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“And, Oh, What A Party It Will Be”
It will be more than a triple/triple event at
the Benicia Historical Museum the weekend of September 5, 6, 7. The
H. L. HUNLEY, a replica of the Confederate Civil War Submarine will
return to Benicia, an Industrial Exhibit will open in Building 7
which itself will be named Silas P. Casey Hall, The Paul and
Catherine Spenger Memorial Garden behind Stone Hall will be
dedicated with music and dance, a Civil War Encampment will be held,
the Diablo Buckskinners will appear, the Historical Museum and
Powder Magazine will be open, and youngsters will have a hands-on
introduction to corn grinding and adobe brick-making.
Starting with an invitation-only reception
Friday evening, the complex will be open on Saturday, September 5
from 10:00 am to 7: 00 pm, and on Sunday, September 6 from 10:00am
to 5:00 pm. Tickets will be $10 a day, with children under 12
admitted free of charge. There will be food concessions run by local
Benicia service organizations, and mementos to purchase. This
exciting weekend is being made possible through the dedication of
hundreds of volunteers.
“First submarine to sink an enemy ship in war”
Eight men sat cramped inside the Hunley, a
confederate Civil War submarine which looked much like a modern
cigarette boat and cranked themselves underwater into the Atlantic
Ocean. They were propelling a torpedo attached by a spar, which they
would plant into a warship and then explode the torpedo. The Hunley
would dive, escape the explosion, and return to its base. The Hunley
had sunk twice before, the second time killing it inventor, H.L
Hunley. However, its proponents convinced the Confederate Generals
that it could work.
On February 17, 1864, The H. L. Hunley did
cause the sinking of the USS Housatonic, a union ship blockading
Charleston Harbor, but the Hunley itself did not escape. It was lost
and not until 130 years later was it was found in the harbor and
raised. Now it is the subject of extensive research, and a replica
tours throughout the country.
The H. L. HUNLEY is returning to Benicia
Historical Museum. This exhibit will be open to the public on
Saturday and Sunday.
Lovingly dedicated to Paul and Catherine Spenger
SPENGER Memorial Garden
When Paul and Catherine Spenger, long time
residents and restaurant owners in Benicia, and activists and
supporters of the Benicia Historical Museum, passed away in 1999 and
2000, within months of each other, family and friends made donations
to the Museum in their memory for a future lasting memorial to them.
Plans for a garden were drawn, and the funds
were set aside for this memorial to come to life.
This is now happening with the current
construction of the Paul and Catherine Spenger Memorial Garden,
located behind General Charles P. Stone Hall, otherwise known as
Building 9 or the Camel Barn Museum (the museum is housed on the
second floor of the building).
Over the past two years, the Board of Directors
of the Museum have been reviewing the plans for this Garden, and,
with their approval and that of the City of Benicia, construction
has begun. Museum Board Member Glenn Boatman, as a volunteer, is
overseeing the construction. The funds for this project are from the
donations made in honor of the Spengers, including the interest
earned over the past eight years.
The plans call for the Presentation area
seating one hundred and twenty, and the Patio area, seating one
hundred and sixty. A fountain will be the highlight, with statuary,
lighting, and plantings placed in the garden. A volunteer committee
has chosen the plants and trees, and volunteers have been raking,
grading and planting.
Museum supporters may now purchase memorial
bricks for one hundred dollars each, which will surround the
fountain section of the garden. The Garden will be formally
dedicated on Saturday afternoon, followed by Lois Flood presenting
an Isadora Duncan historical Dance and a concert at 7:00 by the
Volker Stifler Band.
“What Was Once an Arsenal of Weapons is now an arsenal of History”
…………..Harry Wassman, Curator Emeritus
New Museum Building To Open with Industrial/Agriculture Exhibits
A dredge, water pumps, other small machines,
howitzers, ammunition built and/or made here in the Benicia arsenal
will be combined with information and exhibits of local agriculture,
businesses such as tanneries, creameries, fisheries, companies that
built molds for farm equipment, and our vast shipbuilding
enterprises will invite the September, 2008 visitors to experience
Benicia’s local history and importance in the wider American
history, especially in the expansion and building of the West coast.
The exhibit, featuring machines, artifacts,
photographs from the early days of these life sustaining and
industrial progress-promoting Benicia and Solano County businesses
will be dedicated and opened in Silas P. Casey Hall on Saturday,
September 6. Known until now as building 7, this original sandstone
building (mined from quarries on the property) was built when the
Arsenal opened in 1849. Casey was the U.S. Army officer in charge
of the Arsenal construction, who later rose to the rank of General
during the Civil War.
This prominent base employed thousands of
Benicians, almost half of them women, who held their positions when
the men were in the Armed forces. The exhibit will display
photographs and recollections of the operations, which were in
effect through the Korean War.
The National Civil War Association Encampment
The National Civil War Association (NCWA), a
California corporation dedicated to the education of the public
about the people and events of the Civil War will stage an
encampment for the public to visit.
The organization presents its living history
for the public, primarily in California, in many forms; including
military and civilian encampments, battle reenactments, lectures and
demonstrations, and school programs upon request.
Lois Flood Presentation of Isadora Duncan Historical Dance
Lois Flood, founder of Diablo Dance, will
present her interpretation of the works of the famous Isadora
Duncan, “Mother of Modern Dance” in the Spenger Memorial Garden. Her
interpretations are widely recognized for their dynamic, expressive
and dramatic qualities. Using our beautiful new garden as her
background, dressing in flowing costumes, dancing to classical music
and being interpreted by her experienced narrator, Joanna Harris,
Ph.D., this will be a inspirational and beautiful presentation in
the new garden.
And, for the youngsters…………..
Activities for the youngsters will include
hands-on – corn grinding, making adobe bricks, roping our resident
steer, and re-creating pictographs on stones.
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