Childress County Heritage Museum
Encyclopedia
The Childress County Heritage Museum is a a local and regional historical
museum
located in Childress
, Texas
. It is housed at 210 Third Street near the First Baptist
Church in a former U.S. Post Office
building that was constructed in 1935. A project of the American Bicentennial observance, the museum was launched on January 12, 1976, at the site of the previous county jail at the Childress County Courthouse. The late A.V. McFarland served as the first museum president and curator. In 1981, the post office was purchased by Eugene Smith (1908-1985) and Janet Norris Smith (1909-2002) and donated to the museum board in memory of their parents. The current structure opened in 1983.
In 1991, the Texas Historical Commission
designated the museum, which is designed in Spanish colonial architecture, as an historic landmark. Overall exhibits include Indian
artifacts, theater memorabilia, West Texas
materials, and school and period rooms.
The museum has an exhibit on the former Childress Army Airfield used during World War II
to train bombardiers
.Construction on the facility, located west of Childress, began in the spring of 1942. An activation ceremony was held in October, and Colonel John W. White assumed command on November 24. New classes began every three weeks until the end of the war. The initial 18-week training program was thereafter extended to twenty-four weeks. The first class of cadets began began training in February 1943 and graduated in May. Until the end of the war, the airfield graduated 35 classes with a total of 4,791 bombadier-navigators. These men represented 10 percent of the total American output of such fliers.
The related Michie Transportation Museum at the corner of Main Street and Avenue D Northwest, is a 1926 service station
and automobile sales agency that was preserved in the late 1990s. It houses antique vehicles, buggy, and railroad displays. This facility is open on Saturdays in the summer, for special events, or by appointment.
The museum itself is open without admission charge from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and by appointment.Steve Craig (born 1965) of Childress is the museum executive director.
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
located in Childress
Childress, Texas
Childress is a city in Childress County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,778 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Childress County. Like the county, the city is named for George Campbell Childress, a native of Nashville, Tennessee, who was the principal author of the Texas...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. It is housed at 210 Third Street near the First Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Church in a former U.S. Post Office
U.S. Post Office
U.S. Post Office may refer to the United States Post Office Department or to the United States Postal Service . The term may also refer to individual buildings, many of which have historical or architectural significance. Some noted examples of U.S...
building that was constructed in 1935. A project of the American Bicentennial observance, the museum was launched on January 12, 1976, at the site of the previous county jail at the Childress County Courthouse. The late A.V. McFarland served as the first museum president and curator. In 1981, the post office was purchased by Eugene Smith (1908-1985) and Janet Norris Smith (1909-2002) and donated to the museum board in memory of their parents. The current structure opened in 1983.
In 1991, the Texas Historical Commission
Texas Historical Commission
The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas....
designated the museum, which is designed in Spanish colonial architecture, as an historic landmark. Overall exhibits include Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
artifacts, theater memorabilia, West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
materials, and school and period rooms.
The museum has an exhibit on the former Childress Army Airfield used during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to train bombardiers
Bombardier (air force)
A bombardier , in the United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force, or a bomb aimer, in the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces, was the crewman of a bomber responsible for assisting the navigator in guiding the plane to a bombing target and releasing the aircraft's bomb...
.Construction on the facility, located west of Childress, began in the spring of 1942. An activation ceremony was held in October, and Colonel John W. White assumed command on November 24. New classes began every three weeks until the end of the war. The initial 18-week training program was thereafter extended to twenty-four weeks. The first class of cadets began began training in February 1943 and graduated in May. Until the end of the war, the airfield graduated 35 classes with a total of 4,791 bombadier-navigators. These men represented 10 percent of the total American output of such fliers.
The related Michie Transportation Museum at the corner of Main Street and Avenue D Northwest, is a 1926 service station
Service station
Service station may refer to:* Filling station, a gasoline or petrol station* Automobile repair shop, a place where automobiles are repaired* Rest area, a public facility on motorways or controlled-access highways for resting or refuelling...
and automobile sales agency that was preserved in the late 1990s. It houses antique vehicles, buggy, and railroad displays. This facility is open on Saturdays in the summer, for special events, or by appointment.
The museum itself is open without admission charge from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and by appointment.Steve Craig (born 1965) of Childress is the museum executive director.