Professional historians will gather this June at WVU Jackson's Mill to learn how to give their tales of days gone by a more vibrant life.
The annual Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums conference will come to the historic Lewis County site June 4-8. To help offset the cost of staging such a large event, the Lewis County Commission on Monday appropriated $2,400 to the Jackson's Mill Heritage Foundation.
"We are glad to see Jackson's Mill being used as it was intended," said Commissioner Pat Boyle. "It's a great program."
Dean Hardman, the conference chairman, said a local committee has been working for about five years to bring this conference to Lewis County. He said the venue will be the smallest the organization has ever used for its national conference, adding that most years the conference is held in places like Colonial Williamsburg and other national tourists attractions.
More than 1,300 informational packets have been mailed out, and Hardman said he has traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Little Rock, Arkansas, and points in between to promote the event. The private rooms and lodge rooms have already been sold out, but local hotels are offering special discount rates to those attending the conference, he said.
"There will be $40,000 to $50,000 worth of money exchanging hands in Lewis County that week," Hardman said, "and that's a low, conservative estimate."
The conference is already attracting attendees from places as far away as Canada and California. Presenters, some 63 of them, are coming from all over North America, and Hardman said there will be some local craftsmen and artisans making presentations.
"We were really cognizant in trying to bring in national presenters, as well as local presenters," he said.
The conference, called "Growing Living History in Good times and Bad," will offer hands-on vintage history demonstrations in areas such as bread-making, knitting, spoon casting, and zither building. There will also be an Evening at the Farmstead, where participants can enjoy bread tasting, a plow match, sheep herding demonstrations, or an Civil War-era baseball game.
Participants can also travel to Prickett's Fort in Marion County, Fort New Salem in Harrison County, along with a tour of historic Beverly in Randolph County. There is also a train excursion from Elkins that will take its riders through the heart of central West Virginia.
"We're showcasing not only Lewis County," Hardman said, "but also central West Virginia as well."
