This was a gift to the Winona Fire Dept. from the Chippewa Falls, WI Fire Dept. in 1875. 

 

Adopt an Artifact—Restore a Relic

The Winona County Historical Society is pleased to announce a new initiative to help improve its collection.  “Adopt an Artifact—Restore a Relic” is an opportunity for friends of the museum to assist in the restoration of items in the collection.

 

Even though the collection is handled with great care, items deteriorate over the years.  In addition, many items are donated after years of use, and are already in need of restoration when received by the Society.   This work is expensive and time-consuming, and can only be done by certified Conservators.

 

The kick-off event will be held Friday, September 5th from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Signatures/Visions Event Center.  There, you will have the opportunity to view artifacts seldom displayed, and decide which items you wish to sponsor, while enjoying a dessert buffet and Jazz entertainment.  Tickets are available in advance at the Armory Museum for $15, or at the door for $20.   Click here for more details.

 

Your pledges will be made confidentially, but you will be recognized at the museum, and recorded with the history of the item.  In addition to supporting specific items, you may also make pledges to purchase supplies needed for the proper storage of the collection.

 

 

Here is a sampling of the items up for adoption:

Rockledge Child’s Chair

This is a child’s chair from Rockledge, the summer home of Mr. E.L. King and Mrs. Grace Watkins King.  It was designed by George W. Maher, and donated by Frank Mertes.

 

Although in good shape, the original color was painted over.  We would like to restore it to its original color.  This means painstakingly removing the top layer of paint a que-tip at a time.

 

The crank organ is associated with the Organ Grinder and is known to have existed as early as the 12th century.  The general design shown in this piece developed in the early 1800’s, and then stayed the same from then on.

 

The mechanism is similar to a music box, but larger and using wooden pins.  This box has a repertoire of 11 songs, each about one to three minutes long.  Although the barrel could be changed, it was a large and cumbersome component.

 

The mechanism is in working order, but the inside needs cleaning and the outside has several areas that need repair.

 

Although a historically significant piece, we don’t know much about its history.

 

Fireman’s Trumpet

(Megaphone)

Although trumpets like this were used to help communicate at the scene of a fire, this one was given as a token of esteem, or honor, although the reason is unknown.

 

This had been damaged but very poorly repaired before it was donated.  We would like to repair it in a more professional way to restore it to its original beauty.

 

Note the detail, as shown on the insert.

Horse Hair Hunting Bag

This bag belonged to Verranzano Simpson, a prominent Winona businessman in from 1855 until 1905.  He was elected Mayor twice, and was an official of the Winona & Southwestern RR.

 

Note the folded leather at the top.  It has been this way for a long time and is very brittle.  One does not just fold it out.  Rather, a conservator must do it very carefully and with the proper tools

Most Needed

Conservation Supplies

Proper conservation requires the proper storage materials.  Each item must be stored in the proper way.   In this list are the most critically needed items.  These will be purchased from well-know museum suppliers.

Acid-free storage boxes of various sizes

Video cassette storage boxes

Foam corner protectors for paintings

Quilt boxes

Roll storage for textiles and architectural drawings.

Acid-free hat boxes

Acid-free tissue paper

Roll of Mylar for encapsulating

Various size envelopes for photographs

Document boxes.

Mrs. Henry (Harriet) Huff

This is a portrait of Mrs. Henry Huff.  Although not often cited, her first name is Harriet.  The Huff’s were some of the first settlers of Winona.  If it was not for him, we would probably refer to the city today as “Montezuma”.

 

The painting was painted in 1833, before Winona was founded.  There are many areas of the painting that flaking off.  In addition, it needs general cleaning and some frame repair. 

 

The matching painting of Mr. Huff is also one of the items in the Adopt-an-Artifact / Restore-a-Relic program.

Circ 1875 Crank Organ