Sometimes, you are just hanging out at work, getting things done, and the most remarkable things happen. Some days history walks right up to your door and comes in to make itself at home. Luckily for me, this happens fairly often. Today, just happened to be one of my lucky day.
David Whitaker, son of the late local physician, Dr. Whitaker, dropped by the Museum today. I had the opportunity to meet David several months ago and he was kind enough to offer the Museum some of his father's medical text book. We were more than excited to add these to our collection here at the Museum. And today, Richard dropped by to donate yet another text, one we had missed before. "Blah" you say? "An old book?" I can see your eyes rolling right now. But wait! These aren't just any old medial books.
These medical text books were once owned by Kernersville's very first physician.
Yep, you see that inscription? It says "E. Kerner", meaning Dr. Elias Kerner. The original books that Mr. Whitaker donated were published just before the American Civil War. That, in of itself, makes this nerd's heart skip a beat.
But today's book.... It is from 1849! And honestly, it's in pretty great shape, for the age of the book.
We'll be working hard on our end, conserving these books so that future generations can enjoy them. Book conservation isn't cheap, or easy. We will be on the look out for grants and donations to help us preserve these unique pieces of Kernersville's history.
If you ever run into anyone who believes that Kernersville doesn't have enough history to have a museum, please encourage them to check out our Museum. Kernersville has more history than most towns it's size. We are unique in that way. It would be shame to lose our history because some people don't place a value on knowing where we come from or preserving our past for future generations to learn from.
By the way...this is me when I get those unexpected surprises during my work day! Keep bringing on the surprises Kernersville. We'll keep getting just as excited about our local history as you do, or maybe more.
