Historical Society meets Aug. 5 Grand Junction; lunch, program & tours
~by Chuck Offenburger for the Greene County Historical Society
The Greene County Historical Society will travel to Grand Junction for its Friday, Aug. 5, meeting with a program and tours focusing on the Lincoln Highway heritage of both the community and the county.
The lunch will be at 12 noon at the First United Presbyterian Church. At 1 pm, there will be a free, brief program about the Lincoln Highway there at the church, primarily an opportunity for people to ask questions about the nationwide highway’s history and the attractions along it that are still favorite stops for tourists and travelers.
Then everyone is invited to tour the new Grand Junction Community Center, which features some Lincoln Highway décor, as well as the Iowa Lincoln Highway Museum at 200 Main St in the town. In addition, a new Lincoln Highway Garden, just east of the museum, will be open to visitors, too.
The state museum originally was located in Ogden, moved to Jefferson for a decade and, since 2010, has been in Grand Junction. Two of the Iowa Lincoln Highway Association officers are from Greene County, state treasurer Joyce Ausberger and county consul Bob Owens. The state association will be hosting the 2017 National Lincoln Highway Conference, next June 20-24 in the western Iowa town of Denison.
For the lunch next week in Grand Junction, Historical Society members, who pay $8, are asked to RSVP to their regular community contacts by Wednesday, Aug. 3. The public can also make reservations, for $10 each, by calling Ces Brunow at 515-370-5531. If you make a reservation but do not attend, you will be billed for your meal’s cost.
This weekend, July 30-31, the Historical Society also helps sponsor a living history-kind of event, an “Old-Fashioned Threshing Bee” at the Foster-Timmons family’s Pleasant Prairie Farm located northwest of Jefferson at 1176 M Avenue. The event’s coordinator Nick Foster serves on the Society’s board of directors.
Threshing times are Saturday at 10 am and 2 pm, then Sunday at 1 pm and 3 pm. There will be steam-powered plowing Saturday at 4 pm. There is an antique tractor and truck show throughout the weekend; a barbecue Saturday at 6 pm for those attending the threshing bee, and a tractor ride Sunday at 7 am.
