Early this month our Curator of Collections took artifacts to Toledo to be used as part of the Titanic Exhibit at Imagination Station. As a participating sponsor, we are exhibiting a variety of trunks, a fainting couch, table, tea service, table cloth and clothing. The Titanic Exhibit opened last weekend and runs through June 15, 2014.
“Imagination Station was looking for items that would represent our society in 1912 when the Titanic sank,” shared Tracie Evans, Curator of Collections. “They want guests to see not just the movie of that time period, but how similar it was to life in Northwest Ohio.”
The Maumee Valley Historical Society has provided Imagination Station with period clothing representing upper class communities/first class passengers and we helped complete that display with furniture and tea service. The curators at Imagination Station also wanted people to see what the working class community was wearing. To help tell that story we shared women’s dresses, a man’s suit, shawls, wraps and coats – similar to what may have been worn by second or third class passengers on the Titanic. We also took trunks to Imagination Station to help tell the story of travel during the early 1900s. Two of the trunks were manufactured in Ohio and they represent the typical style of trunks used by the various passengers on the ship.
“Our involvement with this special exhibit is a great way for people to see that our collections represent not just life in Northwest Ohio, but how connected our ancestors were to a national and international story,” Tracie added. “The Titanic event happened thousands of miles away but it still reverberated in our local communities. There were people who lived in this area who were on board or had family members on the ship and were touched by this tragedy.”
In addition to having some artifacts from our collection on display, some Sauder Village staff members will also be presenting special programs this spring at Imagination Station. Some of the programs will focus on preservation of artifacts, telegraphy, and tea time. Watch for more details on our Sauder Village website.
For more details about the Titanic Exhibit at Imagination Station visit their website
