Small Town News

May offers a perfect time for remembering

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We need to know our history because it helps us to know who we are and where we've come from, thus helping us know where we are going.

Did you know that many Irish came to America prior to the Revolutionary War? That was about 75 years before the infamous potato famine - which, by the way, wasn't exactly as simple as a fungus attacking the potato crop. They were very happy to fight the British for their own reasons, which is also an interesting story.

That all leads into May being Historic Preservation Month - a fine time to take notice of our national treasures, whether they be buildings, parks, battlefields, or monuments.

Did you know that log cabins are said to have first been built in America by Scandinavians in 1638? This land being heavily forested, it was both practical and popular. On the prairies, sod

homes were the norm due to lack of forest. They made "bricks" out of mud, dried them in the sun, then stacked them for walls, or used a natural rise in the ground and dug in, creating a cave-like home with the sod bricks forming the front closure. Our ancestors were pretty resourceful folk!

Another thing we had aplenty was talent. Many pioneers were craftsmen, meaning that they did their work with care. They took pride in their finished products, and it showed. If you were going to build something, it only made sense to make it a thing of beauty. When it came to churches, it was an act of devotion to beautify the building.

When money was no object (think Vanderbilt, among others), craftsmen were hired to make their homes and "summer cottages" (i.e., The Breakers in Newport, Rhode Island) the grandest places imaginable. In fact, they went to great lengths to one-up each other in showcasing their wealth. Importing marble and alabaster was to be expected, and

they hired the best craftsmen to ensure the desired effect.

Sometimes wealth contributed to eccentricity (The Winchester House in California), but they still provide us a glimpse into the Gilded Age and lives of those who made the most of their talents and abilities. We may never see such creations again, and so we must preserve what we have. These buildings are every bit as valuable as anything painted by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Norman Rockwell, or Winslow Homer. Wouldn't you rather see the Empire State Building than a monolith of concrete and glass with no distinguishing details?

Perhaps you are now curious about the Irish or perhaps the Winchester House. Please rush to the library or the Internet and look for more details! The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a wonderful place to learn of our country's treasures.

And if you wish to look into our local treasures, please go to www.cityofcheney.org and look under "Historic Preservation."



Copyright 2011 Cheney Free Press, Cheney, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2011 Cheney Free Press Cheney, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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