This past Saturday, Andrew and I attended an event called “The Objects We Hold Dear”, courtesy of the EastMenn Historical Committee, which is affiliated with the Manitoba Mennonite Historical Society. This was EastMenn’s AGM, and they added many extra events to the occasion which was hosted at the Mennonite Heritage Village in Steinbach. First, an update on the activities of the EastMenn Historical Committee, most of which, these days, involves the Peace Trail. (Which I have only now realized I’ve never posted a blog about! I need to change that!)
After the update from Ernie Braun, we explored the various displays of The Objects We Hold Dear. Andrew brought some objects, and he and I took turns going on a vault tour with Assistant Curator Garth Doerksen.
This was an opportunity to go behind the restricted access doors and into the rooms where only curators may typically go.
While Andrew was with Garth, I sat at his table, talking with people and/or eavesdropping and learning a thing or two.
It was a special opportunity to see and learn about very interesting objects with personal stories attached.
Here is a coffee grinder that belongs to Al Hamm. It had been his grandparents’ coffee grinder, he remembered it from when he was a boy.
At the time when his grandparents’ belongings had gone to auction, Al had not yet been interested in family history. But later, in his 40s, he became curious. He looked up in the auction papers to see who had purchased this coffee grinder, and learned that he knew the fellow. So, he approached him and asked if he could buy it off him. The gentleman replied, “No, you cannot buy it. I will give it to you.” What a kind gesture. And so Al was reunited with this object that linked him to his family’s past.
I find that objects can function as portals to a past that is no more. Objects allow me to step into bygone scenes which exist now only in memory. I think that is the function of these objects for many of these people.
Ernie Braun is a collector and brought a great many interesting objects to share, in his animated manner.
Ed Krahn had two branding irons on display. He said that when the Americans had been pushing into Canada, they had let their cattle graze as far north as Yorkton, Saskatchwan (then it was the Northwest Territories) so farmers used branding irons to identify which cows were theirs. So, his branding irons are linked to a story about the history of the 49th parallel and our country’s becoming.
But the piece that really caught my attention was this beautiful old book:
I could not take my eyes off this book belonging to MHV Assistant Curator Garth Doerksen.
It is exquisite! And so very old. A melding of art and arithmetic.
After supper, Andrew and I returned for the keynote from Dr. Roland Sawatzky, Curator of History at the Manitoba Museum. I always find his talks insightful, as he tells us what the meaning is behind the material culture of the Mennonites we are descended from. Their homes and objects within their homes told stories of what they valued, how they lived, and why. Power structures and motivations.
I found it especially interesting when he talked about how the housebarns that Mennonites built were from a long tradition they picked up when they lived in Poland for hundreds of years. Andrew and I saw many of these structures, so very many, when we visited Poland with his parents this past summer. Something I did not know, however, was that people in that region of the world had been living in structures like these since 4600-3900 BCE (according to this slide in Dr. Sawatzky’s presentation). He pointed out that after 300 generations living in structures like these, Mennonites abandoned them within two generations once they were living in North America. I find that very profound and sad. I think I will think about that fact for a long time.
Something else I will think about for a long time is this bizarre graveyard quilt:
Fascinating! The longer I stare at it, the more I see. The graveyard in the centre, all the coffins, even the picket fence surrounding it all.
I’m grateful for the work of the EastMenn Historical Committee. In order to avoid missing updates on future meetings, you can subscribe to email updates from the Manitoba Mennonite Historical Society and/or follow them on Instagram.