The Historical Society of Elida has opened Elida’s first museum to remember its history.
ELIDA — The village of Elida is embarking on a new chapter in its history. A few community members have decided to preserve the many memories of the town, an idea born out of discussions held earlier this year. That decision led to the Elida Historical Society opening its doors in November.
“We are kind of the last generation to know, the drugstore that was in town, our shop that was in town, the doctor that was in town and the library,” society chairperson Jayne (Stemen) Vaske said. “The generation now has no idea that we had all that. We feel like we need to start before we are not here to tell the story. We want to get it ready for the younger generation. Elida to them is a whole different idea than what it was when we were growing up.”
The museum currently holds many items from the town, including the history of the founder, Griffith John. According to the historical society, John named the village in honor of his brother, whose name was Elida.
“If you drive down through Elida, you will see some buildings and some homes,” Steve Hedrick said. “There are the cement blocks that have kind of a rounded in sort of a chiseled look on the outside? Well, there was a factory here that made those. You see it in the architecture here in town. Those are things we want to share.”
Community members have donated memorabilia to contribute to the museum. One family donated the letterman jacket of the late Royce Stalter.
Treasurer Deb (Thomas) Vanbuskirk said Stalter won an award in 1968 which his wife also donated to the museum.
As the museum continues to grow, the society welcomes donated items and monetary donations.
“We are up to 40 members (on the board),” Vaske said. “It is $20 to become a member. We are in the process of becoming a 501c3 (nonprofit).”
The museum is open from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. every third Sunday at 113 E Kiracofe Ave. For more information, the Historical Society of Elida can be reached on Facebook or through mail at P.O. Box 3014, Elida, OH 45807.
Reach Precious Grundy at 567-242-0351.
