Monday, June 19, 2006

I attended a meeting this afternoon at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture (MAC) to obtain information on the Campbell House Employee Research Project. The Eastern Washington Genealogical Society members were invited to participate in researching the lives of the various employees of the Campbell House, a mansion in Victorian-era Spokane, Washington. Each participating member chooses several employees' lives to research. The purpose is to "round out" the individuals who played quiet, but important, parts in the history of early Spokane. Many of these servants were immigrants, and they sometimes worked for more than one early famous Spokane family. The museum hopes to garner enough information to have presenters act out the roles of these employees in order to make the tour of the Campbell House more authentic. I chose Herman Thoeni, a gardener, and Mrs. Amelia Beers, a cook. I specifically chose them because they have apparent Dutch surnames, and I am familiar with Dutch research, having many Dutch family lines of my own. I'm looking forward to finding out more about "my" servants!

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