Blog – Page 6 – Plymouth History Center

Object Spotlight: Paris Green

February 26, 2019 plymouth

Museums often advertise white glove tours. These special tours provide guests with opportunities to touch museum artifacts. The cotton gloves protect the artifacts from oils and fingerprints and protect the wearer from any harmful substances that might be found on the artifacts. At the Plymouth History Museum, we wear blue nitrile gloves to protect ourselves and our artifacts from harm. These gloves came in handy the other day when we came across a seemingly harmless keg. It was clear that…

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Object Spotlight: Historic Photographs

February 13, 2019 plymouth

In the past three weeks, the Plymouth Historical Society has completed an inventory of 47 historic photographs, including 4 images mounted in specialized hinged cases trimmed in gold and lined with velvet. Set in their jewel box-like cases, the photographs seem extra precious. Although hundreds of thousands of photographs like these exist in museum collections all over the world, the word “precious” still applies. These are among the oldest photographs ever produced. A daguerreotype like this was most likely made…

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2019 Collections Inventory

February 5, 2019 plymouth

In December 2018, the Plymouth Historical Society was awarded a Minnesota Legacy Grant for $9960 to conduct a partial inventory of our artifacts and archives. Our plan is to identify, catalog, and photograph the 1600-plus objects currently housed in the Plymouth History Museum building. We began the project by collecting basic object information and a photograph for each object we examined. This information was entered into a new collections software management system, Collective Access. Since January 15, 2019, we have created…

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How to Care for Your Historic Clothing

January 31, 2019 plymouth

The new Netflix series Tidying up with Marie Kondo, has been making headlines this past month. In it, Kondo — the world-renowned Japanese organization expert — shows her audience her KonMari method of properly folding clothing in order to maximize storage space. Her technique for folding a T-shirt, for example, only requires 4 folds to dramatically reduce the amount of space the garment would otherwise require. For those looking to tidy their closets and drawers, Kondo’s origami-like folding techniques are…

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Innovation and the Resistance to Change in Agriculture

January 25, 2019 Brandon Gierach

I spent some time talking to my father this past week about what he knew of life in the early 1900s. I asked him questions about Dr. W.E. Taylor’s book Soil Culture and Modern Farm Methods and was somewhat surprised by his response. His ancestors were not doing much of what Taylor talked about because even if they knew of it, it was likely impractical for them to implement. The process of innovation is often very slow. Taylor and his fellow researchers had great ideas, but…

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Five Practical Farming Tips That Still Apply Today, Part V

January 17, 2019 Brandon Gierach

Though Dr. W.E. Taylor’s book, Soil Culture and Modern Farm Methods, is nearly 100 years old, it contains many practical tips that still apply today. This is the fifth of 5 blog posts on this subject. 5. The need to pursue knowledge and innovation For some reason the label “dumb farmer” has been attached to many of those whose life work is a farmer. The reasons why can only be speculated. The best guess is that many farmers never went to college and may have even missed out…

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A Tale of Two Rocks

January 12, 2019 plymouth

Plymouth, MN shares more than just a name with Plymouth, MA. Both cities lay claim to a famous Plymouth Rock. Not unlike the Plymouth Rock made famous by the Pilgrims back in 1620, the Minnesota counterpart has its own compelling origin story filled with drama, intrigue, and controversy. To highlight the connection between Plymouth Rock and Plymouth, MN, the Plymouth Lions Club held a “Plymouth Rock Contest” as part of the City’s 1976 Bicentennial festivities. The Lions wished to provide…

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Five Practical Farming Tips That Still Apply Today, Part IV

January 3, 2019 Brandon Gierach

Though Dr. W.E. Taylor’s book, Soil Culture and Modern Farm Methods, is nearly 100 years old, it contains many practical tips that still apply today. This is the fourth of 5 blog posts on this subject. 4. Creating and Managing a Profitable Herd Any business owner knows this simple fact: if you cannot consistently produce a profit, your business will ultimately fail. Taylor gave many tips to help dairymen maximize their profits with their herd. Taylor’s first tip focused on the…

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Plymouth Fire Department’s First Fire Call

December 27, 2018 plymouth

Looking through a donation of materials from the Plymouth Fire Department, one of our Board members found a booklet commemorating the Department’s 25th Anniversary in 1985. The following text is an excerpt from Francis C. Bauer’s history of the Plymouth Fire Department, printed within the booklet. It describes the Department’s first fire call which took place 3 days before official service began on January 1, 1960. The First Fire Call The first fire alert – a large farm house west…

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Five Practical Farming Tips That Still Apply Today, Part III

December 18, 2018 Brandon Gierach

Though Dr. W.E. Taylor’s book, Soil Culture and Modern Farm Methods, is nearly 100 years old, it contains many practical tips that still apply today. This is the third of 5 blog posts on this subject. 3. Proper Germ Management The world today has become obsessed with bacteria. With the knowledge that disease spreads through these microorganisms, the natural response is to kill all bacteria. No one will argue that bacteria can be incredibly harmful. The recent E. coli outbreak associated…

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