STARKVILLE — Joan Wilson is so invested in Oktibbeha County history, you’d think she had roots four or five generations deep. Not quite.
Wilson has lived in Starkville for nearly 40 years. She worked as a kindergarten teacher for 17 years and as a librarian at Starkville Public Library. But Wilson has no family ties to the area; neither does her husband, Robert.
As the chairwoman of the Oktibbeha County Heritage Museum Board of Trustees, Wilson’s commitment to preserving the county’s diverse history has helped the museum morph from eyesore to eye candy in the last three years.
The museum houses everything from war artifacts to sports memorabilia. Recently, the museum undergone an extensive outdoor renovation with the help of the Mississippi State University Department of Landscape Architecture and nearly $18,000 in donations, transforming it into a multi-purpose social facility. A long-standing storm water issue was resolved with the renovation.
The museum, located at the corner of Fellowship Street and Russell Street, also replaced its heating and air system.
Wilson is in her fourth year as chairwoman, leads a board of four appointed members from the Starkville Board of Aldermen and the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors. She helps coordinate with more than 40 volunteers and a fundraising group, The Friends of the Museum.
You’re not a native, so what ties you to this museum?
I’m a firm believer in “you bloom where you’re planted.” I seriously believe Oktibbeha County, Starkville and MSU deserve a museum of quality to tell history of the area.
When did you first get involved with the museum?
Eight years ago as a volunteer board member.
Was it retirement that got you involved?
Yes. It was another good, creative outlet. I’m not much for sitting around at home.
In your time as chairwoman, what would you say are the highlights of that time?
When we reopened after renovation three years ago. That was a superb moment. One of the really interesting stories was when we did the interior. We had never seen the windows in the back room, and when we cleared out that space we stood there in awe. Sounds crazy, but that was really neat. And of course, the cooperation of the board. It’s really great, because we can have our differences but keep working together.
What’s the average traffic flow here?
Depends if students come through. Today, we had freshmen from Starkville High. Terrific kids. We do scavenger hunts for all ages, but the ninth-grade teacher they had wanted to do a scavenger hunt to look through the museum. I’d say 85 percent of students are very surprised at the history of the area. We have to try and find things that’s their history because they don’t know some of the people who are featured in the museum. That’s a concern — passing the museum to the next generation and making it relevant.
What gets the most response from kids?
It’s the Kids Corner with the fire engine, for sure. The girls are always in awe of Miss America. The guys, it’s sports. Most of them like the piano.
How has the profile of the museum changed since the landscaping was completed?
With the exterior, that helped. But a big addition is our website (oktibbehaheritagemuseum.com/wordpress), which went live Tuesday. That’s very very nice. It’s been a lot of work for some folks. Haley Montgomery was the site professional, but Wanda Thorne and Fairfax Montgomery, two Friends of the Museum, did hours of work. Pictures and information, membership … it’s all on there. It will be connected to city and county sites, whoever we can link up with. We’re also on Facebook.
Is that feeding the need to be relevant to the next generation?
It needs to be out there. You can’t go by word of mouth, even though that is a major influence. Media has changed. We had to change with it.
Do some of the older folks in town show y’all love for the improvements you’ve made?
You don’t get a whole lot of pats, but people enjoy their visits here. We get more drop-ins than we did. That’s a good sign.
What effect will the CottonMill Marketplace (on Russell Street) have on the museum if and when it happens?
Hopefully it will bring more traffic. Just got the blues trail marker, and all the fantastic exterior work done, so we’re looking good. To me, it makes the museum much more of a show-stopper when the CottonMill opens. We’ll be getting a new street sign and kiosks to explain the exterior. A lot of time and finances and energy have been invested to doing the landscaping. It’s contemporary — great combined with this old depot.
How as city and county funding been?
We’ve got $5000 from the city and county each over these last two years. We are very tight with our money. We did get a new heating and cooling unit put in. Our heating bill and cooling has reduced considerably. We’re generous for the help we get.
What about donations?
We have our fundraising group, The Friends of the Museum, which raised about $10,000 per year. That’s what’s enabled us to do extras. We’re attempting to purchase new display cases for (another) to have revolving exhibits. Grants from (Convention and Visitors Bureau) and Rotary Club and (Starkville Area) Arts Council also contribute to projects at the museum.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.