HYRUM – Bringing War Home Project will be on display at the Hyrum City Museum starting April 10. Dr. Molly Cannon and Dr. Susan Grayzel, from the Anthropology and History Departments at Utah State University, will talk about why they created the exhibit.
The grand opening reception will start at 6:30 p.m. in the Hyrum City Council chambers with brief remarks from the professors and students involved in the project. Then the exhibition will open from 7:30-9:00 p.m. with light refreshments and a special display of objects from Hyrum veteran John A. Petersen.
Hyrum City Museum will host the exhibit until Saturday, May 23.
Bringing War Home Project was an effort by students and volunteers to document and preserve special items in a community archive to be housed with USU libraries.
This history was preserved in a digital archive which enables students, educators, and future generations to engage with these important sources of our shared past.
The group recorded family narratives that accompany such objectives to appreciate fully the long-term impact of war. Using the objects and stories collected at these roadshows, they worked with USU Digital Initiatives to create an accessible, digital archive and exhibition “Effects of War: Stories and Objects from Utah.”
Dr. Grayzel said many people are familiar with wartime souvenirs, whether we have direct experience with the battlefield or not.
“Some of these objects are personal, a way for veterans to preserve their experiences,” she said. “Often, we treasure objects from our relatives who have participated in the wars of the 20th century; special things linger on as memorials that help our families tell the stories of how beloved fathers, grandfathers, mothers and grandmothers, cousins, and siblings contributed to the larger history of war.”
The Bringing War Home project invites the community, military veterans and civilians alike to connect with the history of war through sharing wartime objects and the personal stories that surround them.
Cannon and Grayzel received funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities and support from the university and many community partners such as the Hyrum City Museum.
Hyrum City Museum Director Jami Van Huss said she is excited to bring this exhibit to the museum.
“Preserving the stories of our local veterans is an intrinsic part of our work at the Hyrum Museum, so we’ve been pleased to be a Bringing War Home partner since its beginning,” she said. “Now, we are honored to be the site for the grand opening of the exhibition and invite all community members to visit!”
The museum is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Saturdays, April 25 and May 23 from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, and by appointment.
The mission of the museum is to create and maintain interpretive exhibits, provide educational activities, and actively collect and care for artifacts and historical materials to provide a resource for visitors to make connections with local heritage and our community.