American History - Donna Flood's Stories

Museum and Genealogy Library, June 2005

After nineteen years, finally I'm closing in on having my genealogy library in place. First there was the research on the antique photographs.

We started this, my husband Rodney Flood and me, before I had a computer. Typing on a typewriter with white out in hand was no fun. A paragraph in error on a page with wrong dates, place of birth or ancestral lineage could make a whole page need to be retyped. Traveling from courthouse to courthouse was a pleasure but definitely expensive. Dusty old files, in a basement wasn't much fun either. Then there was the old house converted into a museum that was without a doubt, haunted. That wasn't fun even if a person has no fear and is determined to find a certain bit of history on one family line or another. Once a large purse thrown across the room, another time a hologram of a man in a World War 11 uniform strolling about the grounds, and then the last time visited a stench in the room where the files were was unbelievable. When this was reported to the curator and she came to investigate the odor was totally gone. This was the last visit there. Takes a bit to get through to me but I finally can be convinced we were not welcome.

All I needed was a place to put my library. I went through all the in's and out's of trying to establish the old ranch home as a library. The weather is very cold out on the prairie in the winter but that was all right in my mind since we wouldn't be using it but only in the summer tourists months. The ranch house was well built and able to be very comfortably cool even in hot August days. At night it was necessary to “pull covers, it could be so cool.

“Sister's lost her mind.” Not to my face were these comments made but I was well aware what was being said. “She wants to restore that old ranch house for a genealogy library. Why that is next to being insane.”

On and on it went, not only from every family member but for any and everyone in the community as well. Why I let things like this touch my aching heart I cannot tell you, but it did. Finally, like the haunted museum, I turned away from the dear old home I loved as a child.

My next thought was to go to my front patio which is partially covered anyway. I felt it would be an easy matter to finish it up as a room. However, every possible other project was a must-do on the property. With one more summer tourist season going past I began to feel hopelessly defeated.

This was when some folks came to my home searching for material on a family member they never knew. The woman had been adopted at an early age. Her biological father had been Jones but she knew little about him. I was a little embarrassed that I had to seat them at the kitchen table. However, this was a good way to spur me on to finish my project.

My idea is to have the antique photographs on DVD's with the information narrated so a person can see the picture, and hear the information. I was made aware of this need from the hours of having to strain my eyes looking at rolls of microfilm. Libraries with genealogy information have many people coming through so this is necessary but here in my own home there will not be that happening so individuals will have the opportunity to do something like this. This room has a door so people can be shut off from the activities of the family in the rest of the house. This way they can study in peace, undisturbed. The lovely patio with all the greenery and water fountain lends a private, pleasant surroundings also. Soft music Rodney has installed so it will be a quiet backdrop. This privacy will be guaranteed through the invitational status in regards to a visit. A phone call to firm up a time and hours for reservations will do.

These are pictures from my efforts to set up a small museum here in my home. It is more of a chore than I realized but the guests who come through and children of the family are learning so much about their roots.