By: Ryan Duey
Photo Courtesy of Clay County Museum
The Clay County Museum has announced it will open two new exhibits over Piotique weekend, a new permanent exhibit, ‘Coats of the Prairie,’ and a new rotating exhibit, ‘Stars & Rainbows & Swords, Oh My!’
Both exhibits will be open and available for viewing during the Piotique Celebration on Saturday, September 27th. Pat Gilbert, Museum Board member and volunteer, spoke about the new permanent exhibit.
“We have a permanent exhibit coming in which will be called ‘Coats of the Prairie: Real Fur, Real Facts, and Real Fun.’”
“It’s an interactive animal fur exhibit. Everybody will be able to touch and feel the fur. They will also be able to open up an information board and learn about the animal that the fur belonged to.”
“There will also be two fur coats hanging up, and you can guess the weight of the coat. I don’t think people realize how much a fur coat might have weighed.”
Gilbert stated as a permanent exhibit, it will stay in the museum. The other exhibit will be a rotating display of the Masonic and affiliated organizations from Clay County and across the nation.
“Tracy Bloom, Alex Brown, and Linda Cunningham contributed their knowledge and expertise to create ‘Stars & Rainbows & Swords, Oh My!’”
“It’s about the Masonic organizations of Eastern Star, Rainbow for Girls, Masons, and other affiliated organizations.”
“It has been created in what is a hidden room. So, you’re going to have to go find the exhibit in this hidden room.”
Gilbert said former and current Masonic members were amazed by the number of artifacts the museum has on display.
“As we were building the exhibit, people who have been members or are currently members of the organization were watching the cases fill up, and they were amazed at the number of artifacts that we had.”
“Setting up the exhibit really created a trip down memory lane for them. It was kind of fun to hear the stories of when they were in Rainbow for Girls, Eastern Star, or whatever it was.”
The museum will also be offering two sneak peek events the week before Piotique Saturday. The first sneak peek event will occur on Wednesday, September 24th, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., and the second event will happen on Friday, September 26th, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Both events will feature cookies and punch for attendees.
Along with the two new exhibits, patrons can enjoy a wide variety of exhibits and activities, including the dino dig and penny press. The popular Sports Exhibit is also still on display until December.
