The newest installment added to the Audie Murphy / American Cotton Museum , “ A Journey Through History ,” opened to the public in late June . Offering strengthening to its long standing education , the new exhibit is , quite literally , a walk down memory lane through the history of Hunt County . However , upon visiting , you ’ ll find it is much deeper than words can say .
Two and a half years in the making , the exhibit features tall , striking panels lining a 400 foot long paved walkway shaded with big Texas trees . The top arch of every panel is intricately designed with iconic images of Greenville . They feature an array of topics you can ’ t find inside from notable people like current Olympian Tara Davis-Woodhall to the local use of cisterns after World War I .
“ Research was a big part ” says smiling Susan Lanning , the driving force behind the project . “ -and picking topics most people know nothing about .. helps give us a fuller picture of our history .” Her passion radiates through the miniscule details , such as QR codes guests can scan to read additional information Lanning could not fit on one panel .
Well-mannered John Armstrong stops
by the museum for the exhibit he contributed to with his refined skill in tracing genealogy . Armstrong relied on our own W . Walworth Harrison library to find the information he needed . “ With the passage of time , history is lost . And this is a way to bring it to people who never experienced this .” He soothes .
Even for the topics and lessons of our history that aren ’ t so beautiful .
As you walk into the museum , you ’ re met with bubbling and vivacious Sheila Morgan-Johnson who , among other things , operates the front desk . She sings the praises of Susan Lanning . “ Susan has done some remarkable stuff out there ..
She has courage .”
Sheila refers directly to the representation she felt upon seeing the Black History sections in the new exhibit - parts of her own history that she wasn ’ t aware of . Shameful or embarrassing , Lanning refuses to bury even the worst of topics . “ It ’ s for everyone . Every race .. I know so many people who have lived here for 80 years and have never been here .”
With the free and permanent installation of “ A Journey Through History ,” if you haven ’ t yet explored the Audie Murphy / American Cotton Museum , now is as good of a time as ever .
GREENVILLE LIFE 17 SUMMER 2024