National Historic Preservation Month – it's now!

This is the month! Sandy Strelou has a bunch of events ahead – here’s more:

Ian: National Historic Preservation Month is going to be bigger than ever. Check out all the great local history activities going on in May. Please share this information with your readers! Thanks much.

Sandy Strehlou, Town of Friday Harbor

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A Whole Lot of History: May is National Historic Preservation Month

The Town of Friday Harbor’s centennial celebration continues, and the San Juan Island National Historical Park is celebrating their 150th, along with many other significant anniversaries.  This year, National Historic Preservation Month is bigger than ever, with a full line-up of events no one should miss:

Guided Tour of the Downtown Historic District, Saturday, May 9, 9am, Memorial Park. Tour selected sites from the downtown historic district. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes, and join Friday Harbor’s historic preservation coordinator for an enjoyable walk back in time. Reservations required 360.378.2810. There is no charge for this event.

Historic Lime Kiln Lighthouse-Open House, May 10, 2009, noon – 5:00pm, Lime Kiln State Park, Westside Road. Guided tours to the top of historic Lime Kiln Lighthouse, built in 1914. The lighthouse is located in Lime Kiln Point State Park and is one of the best places on the island to see orca whales from land.  A short hike away you can visit two historic lime kilns, one restored the other left to age naturally. Both are relics from the island’s once thriving lime industry. There is no charge for this event. 360.378.2044.

Historic Barns of San Juan County, May 13, 7pm, San Juan Historical Museum, 405 Price Street. Local historian and historic preservation architect, Boyd Pratt, will discuss his work surveying the county’s historic barns. His talk will include archive and contemporary photographs of some of the most important and endangered heritage barns in San Juan County. Pratt’s work is being funded through a San Juan County Historic Document Fund grant, and is a joint project of the 100 Friends of Old Island Barns and the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation. 360.378.4738.

Guided Tour of the Downtown Historic District, Saturday, May 16, 9am, Memorial Park. Tour selected sites from the downtown historic district. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes, and join Friday Harbor’s historic preservation coordinator for an enjoyable walk back in time. Reservations required 360.378.2810. There is no charge for this event.

Historic Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church–Open House and Tour, May 17, 2-4pm, 425 Spring Street. Friday Harbor’s oldest churches are opening their doors to tell the history of the town’s historic sacred places and the people whose lives and faith helped shape San Juan Island. The sacred places series continues with Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church. In January 2010, the congregation is planning a year-long sesquicentennial celebration. The open house is free to the public. 360.378.4544.

History Talk: The Disputed Islands and the interdependence of Culture, History and Landscape, May 20, 7pm, San Juan Historical Museum, 405 Price Street. Local historian and historic preservation architect, Boyd Pratt discusses the historical events, people, and changing demographics that have, and continue to shape, the economic, political and social dynamics of San Juan Island. This event is free to the public and is being sponsored by the Town of Friday Harbor and the San Juan Historical Museum. 360.378.4738.

Guided Tour of the Downtown Historic District, Saturday, May 23, 9am, Memorial Park. Tour selected sites from the downtown historic district. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes, and join Friday Harbor’s historic preservation coordinator for an enjoyable walk back in time. Reservations required 360.378.2810. There is no charge for this event.

Re-Enactor’s Encampment, Saturday, May 23, 2009, 9am-5pm, San Juan Historical Museum grounds. The San Juan Historical Museum and the San Juan Island National Historical Park commemorate the Pig War crisis. San Juan Island Battery D will be joined by living historians from the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Be there when the vintage cannon is fired! There is no charge for this event. 360.378.4738.

Theatre Performance: The Life and Times of General George E. Pickett,
Saturday, May 23, 2009 (call for showtime), San Juan Community Theatre. The acclaimed play about General George Pickett, written and performed by island resident and National Park Service historian, Mike Vouri. San Juan Community Theatre’s longest running play is being retired. Playwright and performer, Michael Vouri has decided to retire the play in order to free up time to write another book and move on to another history project. “I’m literally growing out of the part,” said Michael. “I’m 61 and Pickett died when he was 50.” For this performance, and in honor of the Town of Friday Harbor’s Centennial, Michael will have Pickett talk about locals like Ed Warbss, who founded the town. Ticket Price: $15 for adults, $8 for student reserved. $5 student RUSH tickets available at the door.

Historic Christian Science Society Church and Reading Room–Open House and Tour, May 24, 2-4pm. This lovely church was originally built by the Seventh Day Adventist in 1900. The Christian Science Society of Friday Harbor was established c1900, with meetings occurring in homes, other churches and civic buildings until 1923, when the Society purchased the historic church building from the Seventh Day Adventists. The open house is free to the public. 360.378.4773.

American Legion Memorial Day Parade, Monday, May 25, 10am, Upper Spring Street to Memorial Park.

History Talk: A Fireside Chat with Island Elders, Friday, May 29, 6pm, Lakedale Resort Lodge, 4313 Roche Harbor Road. A panel of long-time islanders will discuss among themselves and with the audience,  the history of Friday Harbor and island life over the past century. The event will be moderated by San Juan National Historical Park historian and author, Mike Vouri, in the lovely woodland park lodge setting of Lakedale Resort.
This event is free to the public.

Guided Tour of the Downtown Historic District, Saturday, May 30, 9am, Memorial Park. Tour selected sites from the downtown historic district. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes, and join Friday Harbor’s historic preservation coordinator for an enjoyable walk back in time. Reservations required 360.378.2810. There is no charge for this event.

Archeology Walk: Tracing the Pre-History of San Juan Island Through Archeology, Saturday, May 30, 10am, Cattle Point Road, American Camp at South Beach. Join University of WA archeologist Dr. Julie Stein for a field lecture on the archeology of American Camp. Stein traces ancient habitation of San Juan Island in this guided walk on the American Camp prairie. Meets at Alaska Packer’s Rock at the end of the Salmon Banks Road. Park in the main parking area. There is no charge for this event. 360.378.2902

Pig War Story Guided Walk @ American Camp, Saturday, May 30, 11:30am, Cattle Point Road, American Camp. Park rangers and volunteers describe events leading up to and including the Pig War and the peaceful joint occupation of San Juan island by British and American troops. 360.378.2902. There is no charge for this event.

Living History: Life during the Joint Military Occupation on SJ Island, Saturday, May 30, 12:30-3:30pm, West Side Road, English Camp parade grounds. Park rangers and volunteers create military and civilian life during the island’s early pioneer period. Activities include blacksmithing, coopering, weaving, needlework and exhibitions of military equipment and skills. 360.378.2902. There is no charge for this event.

Guided Tour of Historic Roche Harbor Village, Sunday, May 31, 2pm, Roche Harbor Road, Hotel DeHaro. Formerly the site of a substantial lime quarry and kiln operation that lead to the creation of a company town, today it is a resort, home to the Hotel de Haro (1887) and other historic buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There is no charge for this event. 360.370.7743.

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