A love of community and history brings new curator to Springs Museum
SPRINGS ― History, antiques and a sense of community are part of the new Springs Museum curator's interest and background.
Beth Holler Page, who was raised in Springs, and keeps coming back to her community to help out when she can, is relying on her own and her family's background in history to help her in her vision for the Springs Museum's future.
She spent part of her childhood in museums and antique stores as well as listening to family stories.
"I grew up knowing the area. Since I was little my grandmother (Lucille Derrick) would bring me and my cousins here to Springs Museum," Page said. "Grandma would point out things people would do with the pieces."
Her dad, Jim Holler, and mother, Harriet Berg, are both involved in antiques as well.
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"It all started with Dr. (Alta) Schrock. She asked me to help her take pictures," Page said. "Then I used to guide bus tours for her. She was always getting people involved."
A Salisbury-Elk Lick High School graduate, Page graduated from James Madison University with a bachelor of arts degree in anthropology. She received her master's degree in American Studies with a concentration in museum and material culture from George Washington University.
Page worked at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Paul-Belmont House and the Horticulture Collections Management and Education Branch at the Smithsonian Museum, which allowed a study in national historical movements, artistic trends and diverse cultures.
Locally, she worked at the Somerset Historical Center and the Pennsylvania Room at the Meyersdale Public Library.
Page interviewed several people for a documentary to get their stories and impressions of what happened during the Salisbury tornadoes in 1998.
"It was interesting. Despite people's backgrounds, emotions were the same," she said. "It puts things into perspective. Looking around in a town where I went to school in – I grew up with these people. My heart sank. But they said we gotta go on and they did."
After her family moved from Washington, D.C., Page volunteered with Spruce Forest Artisan Village and worked as a substitute teacher in Gettysburg, where she currently resides most of the year.
"I moved to Gettysburg and became a stay-at-home mom," she said. "Being curator here is a part-time, volunteer position.
Springs Museum projects
The Springs Museum houses collections from the Casselman Valley region that shows the different religions, backgrounds, innovations and businesses of the people who lived in the area. Page’s goals for the future of the museum are to enhance exhibits with signage, organize archive collections and plan for the new Wagner Annex.
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"I want to get the museum during the summer to where we can interpret things here. There's so much potential with the various 1700 to 1950s gamut of home life, agriculture, toys and community life. We can see what we have and how can we tell the stories."
Students, visitors and families can learn about the region and also have interactive fun. The Annex brings Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) themes together to bring hands-on interactive rotating exhibits.
"I hope to be more available to schools. Kids can work, incorporating STEM, based on history and culture," Page said. "They can see how we're using the same food, but in different ways. How does it relate to today?"
The first exhibit will feature the maple industry of the area, relying on a gift of artifacts, images, and a donation by the late Sue Jeffrey, former owner of Wagner’s Sugar Camp of West Salisbury. Other proposed exhibits will explore renewable energy such as windmills and a look at the history and engineering associated with natural resources.
In the Annex, Page said she would like to build a display dedicated to the textile industry. She also wants to build on the crayon portraits display. Page explained that early photographers used crayons to fill in empty spaces in portraits.
"It was a cheap way of filing up the portrait for early photography," she said.
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The Annex will also provide storage for the Springs Historical Society’s Casselman Chronicle – journals that have been produced for 62 years. All back issues and bound full sets are available for sale. Donations received within the next year will be used for proposed matching funds to make the museum a relevant, more accessible, and exciting place to learn, Page said.
"We have thousands of items that need to be stored appropriately," she said. "The whole museum is an upcoming project."
Volunteers at this time are scanning photos for online and she's doing a presentation in August about the projects. Page said she's working with Meyersdale Public Library to get the Pennsylvania Power Library online, which is a virtual exhibit on the website.
The Springs Museum is at 1711 Springs Road, Springs. More information may be found on the Springs Historical Society’s website www.springspa.org/museum, on Facebook at Springs Historical Society/Springs Folk Festival or call 814-279-1980. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and Saturday through Oct. 23.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: A love of community and history brings new curator to Springs Museum
