The Adams County House of History: A Step Back in Time
The House of History is working to renovate the facility and to add on storage capacity for its many varied artifacts and displays.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Adams County House of History has been open to the public since 1969 when it was purchased to become a museum. Built in 1877, the building originally served as the county jail and the sheriff’s quarters. In 1955, it became home to private residences until sold in 1969.
The House of History has a variety of items and artifacts such as a sea trunk which navigated to the New World on the Mayflower; military artifacts dating back to the Spanish-American War; an old barber shop and medical items; the only jail cell remaining from the building’s earlier use; and much more!
The House of History continues to work to stay open, but a lack of funding to keep the facility in good shape and an inability to house new items that are being donated has made it hard to stay open for the community. With adequate funding, the facility could be updated to modern standards like energy efficient windows while still keeping the facade historically accurate. Plus, a storage facility could be bought or built upon the property so that excess items could be stored and exhibits could be rotated frequently for different shows. As an essential component of Adams County History and the Corning Main Street District, it will be a key component in revitalization of the downtown area.
You can help by voting and getting others to vote. Go to the following website to help the Adams County House of History receive $25,000 in grant money!
http://my.preservationnation.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=9403&security=2862&s_interest=3025
Thank you for all of your support!
If you have been in downtown Corning today, you can see that the festivities of this packed weekend have already started. The En Plein Air artists are out and about, transforming blank canvases into masterpieces all over the downtown area. The Corning Center for the Fine Arts hosted Chamber coffee this morning and had a great turnout even with the threat of rain. Exhibits abound and you have your chance to win some of the exhibits in the Silent Auction that ends tomorrow at 3pm. Finally, you probably have had your mouth watering since yesterday thinking about the BBQ contest, but now they are cooking and making people count down the time until sampling starts!
So what’s in store for tonight? Well, at 3pm, you can get your wristband to get into all of the great fun. There will be a beer tent for those 21 and over; there will be sampling of great BBQ that has been cooking all night; there will be entertainment in the form of a DJ and performances from the Spotlight School of Dance; and a street dance will cap the evening off with the band BarCode! You can’t say there isn’t anything to do in Corning tonight!
Of course, Saturday is chock-full of events too! You can get up early and run in Alegent Health’s Doctor’s Dash. Pick between 1K, 5K, and 10K runs around the Corning community. If that is not your style, but you want something else to do, the Rotary is serving a pancake breakfast on 7th Street by Okey Vernon Bank from 7-10am. There is no cost to eat, but all donations go towards Polio Plus: Rotary’s International Campaign to Eradicate Polio. After you fill up on some great breakfast food, head up to the Central Park Pavilion and see what’s for sale in the Farmer’s Market. It’s open from 8-10am.
Tired yet? Well, don’t give up on us yet. There are still several hours of activities left! Starting at 10am, there will be an Arts & Cars parade with a variety of decorated vehicles. There will be the American Legion classic car show from 10:30am to 2pm. There will be a wine tasting by the Corning Winery and Vineyards from 12pm-2pm in the Park. The kids can play on the giant inflatables all morning and afternoon while you enjoy the day! Plus, once your stomach starts growling around the lunch hour, make sure you are back up in the park. The Main Street Board of Directors will be serving a lunch in the park. Get a sandwich, chips, beans, and a drink for $5. Want an extra sandwich? Just $3. All funds go back into supporting the great activities from this weekend!
Don’t leave! There are still some afternoon events! The Corning Center for the Fine Arts will be hosting class reunion information all weekend in conjunction with the En Plein Air artists and the Silent Auction. They will have a wine and beer tasting of home brews in the afternoon. The Legion has the car show awards at 2:30pm. The Fine Arts Center has the En Plein Air awards at 3pm. Around 3:30, the activities will be winding down and people will be heading out for their evening. But how could such a great weekend be even more complete? Stick around and go to the Adams County Speedway! There will be some great racing lined up and it’s the perfect way to cap a great weekend of arts, cars, and other great activities!
We hope that everyone can come to some, if not all, of the events, and we hope that you enjoy yourself! See you there!