The Emmet County Historical Commission will be opening a new exhibit at the
Pellston Regional Airport come Friday that will celebrate the Odawa tribe and the impact they had throughout the history of the area.
The exhibit, titled
The Odawa Warriors' Journey, will feature key historical figures from Odawa, French and British history and will include features like a movie basked on a French soldier's journal set during the French and Indian War as well as an authentic wigwam open for tours.
The exhibit opens to the public on Aug. 12, with a celebration planned from 4-6 p.m. The exhibit will be open daily beginning Aug. 13, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., at no charge. Signs in the airport will direct visitors to the Trophy Room, where the exhibit components will be arranged, including interpretive display boards, a self-guided cellphone tour and life-size figures telling their own stories from the time period.
"This is an exciting opportunity for Emmet County," says Beth Anne Piehl, Emmet County's director of communications and web development, and the exhibit's project director. "It represents a broad collaboration of organizations who share the same mission: To promote our region, tell our stories and preserve our history. This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity for residents and visitors to learn about a significant time period that impacted the entire Michilimackinac region and to view artifacts culled from local grounds."
Emmet County received a $15,000 Michigan Humanities Council grant to help fund this project. Collaborating with the development of the exhibit and lending of artifacts are Mackinac State Historic Parks, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the National Park Service, through Fort Necessity.
The Odawa Warriors' Journey had been on display at Fort Necessity, in Penn., from July 2010 to July 2011.
Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: Beth Anne Piehl, Emmet County
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