The Clarkston Community Historical Society is opening its 14th exhibit, Clarkston Childhood: From Schoolyard to Farmyard at the Clarkston Heritage Museum, Independence Township Library.
This latest exhibit tells the story of Clarkston’s youngest residents and what their lives were like in our small farming community.
‘This is a fun and lively exhibit fitted with display cases full of artifacts, photos and toys,? said Jennifer Arkwright. ‘Every aspect of a young child’s life is investigated.?
There are several items from Clarkston’s earliest schools, from an 1898 Course of Study booklet to a colorful pair of tobacco tin lunchboxes.
An 1890 photo of the Union School shows all the children standing on the front lawn, two wrapped in a very large American flag.
‘What was the occasion ? perhaps the photo was to celebrate the first time the flag was run up the tall wooden flagpole seen off to one side of the schoolyard,? Arkwright said.
Several cases are filled with an variety of toys and activities, including a 1940 pedal car and an 1870 rocking horse.
There is also an early sled, wooden runner skates, a Red Ryder BB gun, 1890 tea set, toy chicken that lays clay marbles and a tiny handmade doll made by longtime Clarkston resident Fanny Irish.
A small blue tin pop-gun has an unusual story. Found beneath the floorboards of a home on Main Street, it still has the piece of crayon in its barrel that the young shooter was using as his ‘bullet.?
‘We imagine that perhaps he stung his little sister once too often and had to stash the toy until papa cooled off,? Arkwright said.
The exhibit also depicts the time when children didn’t always live to become adults. A Health Officer’s record book lists the many epidemics that rolled through Clarkston in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
There are pages of family members listed as well as the diseases they suffered from, including influenza, small pox, diphtheria, and measles, and whether the patient survived.
Other areas explored are farm and house chores. Beating the dust out of the floor rugs, collecting eggs, chipping ice and caring for farm animals are just a few.
‘Hard work was expected and everyone had to do their part,? she said. ‘But of course, there were so many places to go when the chores were finally done.?
The shores of the Mill Pond, as well as Parke and Deer Lakes, provided a water wonderland for swimming, fishing and boating.
The exhibit will be on display until mid-summer.
The Clarkston Heritage Museum is located in the Independence Township Library, 6495 Clarkston Road. It is open during all regular library hours.
For additional information, call the historical society at 248- 922-0270.