Des Moines Historical Society

Minutes of Mtg. 5/16/09

Minutes

MINUTES OF THE DES MOINES HISTORICAL SOCIETY MEETING
SATURDAY, MAY 16, 2009 - FRANKLIN AVENUE DES MOINES LIBRARY

Pat Meiners, President called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. Briefly, the attendees (some came in after the meeting began) are: Pat Meiners, married to Rick Meiners was the editor of the Polk County Historical Society newsletter about three years. Karen Hanley is in the Altoona Historical Society and has historical photos of DM. Jim Bush, a retired teacher belongs to the Iowa Genealogical Society and has a collection of old DM postcards. Duane Pierce started the Charter-Pierce Genealogical Society eleven years ago; his father was with the police force for 20 years. Natasha Moore just graduated with a masters in history and worked at the Grout Museum in Waterloo. John Wenck has paddled the DM River and found items along the banks that stirred his interest in DM history, he made a presentation about Tacitus Hussey who wrote about DM history and the rivers. Charles Lyddon is the DMHS vice president and has a passion for history and old houses. He has been in the San Diego Historical Society and is a member of the National Historic Trust and was surprised there was no DM Historical Society. Rick Meiners, Secretary of the DMHS wants this society to see the beautiful homes of DM preserved with their stories. He believes the stories of DM are probably more interesting than those of the suburbs which have historical societies, historical societies need to reach out to younger people to remain active in the future, and there is more history in DM than just the commonly known stories and we should be proud of that history. Nancy Suby-Bohn was raised in Ankeny as an ‘old fashioned’ girl and loves the older homes of DM. Since a child she has been interested in Riverview, Birdland, Lake, Highland and Union Parks, and the coal mines and has a degree in civil engineering and structures and wants to find ways to fix the beautiful old homes with structural problems. Susan Jellinger came from Sioux City to DM and works at the Iowa Historical Library. She is interested in the stories of people, groups that came to town, restaurants and gathering places, keeping the stories going even after the buildings are gone. She lives in the Chautauqua Parkway neighborhood and likes the diversity of the neighborhood and the large trees. Dawn Bentley and her husband Rick live in Mitchellville, Rick grew up in DM and is intrigued by the history. He is in the hotel business and collects information about hotels. Jim Bort was with the Polk County Historical Society is on the board of the Iowa Historic Preservation Association and in the DM Pioneer Club.

In other discussion, Pat talked said some have started working on houses and had interest in DM history, but there was little support for them and when their lives change, the work has been abandoned. People in town who don’t live in historic houses or areas would help with projects and lend their support when they can, but they have no way to give that support. Charles mentioned realtors need to be more open to older DM housing. Duane is fascinated with the older stores that no longer exist and that the playground he used as a child used to be a cemetery. Nancy said Flint Valley was said to have had gravestones there. The plat maps prior to 1930 were lost in 1936 when Polk County standardized new plat names with the Assessor. Some older information is available on old original abstracts. One lost area is Devils Gap near the McHenry Park west entrance.

The minutes from the prior meeting had been read prior to the meeting. A name spelling correction is needed to change the name from Cooker to Bill Kooker. The minutes were approved with that one correction.

There was some discussion about the need for a Des Moines Museum, especially during events such as the World Food Prize. The Magical History Tours were mentioned as being very entertaining and informative and perhaps something the DMHS could do. The downtown trolleys were mentioned as a possible educational tool with maps of flyers. Cemetery tours could also include a tour of buildings or a PowerPoint presentation to further discuss famous citizens of Des Moines. Actors might also portray citizens. There are cemeteries in town we do not believe have had tours. There are 76 cemeteries in Polk County, including some quite hard to find or former cemetery sites that have moved or not been preserved. There are burial spots beneath the SE 14th Street viaduct, and with the proposed widening of that bridge they must be properly cared for.

We next talked about the goals and objectives of the DMHS. Des Moines is in the process of creating a History and Heritage Commission in addition to the Historic Preservation Commission to work more with the stories rather than buildings. Anyone interested in serving on the H&HC please contact Pat Meiners. Natasha Moore, Charles Lyddon and Susan Jellinger are interested. A good relationship between the H&HC and the DMHS needs to develop. City support would help assure a good future for the DMHS. Having city backing should help avoid many of the continuity issues and increase stability. North High became interested in the history of that area after the flood and that has brought young people to be interested in the history of the city. Many connections are from DM to the rest of the country, but they have not been publicized and many fail to see how the importance of this city to the country, there was talk of making it the national capital. Two books were written by the School District and used in classes, but there it less talk of the history of the city to students now. A new thought in education called “place-based” connects students to their location and that is a way to reach students. It is noticed that the meeting room at the North Side Library was nicer to use because of the displays in it and we should work with neighborhood and other groups to establish similar displays in libraries. The Friends of Riverview provide the cabinets and own the contents at the North Side Library.

The next meeting of the group was proposed for Monday, June 29, but we learned the DMHS cannot use the Downtown or East Side libraries because they require a copy of the group’s 501C3, which we have not yet received to use the meeting rooms without charge. The South Side, Forest, North Side and Franklin libraries can be used. A name is needed for the new bridge crossing the DM River near the Birthplace Cabin. “The Pointe” Bridge has been suggested because that area used to be known by that name. As part of the Raccoon River Trail a kiosk will be put near there. The DM River water trail will be designated on June 5 at Prospect Park, and along with that the Polk County Conservation Commission will offer kayaks and canoes for those who want to float the river. An historic home will be open and there will be free rides on the Jon Anderson White river boat. We will distribute flyers about the DMHS at the home. That night is also the first ‘Rendezvous at Riverview’ free concert and we should also distribute flyers at those concerts which are every Friday evening in June and Friday July 3rd.

The DMHS needs a mission statement which should talk about pride in DM history. Possibly the lack of a DMHS shows there is not pride in DM history. A “Founders Day” or DM History Day of some sort should probably be conducted annually. It could be based upon the when the City of DM Charter was sent to Iowa City January 28, 1857 and signed by Governor Grimes to be effective February 16, 1857; when the east and west sides came together. The first elections were the first Monday of March, 1857. It could also be when the city of Fort Des Moines was established in 1851 or it has been observed as when Fort Des Moines II began in March of 1843. It might be based upon October of 1842 when the land was purchased from the Native Americans. It is hoped the DMHS can be allied with other historical groups in town. The mission statement could include that the DMHS is open to anyone who wants to preserve, protect and present the history of DM Iowa.

Promotion/Publicity and By-Laws/Articles committees will be established. We are asking for ideas for flyers and ways to reach prospective members. Quite a lot is available through the website of the Secretary of State to help with formation. A motion was made by Duane Pierce, seconded and approved that we establish a By-Laws committee. Members volunteering to serve on the By-Law committee are: Duane Pierce, Pat Meiners, Nancy Suby-Bohn, Charles Lyddon and Natasha Moore. Duane Pierce will serve as chair and contact members. Members volunteering to serve on the Promotion/Publicity committee will be Susan Jellinger, as temporary chair, John Wenck, Duane Pierce, Natasha Moore, Charles Lyddon and Rick Meiners. Of today’s attendees three came because of a flyer, three came due being told by someone else and the rest were from other avenues, such as the “Old Time Photo“ website of the DM Register or the “Lost Des Moines” group on Facebook. At this time contributions can be made to the DMHS, but there is no accounting of them and they are not tax deductible. There are various requirements to obtain a 501C3 designation. Some organizations are non-profit, but they have are not 501C3 and contributions are not tax deductible. Obtaining the 501C3 designation requires less paperwork if it is obtained early on when an organization is formed. Susan Jellinger is quite busy until the next meeting on June 30 and until then there won’t be much emphasis on promotions, but we all can work toward finding more members and getting people out to the meetings.

The next meeting is Tuesday, June 30 at the South Side Library, 1111 Porter from 5:45 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. by Orchard Place and the Aquatic Center. There are many resources available at the State Historical Society which are not readily available for use and viewing. It is felt that many politicians would support a larger role for historical issues. The State Historical Society does not the ability to scan archival material, but most other business and governmental operations have that capability. Being able to provide digital copies of maps and photos would also help the city with infrastructure issues because they have very little documentation of their own, it is with the state. Iowa seems behind in this and it is difficult to find information. There is a large collections of maps at the state historical society, but Polk county is behind in working with the county. Much of this talk is about the future and the way the DMHS wants to grow. There is a benefit for Don’s Service Station on Friday, May 29. There was talk about the station going to Court Avenue, but it lacks historical relevance to that street. It is hoped a good use will be found for the station.

The meeting adjourned at 12:15 p.m..

Rick Meiners, Secretary
Des Moines Historical Society

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