Historic Cemetery Walk
June 8, 9, & 15, 2013
20th Annual Cemetery Walk Remembers Lives of Past Galenians
Local actors present living histories at Greenwood Cemetery, Grace Episcopal
Eleven local actors and actresses will bring historic Galenians to life for the education and entertainment of audience members on Saturday and Sunday, June 8 and 9. Guided 75-minute tours will start every 20 minutes between the hours of 2 and 4:30 pm. These theatrical walking tours will be held at Greenwood Cemetery (on the West side of Gear Street), and an indoor seated performance will be held at 7 pm on Saturday, June 15, at Grace Episcopal Church (309 Hill Street).
“Greenwood is a link to our past…like an open history book,” said Ronn Toebaas, writer and director. “The cemetery is a place to celebrate life and to connect with Galena history in a very tangible way. We have an outstanding cast of local actors to bring these wonderful stories to life.”
Being portrayed this year are various notable Galenians. To be included are: Lucretia Hodginson McLean (Snyder), a Southern gentlewoman who married a Galena financier and could claim that the Civil War both began in her family’s backyard and ended in their parlor; Stephen Marsden, a Galena dairy farmer who found on his property the largest deposit of lead in the mining region; Reverend Aratus and Caroline Kent, the early missionaries who oversaw the construction of the First Presbyterian Church in 1838; John William Westwick, a man of creative vision who built the lucrative Westwick foundry; as well as Colonol Scheller De Boul and Annie Vandervate, a Grant staffer and his expressive daughter. The last portion of the presentation will be titled “The Widows of Galena” and will highlight the lives of four Galena widows as they discuss the social conventions and attitudes of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The cast of actors portraying these figures includes Sandy Winge, Ted Williams, Steve Coates, Jenni Ackerman, Mike McCoy, Gary Jobgen, Megan Gloss, Debbi Pausz, Lee Adami, Carmen Ferguson, and Roberta Grenz. Brian and Lisa Schoenrock comprise the band. Historical research for the script was provided by local historians Scott Wolfe and Kris Chapman. Bryan Ackerman is stage manager in charge of technical direction. David Yonda, Mike Connors, and Lisa Prindle also help with the production.
Tickets are $13 if purchased by June 1st and $15 if purchased after. Children 6 and under are free. The performance is suitable for all audiences. Cookies and refreshments will be provided.
The Cemetery Walk can be enjoyed year round with a collection of scripts from previous performances. Entitled Voices from the Grave, this book also includes a map and GPS coordinates for the gravesites of the individuals featured in the text. It is for sale at the Galena & U.S. Grant Museum (211 S. Bench Street), Gateway to History (403 S. Main Street), onsite the day of the performances, and online at www.galenahistorymuseum.org/bookshop.html.
The event is hosted by the Galena-Jo Daviess County Historical Society. Proceeds go toward the same. For more information you can phone 815.777.9129, visit www.galenahistorymuseum.org, or email info@galenahistorymuseum.org.
