Mike Wade from Pioneer Farms was our speaker on 17th of May. Pioneer Farms is a living history park and museum located in central Texas. It is open Tuesdays through Fridays for guided history tours reserved in advance for schools and community groups of 15 or more, and Thursdays through Sundays for general public admission, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Mike started out by giving us his background and how any became involved at Pioneer Farms. Pioneer Farms is on 90 acres donated in 1963. The acreage was the homestead of Jourdan family. Starting in 1983 there were summer programs on the property. The property was conveyed to the Heritage Society in 2002. They had to figure out what to do to sustain the property and volunteers started showing up to help. Pioneer Farms was operated only with volunteers for 6 or 7 years, and there are 457 volunteers as of today. They have a Texas Folk art school, with 68 different classes and 28 classes that are accredited thru Austin Community College. There are now eight historic sites, and they are adding two more. The sites cover the periods from 1841 to 1891, and Mike described each of them. One of their latest acquisitions is the Dessau Church, where Elvis Presley sang in the 1950s. All told, 34 historic buildings have been moved to Pioneer Farms. Pioneer Farms is located in a very diverse area that included many different cultures. It is a special place with great opportunity for teachable moments for both kids and adults. It is managed by an 11-member board of governors and operates on funds from admissions, donations, and special events. For more information about Pioneer Farms, go to https://www.pioneerfarms.org/.