staff was asked to mail Doris Brown a Board and Commission application for Mrs. Collier to complete. DOCENT'S REPORT/RECRUITMENT 1. There were fifteen visitors during open house in June. HPC MTG. 091409 Page 1 2. Faye Stinneford reported a good turn out in July. There were twenty-two visitors. 3. There was a total attendance of one hundred and forty-three people during the month of August. The Midway Recreation Center's summer camp children toured the facility twice and Little Tykes Day Care toured once. Gary Fieldsend reported that the handrail at the entrance to the Log House broke and a gentleman fell as a result. Mr. Fieldsend reported the incident to City staff the Monday following open house. Staff reported that the handrail has been fixed and they will inspect and monitor it regularly to ensure the incident does not occur again. 4. Donna Mickan reported nine people toured the Museum on September 12, 2009. It rained throughout the day and Faye Stinneford mentioned that mud and dirt were tracked in and out of the Fuller House during the day. She expressed concern about the occurrence and the possibility of closing the facility down during inclement weather was mentioned by a couple of members. In addition, the question came up regarding the possibility of changing the open house tour hours to go from 1 to 4 pm instead of its current time of lto 5 pm. A few members felt that traffic during the last hour were very slow. 5. A sign up sheet was passed around for docents to work during up coming tours. Docents are needed for October 10, November 14 and Heritage Park Christmas on December 12, 2009. Veva Lou and David Massey and Ralph Williamson volunteered to docent in October. STATUS OF CURRENT PROJECTS 1. Library History Wall: Betty Fuller reminded the Committee that tiles for the mural are almost sold out. Payment for tiles can be given to Sandra Crowley or Kate Lyon. 2. Calloway Cemetery: • David Massey reported on behalf of the Board of Trustee. The next Board meeting will be on September 29, 2009 at 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church of Euless. • In addition, the annual Calloway Cemetery Association general meeting will be on November 7, 2009, also at the First United Methodist Church of Euless. This meeting is open to the public. • Mr. Massey thanked Weldon Cannon and Pattie Benoit for working on the Association's newsletter. The newsletter looks great. • Mr. Massey also reported that the cost for cemetery plots at Calloway is now $1,250 per plot. • Bill Golden is compiling a list of everyone buried at Calloway Cemetery. 3. Donations and Acquisitions: • An old pair of boots previously donated by Boyce Byers was displayed for the Committee's viewing. The pair is in great condition and will be displayed at the Library. • Mayor Mary Lib Saleh noted the Committee's need for a candle mold in Euless Today and purchased the item for the Committee. • Mayor Saleh also donated a wooden snow shovel that has been in her family for over 100 years. Members were excited about the donation and thought it a great addition to the Museum. • Mrs. Fuller reported on the most recently acquired spinning wheel that's at the Fuller House. She indicated that the spinning wheel is in great condition. • Mrs. Fuller reported that Geraldine Mills of the Fielder House Museum decided not to donate the farm implements she previously intended to donate. HPC MTG 091209 Page 2 • Willie Mae McCormick's daughter, Elizabeth Wilcox, is donating the first television set owned in Euless to the Museum. The set used to be in the Fuller House at its original location. • Bill Porter donated various items and the Acquisition Subcommittee has the paper work for the items. • Tom Stover brought up for consideration the need for a process to evaluate and monitor acceptance of artifacts in to the museum. He felt that having several pieces off`one item is unnecessary; furthermore, the Museum will fill up with a lot of"junk" rather than useful pieces relevant to the area. Some members indicated that this is the reason for the Acquisition Subcommittee's existence; they are in charge of accepting donations, etc. • Bill Golden has an 8 foot horse troth that he offered to donate to the Museum. In the past, various key members indicated their desire to have one for display at Heritage Park. It was indicated that some time may be needed to consider liability; feasibility and other concerns regarding the item; further discussion was postponed until October's meeting. • The City donated three framed photographs and a proclamation by Ann Richards. The items used to hang in the old council chamber walls. Glenn Walker made a motion to accept the donation, Ralph Williamson seconded the motion. Motion approved. 4. Website and Display Projects: • Subcommittee Chair, Dan Clark, reported that the list of past and present City Council members previously removed from the website has been re-posted. The project took a while to complete but he is happy with the end result. • It was reported that all photos from the library displays are posted on the website. Several months' worth of photos is available for viewing on line. • Over one thousand photos have been saved into the database at the Parks and Community Services building. This includes photographs of people, documents and photographs of the artifacts displayed at Heritage Park. • The current Library display is of the old Western Hills Inn. The text displayed with the photograph includes quotes from several key members of the Committee. Next month's display will be of the Great Southwest Airport. Mr. Clark needs suggestions for displays for the next several months. • Dan Clark reported on the Ruth Millican Center display that the Committee previously approved for him to work on. He displayed a photo of the "display plaque" located at the Preserve at McCormick Park. The plaque includes a description of trees on the property in Willie Mae McCormick own words. Mr. Clark indicated that descriptions of other historical locations around the City could be done in the same format including the one for the Ruth Millican Center. He further indicated the possibility of using the "Texas Star" logo previously approved for the local marker project. It was also mentioned that a few members of the Committee had put in a lot of time and effort in researching the Ruth Millican project but at the end, there seemed to be some confusion about whether to continue the project or not. Mr. Clark asked for a decision from the Committee regarding continuation of said project. The thought was expressed that the historical displays that Mr. Clark is working on is a separate project from the local marker project and the two should be kept separate. Since the local marker project is still in the planning stages between Weldon Cannon and City staff, it was generally agreed that the project Mr. Clark is working on should continue as is but that it should be separate from the local marker project. • Members were encouraged to go by the library and view the exhibit in the Genealogy History Room. The display is very impressive. 5. Subcommittee Update/s: HPC MTG 091209 Page 3 • An updated list of various Subcommittees was passed out to the members. Everyone was asked to verify and edit the list according to which committee each member would like to serve on. Everyone was encouraged to join at least one of the Subcommittees. • Dan Clark asked that the list of Subcommittees be included with the minutes every other month as a reminder for which Subcommittee each person belongs to. 6. Historical Marker Project: • Weldon Cannon reported on the Horticulture Marker dedication ceremony back on June 14, 2009. The event had more people than he expected with about eighty people and everything went beautifully. Mr. Cannon gratefully thanked the staff and the Historical Preservation Committee for their generous support during the event. Ralph Williamson gave his apologies for not being able to attend the ceremony. • Mr. Cannon completed the Euless School marker application. Everything has been sent to the foundry; it may be two to three months before the marker is delivered to South Euless Elementary School. He indicated his hope of possibly having two ceremonies; one ceremony could be on a weekend and one could be on a weekday, this way students and school officials can also attend. Mr. Cannon, however, indicated that deference to the Mayor and City officials' wishes regarding the ceremony is in order as the City purchased the marker. • Mr. Cannon reported that Texas State Historical Markers will become more difficult to obtain in 2010. The Texas State Historical Commission will only award 265 markers per year. • Mr. Cannon will begin working on the marker application for Aviation and its effects on the area. He briefly mentioned the migration of the Tongan people to Euless as an example for the project. 7. Evolving History: • Members were given a list of notable events with historical significance for 2009. Included on the list were topics such as statistical information, major employers, current events, City of Euless projects, etc. Subcommittee Chair, Dan Clark, will give a monthly report on the proj ect. • Troy Fuller, Betty Fuller, Mr. and Mrs. Nail, Weldon Cannon, Bill Byers and other key members were asked to "jot" down historical events and occurrences since the Committee's inception on October 27, 1992. Everyone was asked to bring their notes to the next meeting for inclusion in the evolving history project. • Council Members Leon Hogg and Donna Mickan mentioned the installation of the statue at the Golf Course as a notable event. The statue is a beautiful piece of art and they encouraged everyone to go by and take a look at it. 8. Historical Snippet: Bill Golden read an article from the Arlington Journal, dated Friday, December 26, 1902; the article was titled "A Serious Accident". The article began with... "J. R. Fuller, a prominent farmer of Euless, started to Arlington driving a span of big strong mules, to a hack with a closetop. At G. W. Himes he was joined by Mr. Himes. After proceeding but a short distance they came up with Bill Miller's traction engine which was being driven by Andy Hutton..."the article went on to talk about how the mules bolted when a safety valve blew off of the engine and Mr. Rimes became entangled in the lines. It said that the mules ran about forty yards before the lines tightened enough around Mr. Himes' body causing the mules to finally come to a stop. The article ended with"He was fearfully bruised and bleeding freely, and thought his shoulder was dislocated. He walked back home while Mr. Fuller, who escaped uninjured, came on to town." The Committee thought it a very interesting piece. HPC MTG 091209 Page 4 MCCORMICK BARN/ OUTDOOR UPDATE 1. Betty Fuller reported that the big iron pot is full of water and asked that it be dumped out. Staff will take care of the request. HIMES LOG HOUSE UPDATE 1. It was reported that putty around a couple of windows in the Log House has hardened and peeled off of the glass. This needs to be fixed since the glass panes are very expensive to replace. Staff will have the problem fixed. FULLER HOUSE UPDATE 1. Sue Stover reported that a new guest book was purchased for the Fuller House. Staff reported that they also had replacement"sign in"pages made for the original book. STAFF REPORT CHAIRMAN'S REPORT 1. Reported that Helen Gleghorn recently had jaw surgery. Mrs. Gleghorn attended the meeting and Mrs. Fuller thanked her for her dedication to the Committee. Helen Payton and Doyle Brown could not attend the meeting due to other engagements. Bill Byers' grandson recently had kidney surgery and Mavy Wright also couldn't attend the meeting. 2. Betty Fuller and Sue Stover will meet with school officials regarding upcoming elementary school tours. 3. Reminded the Committee of the Tarrant County Historical Commission's Annual Summit on October 17, 2009 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The Summit will be at the Senior Center in White Settlement. It was mentioned that one staff member has had to attend the summit each year to set up the Committee's display for the event. Donna Mickan noted that the number of attendees at these Summits may not warrant the need for a staff member to take the hours required to travel to the event, set up and remain during the event, take down the display then return to work. She therefore made a motion that staff not attend the summits anymore for the purpose of setting up a display. No one opposed, motioned was approved and staff was very grateful. COMMITTEE REPORTS 1. Helen Voss: members inquired about Mr. Voss' condition. Mrs. Voss reported that he is currently doing well; he was recently rushed to the hospital and had major surgery done. Mrs. Voss expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the City, its staff and the Mayor herself for the great team work, concern and professionalism displayed by everyone involved with regards to her husband's situation. She discussed the quick response by the EMS personnel, from the time of the 911 call to surgery it was 59 minutes, this is an unbeatable record and Mrs. Voss is very proud to live in Euless and be a part of such a caring community. 2. Bill Golden: expressed concern regarding the Log House and the outdoor being left unattended during open house weekends. Some members were agreeable to Mr. Golden's concerns, however, it was mentioned that due to the extremes in Texas weather, it may be needful to be indoor at HPC MTG 091209 Page 5 times. Mrs. Fuller encouraged the members to keep a constant look out when inside the Fuller House. Staff reminded the members that the alarm chime will go off inside the Fuller House once there's movement outside the facility. This could also help docents monitor outside traffic. ADJOURNMENT James Gathings made a motion for the meeting to adjourn. David Massey seconded the motion. Motion approved. The meeting adjourned at 12:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted by Ofa"Mary"Faiva-Siale, Projects Coordinator City of Euless Parks & Community Services HPC MTG 091209 Page 6 HISTORICAL PRESERVATION COMMITTEE 2009 SUBCOMMITTIES SUBCOMMITTEE PURPOSE 'MEMBERS Secure a facts o de documentation for records-gift%loan.forms, ACQUISITION wishrlist update Be aware of current inventory,duplications,and :hoe-de itetns. Bill Byers-Chair Betty Fuller Bill Golden Mavy Wright Helen Payton Iva Nail Doyle Brown DISPLAY' Int` large fd pla ` abeli g,-etc: *Fuller House Mavy Wright-Chair and Nimes Log House Iva Nail Helen Payton Norma Lively Faye Stinneford Helen Voss Betty Fuller Susan Ellis *McCormick Barn and All Outdoor Bill Byers-Chair Bill Golden Doyle Brown Gary Fieldsend Don Martin Glenn Walker Ralph Williamson *Library Geneology History Room Betty Fuller-Chair Helen Payton Susan Ellis Helen Voss Faye Stinneford Glenn Walker *Library Monthly Photo Display Dan Clark PHOTOGRAPHY In charge of taking photographs of historical sites,but ldi s, locations,et Dan Clark-Chair Don Martin Gary Fieldsend SUBCOMMITTEE PURPOSE MEMBERS in charge of coordina WEBSITE pertaining oth Com mnig tt eiet'h s wCit y b ptaagfe on changes updates,etc" Dan Clark-Chair Gary Fieldsend En charge of research and maintenance of records pertaining EvOl.VtI�G HISTORY = �; evolving'history of major events of historical interests,etc Dan Clark-Chair Tom Stover-Co-Chair Helen Lightbody Emphasis on procuring historical past&present photos relevant to , Euless h ory Include identification and labeling of subjects,everts PHflTQ,AL6 M ,; or scenes displayed in photos Ensures alf photos.are scanned by City, staf In charge- placement of ptos to albums and maintenance Betty Fuller-Chair Weldon Cannon Helen Gleghorn Donna Mickan Sue Stover Helen Payton Doris Brown Bill Byers Dan Clark ,Compile cemetery survey information,map cemetery,identification C/ LLOW1kY CEMETERIC of gravesites, corn-phle master of cemetery census list Bill Byers-Chair Weldon Cannon Betty Fuller David Massey Veva Lou Massey James Gathings Beth Gathings Helen Gleghorn Bill Golden Helen Payton Iva Nail Donna Mickan -OPEN HOUSE&TOURS In charge of scheduling docents,field trips,group tours,etc Betty Fuller-Chair Sue Stover Helen Voss