Frankfort Area Historical Society Celebrating 50 Years

FRANKFORT, IL — It's not everyday that an organization dedicated to preserving history gets to add a page of its own to the history books, but that's exactly what is happening as the Frankfort Area Historical Society prepares to mark a milestone anniversary.

The Frankfort Area Historical Society has been around now for 50 years, and the organization plans to celebrate by inviting the public to its birthday party.

The organization — which, according to its mission statement, is dedicated "to discover and collect any material which may help to establish or illustrate the history of the area" — is scheduled to hold its 50th Anniversary Celebration from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 23 at its museum, located at 132 Kansas St. in downtown Frankfort.

The event will include a cocktail reception, live music, historic walking tours and "Frankfort Found" art exhibit sponsored by the Frankfort Arts Association at Studio C.

The 50th Anniversary Celebration is free to attend for members of the Frankfort Area Historical Society; the cost for non-members is $25.

The Frankfort Area Historical Society will also have copies of "Frankfort’s Favorite Christmas Cookies Cookbook," a collection of the cookie recipes that have been served over the years. Tjose will be on sale for $20.

The Frankfort Area Historical Society was founded in 1972, according to the organization's founder and first president Ralph Eisenbrandt. It was born out of a life-long curiosity and passion for learning about the history of Frankfort, which was founded in 1855 and officially incorporated in 1879, according to Eisenbrandt.

He said that when he and his sister were children, the family would regularly gather for card games. Eisenbrandt and his sister spent that time listening to their grandparents' radio and catching the chatter from the adults at the card table.

"As kids, we never knew what we were hearing, other than that it was interesting," he said. "We learned, little by little, about our parents and our grandparents and our relatives and other people in town that we knew."

That thirst for knowledge led Eisenbrandt on a quest to find any material about Frankfort's and other surrounding communities' past. And when he later discovered that others shared his passion, the Frankfort Area Historical society was born.

From those humble roots 50 years ago, the organization now is home to numerous documents, photos, audio recordings and artifacts that all detail in some way, shape or form the history of the village.

Today the Frankfort Historical Society works together with the Frankfort Preservation Foundation, a separate organization with similar goals, toward a common goal to collect and preserve those things and places that serve as a living history of Frankfort so that the combined organizations can "preserve Frankfort's past for its future," said Frankfort Area Historical Society board member and volunteer Marcia Steward.

Steward said the idea that the unique history of Frankfort is still there, and that people can reach out and have a tangible connection to its past, is what keeps the Frankfort Area Historical Society going 50 years on.

"You can identify with that history, that permanence, the deep roots that are there," she said. "And, I think, that's how history connects us in that way."

Those interested in attending the Frankfort Area Historical Society's 50th Anniversary Celebration can RSVP by calling (815) 469-6541 or email at Frankfort1879@att.net.

More information about the Frankfort Area Historical Society can be found on its website via this link.