Water In Brewing

The Water In Brewing exhibit opened at the Brews & BBQ event earlier this year.  However I thought I would take a few moments to explain the exhibit globally and how it was made.

This exhibit was born out of a brainstorming meeting that was held with community members at the 1912 Center in order to focus the LCHS programming for the Water|Ways exhibit in December and January.  This exhibit looks at the differences in water in Latah County as they pertain to brewing beer.

The first step in creating this exhibit was collecting samples from across Latah County.  I collected samples from the following lotions:



After collecting the samples in clean canning jars I analyzed them using a home chemical identification kit.  The samples were analyzed for Calcium, Alkalinity, Sulfate, Chloride and Kolback Residual Alkalinity.  Using these five factors I was able to determine the best types of beer that could be made with this particular water sample. 

The samples and information were presented at the Brews and BBQ event earlier this year and will be on display around the county in various places later this summer.

Water In Brewing installed at the Latah County Historical Society Brews and BBQ event April 9, 2016.

Zachary Wnek
Museum Curator
Latah County Historical Society

An Afternoon in Kendrick

If you're looking for a great party, look no further than Kendrick, Idaho.  Saturday April 25th marked a festive celebration in Kendrick, Idaho.  The Juliaetta-Kendrick Heritage Foundation opened their permanent museum.  This museum is the culmination of years of hard work to obtain and preserve the Fraternal Temple building in Kendrick.  Entering the museum you go into a large open space that just screams for large events to be hosted there.  This space had wonderful exhibits along the walls which explained the history of downtown buildings in Kendrick and Juliaetta.  This exhibit traced ownership and in most cases showed images of the buildings and their various uses.

When you are at the museum, I encourage you to ask a lot of questions.  First and foremost, look at the floor beneath you on the first floor it is from Mr. Walt Disney!  Be sure to ask the host at the museum about how that came to pass.  While you are asking questions be sure to inquire about how much their rental fees are for your next great event.

Did I mention that this was a party?  Along the rest of the first floor was a fantastic spread of food and beverages for the grand opening patrons to consume as well as chairs setup to watch the historical documentaries about the Kendrick and Juliaetta region.  But now let's head upstairs to go to the museum (as if this wasn't exciting enough).

Up a flight of stairs is an excellent example of what is possible when local historians work hard to remember and honor their heritage.  Much of the grand room upstairs is filled with historic images and objects that help to tell the story of the history of the Juliaetta and Kendrick region.  The entry room is dedicated to Bob and Lois Iller for all of their support of the J-K Heritage Foundation through the years.  Another room in the museum is donated to Arlene Wallace, whose family donated many objects and generous funding to the museum.  Remember, this is a party.  To begin the afternoon the museum had a formal dedication from the pump organ and flute accompanied by a formal blessing for the space.

Walking through the museum you are surrounded by historical images, objects and information about the Juliaetta and Kendrick region.  Looking at these objects it is clearly an example of local history well done.  The residents of these communities the museum serves should be excited to have such a valuable historic resource located in Kendrick.  I took many photos of the museum while I was there, but I thought I'd share just a few with you and encourage you to visit the museum yourself to see the rest of the exhibits.



The museum, located at 614 E Main St. in Kendrick, will be open from 1pm-3pm on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month, I strongly recommend visiting.

Here are some photos of the museum, research room and patrons.

A Communications exhibit at the museum.

A veterans exhibit at the museum.

Research materials available for research at the museum.

Happy and excited patrons at the museum.

  - Zachary Wnek
Museum Curator
Latah County Historical Society

The LCHS Victorian Christmas Party

On December 13th, 2014 the Latah County Historical Society had our annual Victorian Christmas party.  The party was well attended by folks from Latah County and beyond, with over 200 people in attendance.  We think this event was a great way to show off the McConnell Mansion in all of its Christmas splendor.  In case you missed it, the Mansion is open from Tuesday-Friday from 1pm-4pm and is available for tours.

The fantastic holiday party took place in the afternoon.  The event highlighted our biggest historical artifact, the McConnell Mansion.  The Mansion was decorated to the hilt with Christmas decorations including two live Christmas trees.  Any party at the McConnell Mansion would not have been complete without the assistance of the great LCHS events committee and membership who shared their favorite holiday cookies with everyone.  This year there were two special highlights, the opening of a new exhibit and the Palouse Choral Society.  The Palouse Choral Society sang throughout the event spreading cheer from the family parlor.  The new exhibit is titled Departments of Latah County: Department Stores and Mercantiles across Latah County's History.  While the choral society has gone the new exhibit will be up for a while yet.

Here are some photographs of this great event.

One of the two Christmas trees upstairs in the Mansion.

Children's activities upstairs.

The stairway all dressed up.

The Palouse Choral Society at the Victorian Christmas Party.

LCHS Door greeting committee.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

Thank you very much for attending this year's Victorian Christmas and we look forward to seeing you again next year!

Zach Wnek
Museum Curator
Latah County Historical Society