October 2, 2018

The Spencer County Historical Society met on Tuesday, October 2, 2018, in the Rockport Library Genealogy Room.

The meeting was called to order by the president at 6:35 PM with 13 members present.

The minutes from the last meeting were read and approved with corrections. 

The plaque which a member had purchased honoring the first sheriff of Spencer County may be presented sometime in December at a program in the courthouse rotunda, possibly on December 10, instead of at the Commissioners’ meeting.  It is hoped that the Governor and Lt. Governor will be in attendance.

If you want to purchase the Bicentennial book, you can get one at the Recorder’s office.  If you are purchasing a book to be mailed, you need to contact Steve Sisley at 812-362-8586.

The treasurer’s report was given. 

A member mentioned he had contacted nine of his cousins about donating to the Lincoln Pioneer Village Gentry cabin upkeep.  He has heard back from six so far.  He hopes that after hearing from all of them, he will be able to match the Society’s $500.00 donation to the Gentry cabin, and maybe even surpass that amount.

A member had been in contact with Nancy Kaiser, director of the Lincoln Pioneer Village.  Nancy informed her that the “Treemendous” Christmas in the Village has a sponsor for every cabin.  The sponsor will have a decorated tree in the cabin for the Rockport Christmas celebration which will be on December 1, 2018.  Nancy was wondering if the Society would sponsor a tree for the George Honig room and the Society could sell books at that time.  The member had the idea to decorate the tree with white lights and angels going with Lincoln’s saying - “All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”  This will be discussed more at the next meeting.  The Village will be open from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM on the day of the Christmas parade, December 1.

A member reminded the Society the Village will be open until the end of October when they will be having Fall Heritage Days on October 27 and 28 from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM each day.

A member announced there will be an Antique Farm Machinery Festival October 6-7, 2018 at Philpot, Kentucky.

The secretary read several communications she had received.  A member told of receiving a copy of a Civil War journal from a member.

A member announced the acting superintendent of the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial was very complimentary about the Bicentennial book.  A member asked her about the status of the restoration of George Honig’s Lincoln’s Forest College at Rockport Elementary.  The woman said she was going to check on it.

A member suggested giving a copy of the Bicentennial book to the nursing homes in the county.  A member is going to check to see if the nursing homes have a book or the funds to purchase one.

The president mentioned he had talked to a man from Dale who wanted to place a marker at the Y near the Ford dealership in Dale to mark the location of the site where Lincoln attended school.  There was some discussion as to whether Lincoln did attend school at that location.  The man was going on information from a family history and it has not been officially verified that Lincoln actually went there.

There has been approval on the wording of the plaque for the Little Pigeon Creek Baptist Church.  They are waiting on approval on the wording for Baker’s Creek Church.  They have not been able to meet with him.  A member said to be sure and add the wording Spencer County Historical Society and the date at the bottom of the plaques.

A member asked about the Spencer County Community Foundation account which a member has started for the Historical Society.  After the president contacted the Foundation, the Society had no further information about the amount and how the account worked.  A member said she had gone to the Foundation and wanted a form to make a donation in memory of someone and the people told her they didn’t know what she was talking about.  The Spencer County Foundation has joined with the Perry County Foundation.  A member thought his sister was still on the board and he was going to check with her about the account for the Society.

The Historian of the Year Banquet was the next item for discussion.  Very few tickets had been sold, and other than the two letters that were in the local papers from a member, there was only one small item put in one paper concerning the banquet.  There were no articles about the honorees which are usually included in the papers.  A motion was made and seconded to cancel the banquet for October 6, 2018 for lack of ticket sales.  The motion carried.

It was suggested that the plaques for the honorees could be given at the same time they have the program at the courthouse in December, or possibly going to a restaurant where everyone could order from the menu and then present the plaques.  More will be decided at the November meeting.

A member congratulated the Bicentennial book committee for the excellent job they did on publishing the book.  Everyone agreed that it was a great book.

A member called for a vote of appreciation for the president for all the work he does for the Society and the vast knowledge he has about the history of the county.  The Society gave him a round of applause.

A motion was made and seconded to adjourn the meeting.  The motion carried.  The meeting adjourned at 8:30 PM.

The next meeting will be November 6, 2018, at 6:30 PM in the Genealogy Room.