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Grosse Pointe
Historical Society
established 1945
SUMMER 2006
Vol. 23, No.2
Grant to Fund Website
Exhibit on Auto Pioneers
An online exhibit titled “Auto Barons of Grosse Pointe”
will soon be added to the Grosse Pointe Historical Society’s
website, gphistorical.org, thanks to a grant from the
MotorCities National Heritage Area, an affiliate of the
National Park Service.
“MotorCities is pleased to partner with your organization to
create new and exciting projects that help with our mission to
preserve, interpret and promote our regions’ rich auto
legacy,” said the organization in a letter to the Society.
The on-line exhibit will explore the houses, families, and Grosse Pointe life of some of the famous automotive
entrepreneurs including the Fords, the Fishers, the Dodges, and the Chapins.
“We are thrilled to have received this grant. It will help us in our mission of sharing our great historical resources
with the public and making some fascinating photographs and stories accessible to many people through the inter-
net,” said Stuart W. Grigg, president of the Society’s Board of Trustees.
The online exhibit should be up and running by November 2006.
Historic Pictures to Decorate
Farms Community Center
Visitors to the Grosse Pointe Farms Community Center at
Pier Park later this summer will notice some wonderful
photos of historic Grosse Pointe adorning the walls. The
Grosse Pointe Historical Society has been working to provide
art for their walls that show the area in days gone by.
“It’s all about sharing our archives and bringing them out
into the public where the community can enjoy them,” said
curator Suzy Berschback.
Berschback has been working with Farms Boat Club member
Maureen Peterson to select pictures that would suit the
different rooms of the Center. “Each room has a unique
theme,” according to Peterson. “We’ve got garden scenes,
views of the lakeshore, Pier Park throughout the years, and
even some really cool old maps.”
Some of her favorites are photos dated from 1941 showing
kids playing on the Pier in their bathing suits.
“The Community Center is a great place to showcase these
pictures and make it more interesting. It’s like a gallery
for these pictures that many people have not seen,”
Peterson said.
Habor Hill, John F. Dodge House
Schoolhouse Programs
Available Online
For second through fifth grade teachers, taking their
students on a historical trip back to schools days 100
hundred years ago has never been easier. Curriculum
showing a typical school day for each of theses grades,
c. 1900, is now available on the Grosse Pointe Historical
Society’s website.
Teachers can review the curriculum online to prepare for
a visit with their class to the society’s one room school-
house. Located in the Provencal-Weir House, 376
Kercheval, the schoolhouse provides today’s children the
chance to see what life was like for kids their age 100
years ago in Grosse Pointe.
Teachers and their classes can come for the day, from
9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. They are invited to bring a sack
lunch and even dress up in the Society’s old-fashioned
clothes.
The Society has carefully put together grade-appropriate
curricula including lessons, games, and discipline used
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