MY VISIT TO THE DIMENNA CHILDREN'S HISTORY MUSEUM!



On Friday August 17th I had the pleasure of traveling to New York City to visit the New York Historical Society and especially the new DIMENNA CHILDREN'S HISTORY MUSEUM!!

I had anticipated this visit since the museum's opening in November of 2011.  The Children's Museum is a museum FOR children on the history OF children and includes a multi-exhibited area where children can learn about the boys and girls who rode the Orphan Trains.  There were many hands on learning opportunities.  My favorite was a large map of the United States.  Children could choose a state, rotate the handle, and read a short story of an individual orphan train rider who traveled to that state.  There was also an exhibit board that displayed actual letters that orphan train riders wrote to The Children's Aid Society keeping them abreast of how things were going for that child in the West.  I have several of these very same letters that Oliver (my grandfather) and his brother Edward wrote in the early 1900's.  If you are in, or travel to the NYC area, be sure and stop by 170 Central Park West to see this unique museum!  BRING KIDS!!!


Also during my visit, I stopped by the museum's library and discovered that a contact to Lukas Weinstein at the Children's Aid Society, will afford me the opportunity to research the CAS records for additional information on my grandfather and his brother and perhaps even a picture!  No known picture of Edward Nordmark exists so perhaps there is one tucked away in his CAS file.  I will be trying to find out......


And finally, I stopped by the Gift Shop where I found my friend Rene Wendinger's Book on sale.  I spoke with the staff of the Gift Shop and was given a contact to see if my two books might be added to the shop's offering on this subject. 

The weather was perfect, Central Park was lovely, and the bus ride was uneventful....a GREAT DAY to say the least!  

DiMENNA CHILDRENS HISTORY MUSEUM - UPDATE!

Work is underway and on track for the Fall 2011 opening of the DiMenna Children's History Museum in NYC which will be a museum FOR CHILDREN all about the history OF CHILDREN. An entire pavilion will focus on the ORPHAN TRAIN children who traveled from NYC to the Midwest in search of homes.

From the Associated Press....... NEW YORK- The New York Historical Society is closing its galleries for nine months to complete the lst phase of a $65 million renovation of its 1904 building.
The research library and museum near Central Park focuses on material covering four centuries of American and NY history. The museum will close on Tuesday Feb. 1 and reopen on November 11th. The renovation will create a new 3,400 Sq ft. great hall, a children's history museum and a restaurant.
The building's library and reading room will remain open until June 3. It will then close for an interior upgrade that includes cleaning its stained glass window for improved lighting. The library will reopen on Sept. 9th.

DAY #12 - The National Orphan Train Complex

WELCOME BACK! I took a true day of rest yesterday and didn't even blog. The hotel pool and spa were very relaxing - 20 laps and 20 minutes - then back to the room to get organized for the new week, visit with some friends on facebook, call home to check if everyone is surviving ("barely, but don't worry mom!") and watch a bit of TV after an early dinner.

Today I headed back to Concordia, 50 miles north of here, to tour the National Orphan Train Complex, take a video to show my Dad and Mom when I get home, buy some souvenirs, and sell another 20 books. I had a great discussion with the new curator, Muriel Anderson, about the future of the museum (she plans to re-do the entire interior) and we talked about a permanent display that would document Oliver and Edward's journey from the Children's Village Orphanage in Dobbs Ferry (Long Island, NY) to Bern, Kansas. The display would incorporate two excerpts of Oliver's oral history (wasn't my Dad brilliant to sit his father down and record his story?!) One side of the display case would include artifacts, documents and audio from Oliver's life in NYC and the orphanage. The other side would highlight his ride on the train and his years in Kansas. There would also be a brief bio of his life as an adult. So.....I have a new project when I get home. It will be up to me to decide what to include on each of the two audio clips and I'll need to go through our records to make sure Muriel has all the documentation that she needs, and if not, get it to her. I also need to get up to the NY Historical Society sometime in May so that I can review Oliver and Edward's records from the Children's Aid Society to see if there's any additional info there that the previous archivist left out when he sent me papers from Oliver's file records.

"A lot to do, a lot to do, a lot a lot a lot to do!" What's that from? Quiz question for the day-lol! Joany, I'm sure you'll know!

So......after my visit to the museum, I drove around town to see the sights then visited Concordia Elementary School for a 1:30 presentation and book signing to the fourth graders. The one hour drive back along Interstate 135 was very peaceful and relaxing. There is nothing to see but gently rolling hills etched with grazing cattle, a few windmills, and open sky that goes on forever. Some people would find that excruciatingly boring....but I love it! Good thing I'm here alone :)

Two schools tomorrow - one of which is in Lindsborg, a town settled by the Swedes. They're both south of Salina so it will be a pretty long day - see you then!

BIG NEWS for the history of the ORPHAN TRAINS!

The NEW YORK TIMES this morning has a story in THE ARTS section that is sure to set the orphan train world abuzz! The Historical Society is going to open a Children's Museum that will focus on the stories of children - including the children who rode the ORPHAN TRAINS from NYC to parts West! This is amazing news for all of us who desperately want to see this forgotton piece of history brought back to life for generations to come! Read more here:

http://hnn.us/roundup/entries/122521.html