TOP: competition winners with Museum Director Gregory Waksmulski (from l to r): runners up Michael Moore and Alexis Berdine, and first place, Rachel Nash and Sierra Blaney. BOTTOM: one student’s thank you letter. [photos: Culver Citizen]
The fifth grade classes of Culver
Elementary immersed themselves in our area’s unique natural, historical and cultural heritage as part of a joint tour of the Center for Culver History and the Culver Academy History Museum on May 21st. The students learned about the State Exchange Bank robbery of 1933, the history of early Indian settlements of the area, received an overview of the lake from its glacial beginnings to its central role in the ice house industry and experienced the Academy Museum’s railroad train.
Students had fun pairing up to compete against their peers to see who could fill in blank maps of the area with the greatest number of names, places and events highlighted by the museum guides during the tours. Prizes for the winners, pictured above left, were generously donated by the AHS Gift Shop, located in the Center for Culver History. These gifts included local art teacher Joyce Morrison Lyman’s “Lake Maxinkuckee Coloring Book” for the runners up and copies of Adventures of Alexia: A Lake Maxinkuckee Girl 1885, specially signed by author Marcia Adams, for first place.
ABOVE: students learn about sports played by tribes of the Mississippian culture, of whom there is evidence of settlements in the area dating to 1000 years ago [photo: Culver Citizen]
Students followed up the visit by writing “thank you” letters to the day’s tour guides, Academy Museum Director Jeff Kenney and Center for Culver History Director Gregory Waksmulski. An excerpt from one of these letters is pictured above.
A special thank you to the fifth grade teachers who took time out at the end of a very busy school year to allow the museums to share their passion for the unique history of the Culver area with its next generation of explorers, thinkers, artists and citizens.
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