Volunteers Keeping a Museum Alive
Donation protected
Located in the original English Evangelical Lutheran Church, Columbia Historic Preservation Society is dedicated to the preservation of the river town, formerly known as Wright’s Ferry and Shawana Town. Once considered as a possible site for locating our nation’s capital, and the gateway to the American West.
We desperately need your help to keep this building and our doors open so that we can keep Columbia’s legacy and history in our town of Columbia. A core of about ten volunteers take care of the building and the artifacts, documents, pictures and books and genealogy contained within the walls of the museum but we lack the funds to properly preserve the many maps, documents and artifacts. The only money we receive is from donors and memberships.
This building was donated to the all-volunteer Columbia Historic Preservation Society 30 years ago and, although nice to look at and to be a part of, it is in need of much work. About five years ago, we spent pretty much all our money $30,000 to get the mold out of everything and everywhere in the building. Since that time, our funds are depleting rapidly. We’ve had fund raisers, sent mass mailings asking for funding, sent private mailings to businesses, tried our hand at getting grants, spoke with people of means, and held lectures. So far, no more than six thousand dollars has come from generous donors. Our bills each month total two thousand dollars and we have been operating in the red.
In a town rich with history and a beautiful river that runs along its side, there has been but one museum in this small town holding artifacts from a pivotal point during the Civil War. The mile long wooden bridge over the Susquehanna River was burned by Columbian’s to keep the Confederate Army from attacking Harrisburg, Lancaster and Philadelphia, and turned them back toward Gettysburg. Among a plethora of Civil War objects, we have many GAR applications of those who served and wanted to stay involved with their comrades. We have early deeds of those who helped settle this town and many of their homes continue to stand. Documents of the Susquehanna Indians who lived a few miles from Columbia and worked with the people in the town still survive along with documents about Susannah Wright being a liaison between the whites and the Indians. Stephen Smith, son of a slave woman, was indentured to a Revolutionary War officer Thomas Bode, who taught Smith his trade and soon became the richest antebellum black man in America.
There are many more stories that can be told but not without your generous help. We have a microfilm machine for the many local newspapers since 1895 which have been put onto microfilm but it no longer can print. These machines cost a lot of money but we want people to have access to what is their heritage and to see their ancestors who once lived in this historic town by the river.
Thank you so very much for caring about us and contributing to our goal!
We desperately need your help to keep this building and our doors open so that we can keep Columbia’s legacy and history in our town of Columbia. A core of about ten volunteers take care of the building and the artifacts, documents, pictures and books and genealogy contained within the walls of the museum but we lack the funds to properly preserve the many maps, documents and artifacts. The only money we receive is from donors and memberships.
This building was donated to the all-volunteer Columbia Historic Preservation Society 30 years ago and, although nice to look at and to be a part of, it is in need of much work. About five years ago, we spent pretty much all our money $30,000 to get the mold out of everything and everywhere in the building. Since that time, our funds are depleting rapidly. We’ve had fund raisers, sent mass mailings asking for funding, sent private mailings to businesses, tried our hand at getting grants, spoke with people of means, and held lectures. So far, no more than six thousand dollars has come from generous donors. Our bills each month total two thousand dollars and we have been operating in the red.
In a town rich with history and a beautiful river that runs along its side, there has been but one museum in this small town holding artifacts from a pivotal point during the Civil War. The mile long wooden bridge over the Susquehanna River was burned by Columbian’s to keep the Confederate Army from attacking Harrisburg, Lancaster and Philadelphia, and turned them back toward Gettysburg. Among a plethora of Civil War objects, we have many GAR applications of those who served and wanted to stay involved with their comrades. We have early deeds of those who helped settle this town and many of their homes continue to stand. Documents of the Susquehanna Indians who lived a few miles from Columbia and worked with the people in the town still survive along with documents about Susannah Wright being a liaison between the whites and the Indians. Stephen Smith, son of a slave woman, was indentured to a Revolutionary War officer Thomas Bode, who taught Smith his trade and soon became the richest antebellum black man in America.
There are many more stories that can be told but not without your generous help. We have a microfilm machine for the many local newspapers since 1895 which have been put onto microfilm but it no longer can print. These machines cost a lot of money but we want people to have access to what is their heritage and to see their ancestors who once lived in this historic town by the river.
Thank you so very much for caring about us and contributing to our goal!
Organizer
Suzanne Grove Whallon
Organizer
Mountville, PA
