Annual Meeting & Lecture:
Benjamin Marshall, Architect

Sunday, January 29, 2012
2:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Free

We welcome Steven Monz from the Benjamin Marshall Society as our guest speaker at our Annual Meeting this year. Mr. Monz will discuss the important work of this somewhat unknown architect whose works include Chicago’s Drake Hotel, Edgewater Beach Hotel, South Shore Country Club, Blackstone Theater, and Blackstone Hotel. His fascinating home and studio graced the Wilmette harbor from 1921 to 1950.

Presidents’ Day Program:
Portrayal—Clara Barton, Civil War Nurse

Monday, February 20, 2012 (Presidents’ Day)

1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Free for Museum members; $5 per family for non-Museum members

Clara Barton earned fame as the first woman to serve as a nurse on the front lines of a battlefield. This first-person program, given by Leslie Goddard, introduces Barton as a tireless worker who faced remarkable challenges in her quest to care for wounded soldiers. Learn about the medical conditions during the American Civil War and about the courage required for a woman who dared to brave the war’s front lines.

Tour: Wilmette Water Plant

Saturday, March 10, 2012
10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

Free for Museum members; $5 for non-members
Reservations are required; phone (847) 853-7666

Surprises abound in this exclusive one-hour tour of the water plant. Constructed in 1933, its beautiful art deco interior accentuates its practical civil engineering operations. Learn about how Wilmette gets its drinking water, what steps go into the cleaning process and the amazing distribution system of water within the village and beyond its borders.

Lecture: “Lost on the Lady Elgin”

Sunday, April 15, 2012

2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Free for members; $5 for non-members
Valerie Van Heest is the award-winning author of “Lost on the Lady Elgin,” the true story of the sidewheel steamer that sank off the coast of Highwood in September, 1860, claiming more than 400 lives. It remains the worst maritime tragedy to ever happen on the open waters of the Great Lakes. Ms. Van Heest will discuss how the tragedy unfolded, the rescue attempt, the re-discovery of the wreck in 1989, the legal battle that ensued and her own underwater excursions to document the vessel. Her book and/or dvd will be available for purchase.

Museum and Police Department Open House

Sunday, May 6, 2012
11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Free
The Museum invites you to take a step back in time in our beautiful 1896 Gross Point Village Hall. Enter this historic building through the old fire engine bay where horses once pulled their wagons. Continue downstairs to the former village’s police department where today you can still get “locked up” in an original jail cell. Finally, visit our fascinating new “Cooler by the Lake” exhibit and learn about the history of our very own lakefront. This 30-minute self-guided tour of the Museum is a great way to introduce children to Wilmette’s colorful history.

Housewalk: Lakefront Homes

Sunday, May 20, 2012

1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
$40 for members; $50 for non-members
Our annual housewalk will feature spectacular lakefront homes and the Baha’i Temple. Keeping with the theme of our new exhibit, “Cooler by the Lake,” we will showcase Tudor-style homes from the 1920s and 1930s built by the exceptional architects Philip Maher, Abraham Epstein and Richard Powers.