Join us in celebrating the fifth annual Quad Cities Archives Fair on Saturday, October 28th from 1-4 PM! This year’s Archives Fair will be held at the Hauberg Estate located at 1300 24th Street, Rock Island, 61201.
Quad Cities Archives Fair advocates and supports the access, preservation, and understanding of library, archives, and museum collections and materials. The QC Archives Fair promotes exploration the historical and cultural institutions of the Quad Cities region that uphold this mission. At this event, audiences can visit tables to learn about the institutions’ unique collections and services and listen to talks on historical topics to discover hidden gems of the Quad Cities.
Each year we have roughly 15-25 historical and cultural institutions attending the event. We encourage institutions and organizations with a collection of any kind to attend. The appeal and benefit for exhibitors (participating institutions) is the opportunity to educate the public about the resources and services they offer. It allows them to reach new audiences that are already interested in collections. Here is a short list of the participating organizations this year are:
Augustana College Fryxell Geology Museum
Black Hawk State Historic Site
Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House
German American Heritage Center
Iowa 80 Trucking Museum
Palmer College of Chiropractic Special Collections and Archives
Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center, Davenport Public Library
Rock Island Public Library
St. Ambrose University Archives
& many more!
In addition to getting to explore all these cultural and historical institutions and organizations is attending a presentation relevant to local history and culture. This year we are pleased to have Minda Powers-Douglas speaking about “Translating Tombstones”. She will be presenting in the Tulip Room at 1:30 and 3:30 PM. She will be covering what the different symbols on gravestones mean during this lively program on cemeteries. Attend these presentations to enter in a free raffle for great prizes and enjoy free refreshments.
The location for this year’s Quad Cities Archives Fair is also a hidden historical and architectural gem of the Quad Cities. The Hauberg Estate was designed by Chicago architect Robert C. Spencer, a contemporary of Frank Lloyd Wright. Spencer was known for blending the “modern” Prairie style with historical elements. It was constructed in two years from 1909-1911. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Using Susanne (Denkmann) Hauberg’s love of flowers as his inspiration, he included tulips throughout the home, inside and out – in the stained glass windows, the woodwork, the plastered ceilings, the fireplaces, tiles and planters. To read more about this beautifully designed home and the family who lived there, please peruse the Hauberg’s website: https://haubergestate.org/history.
The Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center holds materials documenting the history of the Hauberg Estate for those interested in local historic homes and sites.
On April 28, 1957, the Hauberg Estate formally became known as the Hauberg Civic Center. A location known for its inviting spaces and welcoming atmosphere.
We even have stories about the estate’s haunted history in local publications such as Eerie Quad Cities by Michael McCarty and John Brassard Jr.
We invite you come learn about all the cultural and historical organizations that will be at the Archives Fair as well as explore the buildings and grounds of this lovely home. Here is a small sampling of our past events, which we have been doing this since 2018!
To discover more about this event follow this link: https://sites.google.com/view/qcarchivesfair/home
(posted by Kathryn)
