Museum - bring the kids

"Mom, I'm bored. There's nothing to do." Ever hear that from your kids? Ever said that when you were a kid? I did - a lot. And, well, it's July. It's hot. But there is a lot to do when you know about the museums in Douglas County. These are not the museums we remember, displaying dusty old dinosaur bones and as quiet as a library. No, these museums are filled with great fun and history. (P.S. They're air conditioned, too.)

Did you happen to get to the Genoa Court House Museum for the Pony Express Re-ride? Did you read about it in The Record-Courier? Did you know that there is a brand-new exhibit in Genoa featuring the Pony Express and it's filled with all kinds of things your kids would love to see?

Here are some facts about the Pony Express you may not have known: James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok was an agent for the Rock Creek Station in Nebraska and William R. "Buffalo Bill" Cody earned his spurs as a pony rider at age 15. The riders were not more than 18 years old with the youngest reported to have been 11. They were not to weigh more than 125 pounds and orphans were preferred, which gives you some idea of the danger involved.

Today we complain about postage being more than 40 cents per letter. Visit the Genoa Court House Museum and find out what people paid to have a letter delivered by the Pony Express in 1860, almost 150 years ago. You will be surprised.

Have you checked out Main Street downstairs in the Carson Valley Museum & Cultural Center in Gardnerville? What used to be a disjointed group of exhibits is now Main Street, USA, somewhere between 50 and 100 years ago. There are shops and businesses and lots of photos of those enterprises from the past. There is a doctor's office and a barber shop and, ladies, there is a mercantile with things I just can't wait to get inside and buy - but they won't let me.

The sign for the barbershop exhibit could read: "Shave and a haircut or a tooth pulled." In the early days, barbers were also doctors and dentists. Barbers have always been respected members of society and people often went to the barber for medical treatments as well as for a haircut. One thing is for sure, barbershops are still a great place to catch up on the local news.

Many of the items in the exhibit came from our original barbershops. Art Cordes' daughter, Patty Cordes Meyers, loaned things from his old shop in Minden. And Milt Simons, also a local barber, loaned several items to the exhibit as well. He had a shop next door to The French Bar with Bob Dinsmore. This barbershop had one really unique feature. There was a sliding window that opened into The French so drinks could be ordered and passed through the window into the barbershop. Whoa!

Do you know the significance of the red and white barber pole? It originated many decades ago and is representative of the medical aspect of barbering, not the tonsorial. Since there is a sign outside the exhibit that explains the history, I won't give away the secret and ruin your trip to the museum. Kids love this one.

Taste of Gardnerville coming in August

While you're visiting either of the museums, don't forget to get your tickets to the Taste of Gardnerville, on Aug. 4. Both museums and the Paradise Café have tickets on sale at $20 per person.

If you have any questions about anything mentioned here, please call the Douglas County Historical Society at the Carson Valley Museum & Cultural Center in Gardnerville at 782-2555 or the Genoa Court House Museum at 782-4325. And, if you have the time, both museums are always looking for interested volunteers.

-- If there is anything you would like to see covered in this column, contact Ellen Caywood by e-mail at in2my2cats@yahoo.com or at 790-1565.