Education – AIHPC

An essential element of the Apostle Islands Historic Preservation Conservancy mission, here after Conservancy, is to promote public understanding and appreciation of the rich history of the Apostle Islands region, the connection of that history to the present-day community, and the importance of preserving this heritage for future generations. One of the distinguishing and enduring features of regional history is the tradition of sharing and cooperation. The Conservancy’s public preservation program is built upon that tradition and serves as the means whereby yesterday’s stories can be shared with the community of today to serve as a source of inspiration and guidance for tomorrow. Part of our mission is to make grants to other nonprofit and governmental entities involved in historic preservation and educational projects. To date, the Conservancy has issued $177,883.37 towards preserving historic structures and landscapes while promoting educational opportunities for new generations of historians.

past Programs, Educational events, Sponsorships, and grant awards:

July 2008 – Chairman Bob Nelson presents a lecture on commercial fishing on the Apostle Islands.
August 2008 – Conservancy volunteer and former National Park Service Historian Bob Mackreth presents a lecture on the West Bay Club and Sand Island resident Gertrude Wellisch.
2009 – Conservancy and Bayfield Heritage Association assist the City of Bayfield in achieving designation by the federal government as a Preserve America community, qualifying it for federal grants to promote heritage tourism and education.
2009 – Awards a grant to Bayfield Heritage Association to support lectures on the Frank Belanger Settlement, History of the Ojibwe People, Lake Superior Shipwrecks, Apostle Islands Lighthouses, and Apostle Island Region Cemeteries.
February 2009 – Dahl family members, including Conservancy Vice-Chair Bob Dahl, present a program about year-round life on Sand Island. July 2009 – Historian Bob Mackreth presents a program on shipwrecks on Lake Superior.
August 2009 – Historian Bob Mackreth presents a program on Apostle Islands lighthouses.
January 2010 – Historian Bob Mackreth provides the City of Washburn with historic documentation of the Memorial Park Kitchen.
February 2010 – Chairman Bob Nelson presents a lecture on fish camps of the Apostle Islands.
July 2010 – Historian Bob Mackreth makes a presentation on the Washburn Memorial Park at the Washburn Homecoming.
2010 – Awards a grant to the Bayfield Heritage Association to support lectures on Ojibwe Missionaries, Fish Camps of Rocky Island, and The House That Sank.
2011 – Awards a grant to Bayfield Heritage Association to support lectures on the Treaty of 1854, the C.W. Turner, and Gertrude Wellisch.
2011 – Awards a grant to Northland College to support student research and writing on regional history.
August 2011 – Historian Bob Mackreth presents a program on Sand Island Pioneer Gertrude Wellisch.
July 2011 – Chairman Bob Nelson presents a lecture on Apostle Islanders: A Trip on the C.W. Turner. July 201l – Chairman Bob Nelson publishes the book Apostle Islanders: The People and Culture.
2011 – Awards a grant to support publication and distribution to educational institutions of the book Apostle Islanders: The People and Culture by Chairman Bob Nelson.
2011-2012 – Provided funds to sponsor kayak trips in the Apostle Islands for at-need students through the Wilderness Inquiry non-profit organization.
August 2012 – Historian Bob Mackreth and Chairman Bob Nelson present programs on regional history as part of the Tony Woiak Memorial History Festival.
2012-2013 – Tony Woiak Memorial History Festival. Produced in cooperation with the Washburn Historical Society and the Washburn Heritage Association, the festival presented a series of lectures on the history of Washburn and the surrounding region. Funding for the festival was contributed by the AIHPC, and three out of the four presenters were AIHPC representatives. Proceeds from ticket sales went to the two Washburn organizations.
2012-2013 – Awards a grant and provides assistance to the Bayfield Heritage Association for the development of an exhibition about the history of Sand Island and its people. Consevancy members are actively participating in the development of the exhibit
March 2013 – Conservancy member Bob Nelson presents a program entitled “A Trip on the S.B. Barker” about the vessels in the trade, transportation, and excursion business. Sponsored by Friends of the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center.
2013 – Sponsored a youth group from the Conservation Corps of Minnesota and Iowa for training in the restoration of historic buildings at the West Bay Club.
February 2014 – Kristin and James Edwards present “Gentleman Jacob Johnson- Bayfield’s Pioneer Herring King.” This review is a history of the Olaf Edwards-Jacob Johnson-Sand Island connection to Bayfield while delving into the massive Herring fishing industry of the late 1890’s to 1910. Associated with the John Mathew Black Program Series and sponsored by the Conservancy.
March 2014 – Bob Nelson slide show from “Ashland to Sand Island and back to Bayfield on Governor Sam Fifield’s elegant little tug, the Stella.” Associated with the John Mathew Black Program Series and sponsored by the Conservancy.
2014 – AIHPC donates funds to the Town of Bell to maintain access road to the Ice Caves, an integral part of the historical and cultural landscape of the Apostle Islands region.
2014 – Shine Miller Family presents “Tugboat, Triumphs and Tribulations”. This review also included “Sinking of the Friant” and was presented by Lake Superior Towing Company co-owner Shine Miller’s grand-daughters Marti Peterson and Trisha Miller
2014 – “Ashland to Sand Island and back to Bayfield on Governor Sam Fifield’s elegant little tug, the Stella” at Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center by AIHPC board member Bob Nelson and same on July 23, at Bayfield Heritage Association as part of a tribute to Board member Warren Jensch.
2014 – Bayfield’s Jacob Johnson Fish Company presented by Jacob Johnson grandchildren Kristen Edwards-Connell and James Edwards
2014 – “Frank Muhlke – Das Boat Builder” slide show presented to North Folk Country School on June 21, Grand Marais, MN by AIHPC Board member Bob Nelson
2014 – “Bayfield Schools” presented to all school reunion students at the Bayfield Pavilion by AIHPC Board member Bob Nelson
2014 – 3rd Annual Tony Woick festival sponsorship;
– If Everybody Had An Ocean – The Story of Tom Blake; Washburn’s Champion Surfer presented by Conservancy board member Bob Mackreth
– Picturesque At All Times: Fashions From The 1890’s presented Conservancy board member Bob Mackreth
– Behind The Gates At Barksdale: – The Saga of DuPont’s Barksdale Works presented by Conservancy board member Bob Mackreth
– A Voyage On The C.W. Turner A Look Back At The Commercial Fishing Of The Chequamegon Region by Conservancy Board member Bob Nelson
2014 – Co-sponsored Bayfield High School students for their ecosystem study and experiential trip to Lake Baikal field trip.
2015 – “Apostle Islands Commercial Fishing 1668-1930” by AIHPC board member Bob Nelson“
2015 – Schooners Ships & Steamers” by Bayfield Maritime Museum President- Donald A. Albrecht“
2015 – A History of Harbor City Tourism part I” presented by Bayfield Heritage Association, Inc. President Jerold Phillips
2016 – Sponsorship at Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua – “Keeper of the Light”, a musical and historical based slide show presentation of Bayfield and the Apostle Islands.
2016 – Bayfield Summer Concerts – This grant was awarded to fund the musical ensemble “Chance” who will perform “John Muir: University of the Wilderness.”
2016 – A History of Madeline Island Ferry Line presented by MIFL Gary Russell and BHA/ AIHPC board member Bob Nelson
2017 – “Apostle Islands Indian Pageant- 1924: Role of the Pageant in Regional Tourism” presented by Dr. Katrina Phillips, Assistant Professor of History, Macalester College, member Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
2017 – “Forty Years at the Historic Rittenhouse Inn” presented by Jerold Phillips, A History of Harbor City Recreation and Tourism Part II by Jerold Phillips
List item
2018 – Bayfield’s Doughboys: A Tribute to Our WWI Heroes was an event in which Conservancy Board member Bob Nelson and Bayfield Heritage Association, Inc., Bayfield VFW Post 8248, American Legion Post 49, and Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior collaborated to produce for the November 11, 100 year recognition of local Doughboys and American Red Cross women.
2018 – Exploring Sand Island Lighthouse Keeper Emmanuel Luick’s photographs presented by AIHPC Board Member- Bob Mackreth
2018 – Deepwater Shipwrecks near Michigan Island presented by guest speaker Ken Merryman