By Evelyn C. McDonald
Arts & Culture Reporter
November 20, 2018 9:00 a.m.
In 1900, about 40 percent of Americans lived in rural areas. Population data from 2010 indicates that just over nineteen percent of Americans lives in rural areas covering about 97 percent of the land space. The remaining 80 plus percent of the population lives in urban areas on about three percent of the land area. (New Geography website statistics.)
That rural core is the focus of “Crossroads: Change in Rural America,” a Smithsonian Traveling Exhibit now in residence at the historic Callahan Train Depot. The West Nassau Historical Society set up the exhibit in their main room. It was apparently a significant effort. The exhibit came in a series of boxes, one of which weighed nearly 500 pounds. One of the Historical Society members said that it was a challenge that benefited from extensive experience with Ikea or Legos.
The exhibit will be shown in 5 towns in Florida, and the same number of towns in Illinois and South Carolina. Callahan was the first stop in Florida. The exhibit is also sponsored by the Florida Humanities Council. Five large curved displays illustrate various aspects of rural life. There area interactive sections on most of the displays. One particularly interesting one had rural sounds – cows, chickens and something that was either a train or a piece of farm equipment.
There is also a free-standing, touch screen, interactive computer kiosk with audio and video content. Part of the exhibit presents towns who have sought to revitalize their downtown areas. These towns have looked for ways to highlight things that make them unique and present those things to tourists. Other parts of the exhibit describe thriving art communities that have sprung up in some of these towns.
The West Nassau Historical Society is asking that you bring in any old photos of the area as they have a project to scan the photos and add them to the Museum Archives. The exhibit will be at the Depot until Saturday, December 8. Exhibit hours are Wednesdays and Fridays from 6:00 to 9:00 pm, Fridays and Saturdays from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, and Sundays from noon to 3:00 pm. Next weekend model trains will be running all day to honor Rural Nassau and Railroads. Other presentations are scheduled for the remaining days. You can call 904-879-3406 for information and schedules.
Crossroads is part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and state humanities councils nationwide. Support for the Museum on Main Street is provided by the US Congress.
Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. Evelyn is vice-chair on the Amelia Center for Lifelong Learning and is on the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.