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History Happenings: A little case of Mount Vernon history
Cornell history student uses metal detector, research, to unearth city and college’s history
Sometimes, discovering the past is all about having the right equipment.
That was certainly the case for Miles J. Kolmstetter, who as a student at Cornell College in Mount Vernon decided to do a little digging for a senior project. But before he could dig, he had to detect.
The results of Kolmstetter’s efforts can be seen both on the web and in a humble display case located in an out of the way corner on the third floor of the Russell D. Cole Library on the Cornell Campus.
This porcelain shard was among the items Cornell College history student Miles J. Kolmstetter found while putting together a historic display for his senior capstone project. (Rob Cline/The History Center)
A display case (left) holding a history display about Cornell College and Mount Vernon, assembled by Cornell history major Miles J. Kolmstetter, is tucked away near the vending machine in the Russell D. Cole Library in Mount Vernon. (Rob Cline/The History Center)
Cornell College history major Miles J. Kolmstetter, who now lives in VIrginia Beach, Va., put together a historic display about Mount Vernon and Cornell for his senior capstone project. The display (above) includes vintage postcards from the early 20th century. The display case is in the Russell D. Cole Library in Mount Vernon, which serves as Cornell’s library and the public library. (Rob Cline/The History Center)
The display case is shadowed by a shelf holding a few pieces of pottery; a few coin-collecting magazines sit atop the case. A campus phone hangs on an adjacent wall, near a fire extinguisher and a vending machine
All of which is to say, you could easily miss the case containing Kolmstetter’s exhibit — even if you wandered over to the vending machine for a snack. (We should note here that we were tipped to the exhibit via an email from Sherene Hansen Player, who had read our piece on the small history display at the downtown Cedar Rapids post office.)
But that small display case is worth seeking out, particularly for the objects that appear on the lowest of the three shelves. Kolmstetter discovered many of those objects with his professional metal detector.
Kolmstetter, who majored in American history and German, titled his senior history capstone project “Mount Vernon Underground: Uncovering Artifacts and Relics of the Past.’”
“I was inspired to create this exhibit through my passion for treasure hunting and being able to tell the stories (through objects of the past) of those who cannot tell them anymore,” he told us in an email.
The exhibit
A collection of nails is prominent in one corner of Kolmstetter’s display case.
“These various nails are from the early decades of Mount Vernon,” reads the explanatory panel. “The large ones were used for houses and tools. The small ones were used in furniture. They were hand-forged before modern manufacturing. They date from the 1840s to the 1880s.”
Similar dates are assigned to an ax head and other tools. We asked Kolmstetter how he identified and dated the objects he found.
“The identification of these artifacts was simple for the most part,” he wrote. “Knowing the history of the area and the timeframe when a site was in use is the best information. All the artifacts I uncovered dated between the Civil War and the Second World War.”
A small shard of porcelain is an eye-catching item in the display. The full word “England” is visible along with a bit of mark associated with a specific company. The descriptive panel reads:
“The is a porcelain shard that came from a plate or bowl. This specific logo was manufactured from 1867 to 1878. The company that produced this was Powell and Bishop. The object would have been imported from England. Importing goods was not cheap during this time period.”
The top shelf of the display case is devoted to old postcards showing locations in Mount Vernon in the early years of the 20th century.
The second shelf holds a photo of first-year and new students at Cornell in September 1950 and a book opened to display an advertisement for Cornell College dating from 1884. The ad begins with a straightforward pitch: “Cornell College affords the best facilities for securing a liberal education at the lowest expense.”
How low was the expense? “Necessary Annual Expenses, for Board, Room Rent, Tuition, Books, Washing, etc., $117 to $159.”
Still hunting
Kolmstetter is working for an auction house in Virginia Beach, Va., and will continue hunting for historic artifacts along the area’s beaches. Meanwhile, he’s glad his exhibit is available for viewing in Mount Vernon.
“I hope the exhibit inspires an interest in the study of history,” he wrote. “There is so much history in our roots, specifically beneath the soil, and more is waiting to be discovered by us.
“We should not forget the Americans before us who worked tirelessly across the frontier to create this great nation. We should remember their stories. One of the best ways to go about this is through objects of the past. We should collect them and display them for future generations to enjoy.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.
We encourage you to visit Kolmstetter’s exhibit — in person or at mvicollection.weebly.com — where even more objects, including coins, can be seen.
Jessica Cline is a Leadership & Character Scholar at Wake Forest University. Her dad, Rob Cline, is not a scholar of any kind. They write this monthly column for The History Center. Comments: HistoricalClines@gmail.com
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