But the big news is that the Hi-Yo Silver exhibit Grand Opening is set for September 12, 2020 to begin at 10:00 a.m. and continue all day. In the afternoon a time capsule will be buried in the museum’s courtyard. This exhibit has been in the works for 2 years of planning, raising funds, building a room, setting up the exhibit and producing a phone app (which is not complete yet). Meanwhile our major donor continues to purchase items for the collection (almost 1,200 at this point) and there are also other donors such as the Fred Foy family (506 items with some containing multiple individual parts) and members of our local community. So you see there is a very large collection at this time. The museum is limited in space so only a portion of the collection will be shown at the grand opening. The grand opening exhibit will include items of children’s clothing, Fred Foy’s favorite award, items from the Lone Ranger radio program sponsors and a bit of Clayton Moore memorabilia. There will be video from the Golden Boot ceremony where Fred received his award, audio of Lone Ranger radio programs and much more to see. Exhibits will rotate as time goes on and we will always keep Lone Ranger fans updated about what is coming next as long as we have contact information. Future exhibits will include Lone Ranger Safety Clubs, other Fred Foy awards, premiums, Lone Ranger toys and items which show the influence of the Lone Ranger to get children to do as their parents wished (wash up, finish their food, etc.).
The areas I am most proud of are the mock radio studio and the radio timeline. The timeline gives a history of radio, WXYZ and the radio Lone Rangers, a bit about the movies and the central figures in making it all happen. The studio uses many authentic items from the WXYZ studio, including the door to the studio from 1933 and realistic poseable figures of Fred Foy and Brace Beemer wearing clothes which belonged to those men. The Wabash County Museum has owned and exhibited Brace Beemer’s only authenticated saddle since 2011. There are lots of opportunities for selfies in the exhibit for fans of all ages and genres. The museum has a small store with many Lone Ranger items for sale plus books by local authors. All the Grand Opening guests will receive a special memento of the day. Guests have been invited from all over the country and Great Britain. But you don’t need an invitation, just come! The Wabash County Museum is located at 320 N. Market Street in Mt. Carmel, IL 62863. Brace Beemer was born in Mt. Carmel where is father owned a music store.
Claudia Dant, Wabash County Museum