The Warren County Historical Society has a new display that features the importance of 4-H and Future Farmers of America to the Missouri community.
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The Warren County Historical Society is celebrating 4-H and FFA with its newest exhibit.
The new display opened in August and will be open to the public until Nov. 4.
The exhibit was a brainchild of the Historical Society’s program committee.
“We try to outline different activities for the whole year, for the museum to try to bring the public in more,” volunteer Jackie Nierman said.
During one of those sessions, the group discussed how to bring more kids to the Historical Society building at 102 W. Walton St. in Warrenton. And that’s when they turned to the idea of 4-H and FFA.
“So much of Warren County is a farming community and it’s so much about what Warren County is,” volunteer and board member Martha Groeper said.
The exhibit features a variety of projects, from several welded horseshoes to a fake cake with real icing and a lot in between.
“They have a lot of their record books here and their pictures from the past,” Nierman said. She also said a former FFA teacher was in and loved the display.
“He just thought it was wonderful because he was looking through it and seeing a lot of people he knew and some of the pictures and could relate to a lot of the different things,” Nierman said.
Groeper and Nierman also had their favorite parts of the exhibit. Nierman liked the FFA jackets, which included hers.
Groeper said she appreciated the display that focused on cattle and livestock.
“My black Angus cattle will always be part of me,” she said.
Nierman said there’s so much to see in the exhibit, it’s hard to say what other people will enjoy the most.
“There’s so many things out there,” she said. “Every time I walk back there I see something I didn’t remember seeing and I’ll stop and read.
Nierman and Groeper both said few people have been in so far to see the display, but they expect that number to grow.
“I think their meetings and their special activities will help bring in the crowds,” Groeper said.
The display will be promoted on the radio, and both the Wright City and Warrenton FFA groups will be having events at the Historical Society building in September and October.
4-H is also having an open house in October.
All of it is designed to get people into the Historical Society to see what it has to offer.
“What’s neat is that kids of all ages can come in and see” the displays, Nierman said. “I think the 4-H and FFA are wanting it as exposure to get more interest into their groups for the museum.”
The Historical Society is a place for anyone interested in research and history.
“We want people to come in and see this nice facility,” Nierman said. “We are partnering with the community to have it accessible for people.”
“We don’t want it to just be the museum that sits on the corner,” Groeper said. “We’re all about being part of the community.”
And between the display, and the 4-H and FFA activities that are designed to highlight the exhibit, Groeper said it’ll help more people understand what the Historical Society does for the community.
“Now you get more people involved and if we can leverage the facility here” people can learn more about the rest of what the Historical Society offers.
Groeper said its exhibits like these that help the Historical Society fulfill its purpose.
“We want to keep the history of Warren County going,” she said.
The Historical Society is open from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the first, second and third Fridays of the month, and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. every third Sunday. For more information about the Historical Society, call 636-456-3820 or visit warrencountymohistory.com.
About the author: Jason Koch is the editor of The Warren County Record, and covers local news and government for the newspaper. He has won multiple awards from both the Indiana and Illinois APME and from the Illinois Press Association. He can be reached at 636-456-6397 or at jason@warrencountyrecord.com
