The Octagon House has been the Neenah Historical Society’s headquarters since they purchased it in 1993. Originally, the Society simply set the house up as a regular home of the time period, with suitable furniture throughout. Some events were held there during holidays and other times. In 1999 there was an exhibit called “Old Railroad Days”, and at one point there were model trains displayed on the second floor.
Ms. Jane Lang, the current director of the Neenah Historical Society, first joined the organization in 2010. She remembers that at this time the Society was planning an exhibit of George Edwin Bergstrom, the architect of the Pentagon in Virginia. This exhibit opened in 2011 and filled the entire bottom floor. By this time, the upstairs was being used mostly for storage, as the Society had little to no space outside the Octagon House to put their many acquisitions. The following year, 2012, Ms. Lang achieved her position as director.
Ms. Jane Lang, the current director of the Neenah Historical Society, first joined the organization in 2010. She remembers that at this time the Society was planning an exhibit of George Edwin Bergstrom, the architect of the Pentagon in Virginia. This exhibit opened in 2011 and filled the entire bottom floor. By this time, the upstairs was being used mostly for storage, as the Society had little to no space outside the Octagon House to put their many acquisitions. The following year, 2012, Ms. Lang achieved her position as director.
Originally a curator for Doty Cabin, Ms. Lang hoped to return the original part of the Octagon House, the front, to be arranged as a home instead of an exhibit. She converted the space so that the immediate impression upon walking in the front door is of a nineteenth century home. All the furniture here is genuine, from that time period and also from Neenah. It is very important to Ms. Lang that all the pieces have a legitimate connection to the town, and her own connections to Doty Cabin. Also other families around Neenah have helped enormously to achieve her vision for the Octagon House. Most of the furniture and pieces displayed were donated by various individuals. As the exhibits became more popular, the entire first floor has been converted to exhibit space.
Ms. Lang hopes these rooms will hold various exhibits in the future. The first exhibit was a fallout shelter display, which has gained the Neenah Historical Society much attention since it opened in 2013. A garage outside the Octagon House recreated the experience of a real fallout shelter, and it contained actual artifacts recovered from a bomb shelter which dates back to the 1950s and 60s. This real bomb shelter was found by the Zwick family of Neenah on the property they have lived on for years. They knew the shelter was there but never investigated it because it was believed to be empty. Much of the contents, once the shelter was finally opened, were found damaged or ruined by floodwater, but some were kept in waterproof containers and preserved well enough for the Historical Society’s display. While these artifacts have been placed in the outside garage for the exhibit, the Society uses the back two rooms of the Octagon House to display their textual information on the subject of fallout shelters and the Cold War. This information was collected by a collaboration between the Historical Society and the students of the University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh. The students helped to research and organize the information, and they created the panels and graphics which display the text.
The next exhibit was a display about the Civil War. Before her time as director, the large windows in one of the exhibit rooms were covered with boards of textual information, but when Ms. Lang took over she decided to take those boards down and let the light in. This also gives a very nice view of the gardens surrounding that part of the House.
The next exhibit was a display about the Civil War. Before her time as director, the large windows in one of the exhibit rooms were covered with boards of textual information, but when Ms. Lang took over she decided to take those boards down and let the light in. This also gives a very nice view of the gardens surrounding that part of the House.
The Winnebago County Master Gardeners’ Club has taken on their own project in regards to the Octagon House. This volunteer project started planting in 2007 and has continued to present day. These gardeners plant authentic kitchen gardens with many varieties of plants from the time period. They have created raised garden beds to house the antebellum vegetation, which includes popular herbs and vegetables of the time period. They have also planted large perennial beds, climbing roses, and heirloom rose bushes. The plants are all things which would be found in a legitimate home garden of the nineteenth century, and they add both beauty and historical accuracy to the House itself. During this time period, people such as the Smith families would have needed to grow their own food, so the kitchen garden would have been a very important part of the house. Everyone involved with the recreation of this historic landscaping is very dedicated to making it as authentic and genuine as possible.
Works Cited:
Lang, Jane. Personal interview. 15 May 2014.
Mulder, Donna. "Restoring a Piece of History." The News-Record [Neenah, Wisconsin] 30 Apr. 1997: Print.
Wollangk, Joe Ellen. Personal interview. 16 May 2014.
*Pictures were taken by Olivia Will, courtesy of Ms. Jane Lang and the Neenah Historical Society.
Lang, Jane. Personal interview. 15 May 2014.
Mulder, Donna. "Restoring a Piece of History." The News-Record [Neenah, Wisconsin] 30 Apr. 1997: Print.
Wollangk, Joe Ellen. Personal interview. 16 May 2014.
*Pictures were taken by Olivia Will, courtesy of Ms. Jane Lang and the Neenah Historical Society.