Volunteers at a previous Archival Adventures (now Hands on History) event. Photos: Jackie Maas
Old Town Hall is planning volunteer programming to engage with the city’s archive.
Community events have returned to Old Town Hall, including the Hands on History series, formerly known as Archival Adventures. “It’s a chance to come in and satisfy that itch to do a little bit of museum work and to volunteer,” says historical site coordinator Ryan Barland.
Following a recent years-long closure due to a burst water pipe, Old Town Hall reopened to the public as a museum in August and is now open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and the first Saturday of every month. Upcoming Hands on History events will take place from 10 a.m.–noon on October 2, November 6 and December 4.
We spoke with Barland about what visitors can expect from the Hands on History series and other ways they can get involved.
What activities will take place at the Hands on History events?
RB: It had been called Archival Adventures, and we wanted a name that better gave the idea that you’re going to come and you’re actually going to do a little bit of work. It’ll be fun. We’ll laugh. I’m not going to ask you to do anything too strenuous. This is a public history center, and the city has two staff [members], but to get stuff done, we need everyone’s help. Hands on History is the chance to come in and either organize things or do a little bit of collections work that helps us out.
Do visitors have to pre-register or prepare in advance?
RB: We ask that people register with the city’s volunteer coordinator, Jackie Maas, by dropping her an email at jmaas@plymouthmn.gov. I get out an appropriate amount of work—if we get through it all, great. If not, that’s also fine. This fall, we’ll be working a lot on cataloging and describing historic photographs. We’ve got thousands of photographs in the collection, and what I need is someone to look through as many as they can and describe what it is. Is it a baby? Is it a cat? Is it a farm? You don’t need to have a Ph.D. in history to do that. All you need to have is two eyes and if possible, a laptop to type out your answers. I go through training to give people some tips and tricks as practice.
What do you hope volunteers can take away from the event?
RB: First and foremost, I hope it’s fun. It’s another way that we do programming here at the Plymouth History Center. It’s on a day that we’re not normally open to the public, and it’s nice to have the public come in and enjoy the space. A lot of people might not have been here before or in a long time, so it’s a nice chance to see the new exhibits. A lot of this material is all Plymouth history that’s currently inaccessible to the general public. The hope is that this stuff is digitized and online and available for students or researchers to better understand local history.
Volunteer documenting a historic photo from the archives.
What is the significance of holding these activities at the town hall now that it’s renovated?
RB: The collections are housed here, so it’s easier to do it this way. It’s nice to have another reason to use the space. The building was built historically to hold annual meetings but, because it was the one municipal building in Plymouth for decades, there were a lot of social events that were held here. It doesn’t just have to be a museum. We can do other kinds of fun things here.
What other kinds of programming are being planned at the Old Town Hall?
RB: Currently, we’ve got a nice partnership with the Plymouth Library where they host some of the programming, and we host some of the programming. History Discussion Club is one of my favorite things we do. It’s kind of like a book club. Every month is a different topic, and you get a little packet that you can pick up at the library. It’s on various Minnesota historical topics that we’ve curated a short series of readings about. And then we come and have an informal chat for about an hour.
A new program we’re starting is a genealogy club. You don’t have to have any experience in genealogy. You could be the world’s best genealogist or someone who’s just trying to figure things out. It’s an open-ended chat. Most of the people who come in and want to utilize our resources are genealogists, and this is a discussion club to help with tips and tricks.
A group of volunteers help Plymouth staff archive historic artifacts.
Another Way to Engage
Barland encourages Plymouth community members to visit during museum hours as well. “You can [peruse] the exhibits; you can come and do research. If you’ve got questions or mysteries or whatever it might be, we love answering those and helping people engage in history that way,” he says.
Ages 18 and older. Free. 10 a.m.–noon, October 2, November 6 and December 4; Plymouth Old Town Hall, 3605 Fernbrook Lane N., Plymouth; plymouthmn.gov
