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Art and Orchids:
The Whitcomb Estate
Our spring Second Saturday Series offered a fun variety of activities
this past spring and was enjoyed by all who attended. Cyndee Harrison
hosted the May tea with a beautiful array of pastries and tea for visitors
to enjoy. She was prepared to share the history and etiquette surround-
ing “afternoon tea” and the May Pole was set up on the lawn to celebrate
the month of May, her two sons assisted for the afternoon. In June,
Scott Vandemergel, history buff and St. Clair Shores Tax Assessor, led a
Neighborhood History Walking Tour that departed from the Provencal-
Weir House.The group traveled to Lake Shore Road, up Kerby and
back to GPHS via Kercheval. They stopped along the way to discuss the
history of the community and various buildings, including the Moross
Pumping Station; the Schmidt House at 301 Lake Shore Road, where
the present owner, Robin Heller, came out to talk to the group about the
history of their home; and the 70+ year old Grosse Pointe Florists, where
James Farquhar shared the background of their family business. Genot
Picor (musician and storyteller)
and Michael Francis (fiddler
extraordinaire) presented
A Summer Veilleé
(celebration) in July
on the lawn of the
Provencal-Weir House.
The guests enjoyed
lively music of the
1800s and stories
relating to Old
Grosse Pointe and
Lake St. Clair.
Second Saturday Follow-up
For more information on this event visit our website:
www.gphistorical.org
continued on page 7
Institute of Arts and the Belle Isle Conservatory
received the donation of over 600 orchids, making
it one of the largest municipally owned orchid
collections in the country. Visit our website at
www.gphistorical.org
to access the exhibition slide
show and learn more about this touching story.
* Black and white photographs were supplied by
Warren Wilkinson, grandson of the Whitcombs.
Color images were supplied courtesy of the Detroit
Institute of Arts.
Pair of men’s eyeglasses found at 211 Vendome
following the party.These have been moved to
our office. Please call (313) 884-7010 to arrange
for pickup.
Lost and Found:
Free tours of the Provencal-Weir House will be offered every Second Saturday between 1 and 4 pm. Also, plan to visit our gift shop to see the new selection of specialty
foods, local honey, handcrafted works of art and jewelry, books, Victorian toys and many other interesting items.
Upcoming Second Saturday Events
September 12, 2009
Pointes of History
Guided
NeighborhoodWalkingTour, 2 pm.
Scott Vandemergel returns to lead another
Pointes of History guided neighborhood
walking tour. Scott, a local historian, will
talk about the various houses along the way,
as well as the history surrounding the now
demolished Tonnancour estate. This walk
will last 1½ hours and it will be approxi-
mately one mile long. It will depart from the
Provencal-Weir House at 376 Kercheval
Avenue a 2:00 pm. The route will follow
Kercheval north to Provencal, then east to the
lake, south on Lake Shore Road.
Free for members; $5 for non-members.
October 9-10, 2009
Talking Headstones,
a theatrical
performance at St. Paul’s Cemetery
Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 6:30 and 8 pm.
Co-sponsored by the Grosse Pointe
Historical Society and Grosse PointeTheatre.
Back by popular demand! Please join us
to enjoy a magical live performance featuring
the documented historical past of people
buried in St. Paul’s Cemetery. The perfor-
mance is an outdoor event. Please bring your
own chair and dress appropriately. For more
information, visit our website or call (313) 884-
7010. The cemetery is located at the corner of
Moross Road and Country Club Lane.
$10 for members; $15 for non-members.
November 14, 2009
GenealogyWorkshop, sponsored
by the Daughters of the American
Revolution. 1:30 pm.
The Daughters of the American Revolution
(DAR) will sponsor an afternoon genealogy
workshop. DAR members will suggest ways
to research your family heritage. Please
bring your personal documents, if available.
There will be a short presentation by DAR
members at 1:30 pm and then you have the
opportunity to meet individually to examine
your family history. Visit our website or call
(313) 84-7010 for additional information.
Free to members, $5 for non-members.
Tonnancour estate