| We've been working on a preliminary drawing for the new Print Shop, which appears above and in the following drawings.
Our underlying idea is that we would like to show what life on Beaver Island has been. Aspects related to the lake (ferries, fishing, lighthouses, captains, and boat building) will still be placed at the Marine Museum, and large artifacts will be displayed at Heritage Park, but everything else will have to be accommodated here.
At present, we have a Native American Room immediately inside the door. This small room is barely adequate, so one of our first decisions was to allocate a larger space elsewhere. This allows us to use the first two rooms in the Mormon building for this period. We intend to solve the problem of the hardworking Mormons being damned by Strang's questionable morals by separating them: the industrious group who cleared the land and built the roads will have a room, and the "pirate or prophet" Strang will have another.
 Immediately behind the back wall of the Print Shop, in the area currently occupied by our Protar display, will be the stairway to the second floor, the bathroom, and an elevator (we feel an elevator is better than the lengthy ramp it would take to access the upstairs from the sidewalk.) This will be permanent, whereas other partitions in the addition could be moved. This area might be the only part of the structure to have a basement, in which the mechanical systems can be housed. Locating the stairs here will give the second floor (the new location for the office, as well as a site for storage of archives and artifacts and the assembling of rotating exhibits) the greatest possible open space, so meetings could be held here. Copies of our archives and genealogical material will be available, next to the relocated office so that comments can be exchanged with the Director.
This plan includes a 20' x 20' module for the history of the Irish on Beaver Island. We might designate the hallway currently showcasing Helen Collar's portraits as an area for describing the conditions that led to the Irish Migration to Beaver. Inside the module itself we'll be able to present the life made by these souls after they arrived, and showcase some of those who were successful after leaving Beaver Island.
 In the back of the current office, where sound will be less distracting, we could have our Oral History Alcove, a place in which three to six visitors could sit and watch people who have passed on talk about their memories and feelings for life on Beaver. The rest of the Post Office Addition could feature contemporary history, which is growing more interesting every day.
The current plan is for the new addition to be divided by two broad hallways intersecting at right angles, and for there to be other circular patterns of traffic. The first of these hallways can contain an expanded version of our "Then and Now" exhibit. The walls of the other could feature agricultural and logging displays, as well as material on Father Gallagher and Bishop Baraga and other religious matters. As perhaps the greatest man to have lived on Beaver Island and contributed to it, Protar deserves his own room. This corner would be a good place.
 There should also be a room for material on natural history, which is such an important part of our enjoyment of life here. Perhaps we could change a diorama here every few years. Of equal interest is cultural history, stories of our various artists, writers, actors, and musicians. This "south wing" could give archaeology a room next to the Native American Room. In the Archaeology Room we can present what we know; in the Native American Room we can indicate what it means.
There are two areas for rotating exhibits. Candidates are not in short supply. Suggestions have included womens' history, the story of the other islands, the churches and schools, or political and legal history. New topics may come to light as well. It's easy to imagine a team working frantically into the night every (or every other) Sunday to create a surprise for the following week
 Our plan to handle the grade change outside is to build a thirty-inch-high stone wall coming out from the back corner, and to locate some outdoor displays on the lower courtyard. As for the question of parking, we might have to acquire additional property.
At this point none of these ideas are more than suggestions. No doubt, as the discussion of what we should do heats up over the next few years, many or all of them will be modified. The overall size may have to be cut back as well, depending on our ability to raise funds. On the other hand, if our efforts succeed, we may be able to purchase additional contiguous property. For the time being, considering what would happen if all our wishes were granted should bring us a great deal of satisfaction. Larger Views of the Current Design / Archive Article about the project | |
