Good Monday morning,

As this letter arrives in your inbox, we in the education team at the Frazier are preparing for our second-to-last week of camp. It’s hard to believe we’re nearly at the end!

We’ve had a memorable summer this year, after a couple of summers of our activities being seriously curtailed due to COVID. In 2022, we broke our all-time income record, which was previously set in 2017. We’ve also been fortunate to host an extraordinary amount of special guests thanks to the generous support of the Louisville Metro Government, who provided funding for us to provide art supplies for our camps and welcome local artists to present to the campers. We’ve explored Main Street and visited our partners at the Louisville Slugger Museum, KMAC, and the Kentucky Science Center. We were featured on WLKY for Chicks Rule. And through it all, we’ve had a lot of fun times! One of my favorite enrollment statistics is that over ten percent of our campers signed up for their very first week of camp at the Frazier this year, and enrolled for an additional session later in the summer after seeing what a fun, welcoming environment our staff and volunteers provide.

Camp Takeover was the first in what will become a yearly tradition: In the spirit of our long-running Page to Stage camp, we spent the week preparing and on Friday, June 17, turned the museum over to the kids! Kids led tours, installed art, and created and staged original performances that wowed their audience.

We also had our first ever camper-led session, featuring nine-year-old entrepreneur Bailey of Bath Wonderland! It was so fun hearing all about her journey starting her own business and then teaching us to make our own bath bombs (which made our lunchroom smell so good).

One of our most special camp memories was getting to work with Elmer Lucille Allen—but I will let Brian tell you more about that!

We have one more week open for enrollment in our Day Camps, which take place August 1–5. You can sign up for that here.

If your summer is booked up, but you are hoping to join in the fun, we’re also thrilled to announce that we’ve opened up registration for Fall Break camps on September 29 and 30! The theme of our Fall Break Pop-Up Camp is “Back to the Frazier”: We’ll be exploring all of the Frazier’s past exhibitions, from Mythical Creatures to Samurai, Princess Diana, and more. If you would like to learn more, or if your camper can’t wait for the next Frazier camp, you can find out more here.

In today’s issue of Frazier Weekly, you’ll also read local architect, author, and historian Steve Wiser on Strassenfest; Rachel Platt on the story of an upcoming historic marker, and Simon Meiners on the history of the Dainty Fest in Schnitzelburg.

See you soon!

Heather Gotlib
Manager of Youth & Family Programs
Frazier History Museum

This Week in the Museum

Ceramic Artist Elmer Lucille Allen Leads Frazier Campers in Teapot Making Session

Wednesday before last, I had the honor of helping facilitate a camp session with Elmer Lucille Allen. Her reputation precedes her: She was one of the first Black women to integrate Nazareth College (Spalding University) in the 1950s, the first Black professional hired at Brown-Forman in 1966, the co-founder of the Chickasaw Park Little League in the late 1960s, and more. The list could go on and on.

But for our Outside the Box week at camp, Elmer Lucille shared another outstanding facet of her being: her art. A renowned ceramic and fiber artist, Elmer Lucille created an activity for our Summer Camp in which campers could choose from one of three different templates of teapot silhouettes to create their own designs. There was a short round teapot, a tall rectangular one, and a tall asymmetrical one.

Elmer Lucille’s craft turned out to be a big hit with all the campers who attended that day, inspiring them to make different designs, some representational, some abstract, some even sarcastically topical.

After the session, Elmer Lucille—also known for her photography—had each group of teapot makers (the round, the rectangular, and the asymmetrical teapots) gather for group pictures, which she took, before having the campers pose for pictures holding their work up for her camera. Finally, she was able to dragoon us teachers and volunteers to pose with her.

It was a great camp session and Elmer Lucille was very appreciative of the work we put into make her day at the Frazier a special one.

Brian West
Teaching Artist

Frazier to Host Program on Kentucky’s Role in Underground Railroad September 13

I am really excited to announce a program in September that I truly believe will be a night of learning, and a night to remember. Through stories, music, art, and names, we will tell the story of our local connections to the Underground Railroad. And when you see our lineup of special guests, I think you will agree with me. We will be holding this program in the intimate space of the Brown-Forman Theatre, so seating will be limited. Sign up now.

Rachel Platt
Director of Community Engagement

Video: Origin of the Five Seals of Louisville, 1828–Present

The city of Louisville has had five official seals through the years, one of which is preserved in cast iron on the sidewalk directly in front of the Frazier Museum. Some of the designs emerged from a public competition, while one was the result of the mayor hiring an Austrian artist who had immigrated to Kentucky after fleeing Nazi Germany. All of the seals are interesting. In just a few short minutes, I’ll give you the detail on all five, then ask you: Which one is your favorite?

Mick Sullivan
Curator of Guest Experience

Frazier Staff Serve Goodwood Styles at JTown Beer Fest

On Saturday, July 16, our Frazier team had a great time pouring beer and talking with folks at the JTown Beer Fest! We served a variety of styles from Goodwood Brewing—who, by the way, will be making an appearance at Summer Beer Fest at Frazier!—and enjoyed connecting with the craft beer–loving community in town. We also promoted Summer Beer Fest at Frazier, which is next up on the calendar of Louisville beer fests! The Frazier Museum will be bringing a beer festival back to Main Street in our second year. We look forward to seeing you there. And thank you to the Jeffersontown Chamber and HB Productions for putting on an awesome event!

For more information on the August 6 Summer Beer Fest at Frazier or to purchase tickets, click here.

Steve Wiser on Origin of Downtown Louisville’s Strassenfest, 1978

Earlier this month, we announced that 2022 Summer Beer Fest at Frazier will be the first beer festival on Main Street in more than twenty-five years! The last festival to carry that baton was Strassenfest. Organized by a civic group called Third Century, Strassenfest first took place in 1980 on River City Mall between Chestnut and Muhammad Ali. From 1987 to 1996, however, it relocated to Main Street between Fourth and Eighth, after which it moved to the waterfront. So we asked Steve Wiser, a local architect, author, historian, and former Third Century member, to shed light on the early years of Strassenfest. Prost!—Simon Meiners, Communications & Research Specialist

In 1978, when the city of Louisville celebrated its two hundredth anniversary, a new civic group was formed. Named Third Century—since the city was now entering its third century—this booster group consisted of young, energetic twentysomethings who wanted to rejuvenate a depressed downtown. During the ̓80s, this youthful organization developed numerous events and promotions that spotlighted the attractiveness of urban living: jazz concerts, new building tours, lectures on quality of life, colorful banners on the street poles, and—perhaps the most ambitious undertaking—Strassenfest.

First held in 1980, Strassenfest was a three-day extravaganza of German heritage–related activities. It sprawled over several downtown city blocks, along Fourth Street and Main Street. Large tents and booths were set up. And it drew large crowds of over 100,000 people downtown on a hot late August weekend when nothing else was happening.

The obligatory beer and brat booths were very popular, and the numerous German-themed bands from around the region (as well as the artists brought in from Germany) kept the party going late into the evening. The crazy “duck” (a.k.a. “chicken”) dance was played non-stop, it seemed. Perhaps the most anticipated Strassenfest activity was the Battle of the Downtown Stars, which featured teams of employees from local businesses like Humana, banks, and media outlets. The teams competed in grape stomping, pie eating, and beer bucket relays. It was all tremendous fun and hilarity that raised funds for Third Century’s many advocacy programs.

Bev Bromley, Chuck Eilerman, John Brasch, Detlef Moore, and Tom Peterson were some of the spirited Strassenfest organizers. The efforts of these organizers, and dozens of other Third Century members, proved successful in bringing more businesses, tourists, and residents to downtown Louisville by the late ̓80s and early ̓90s. Now, West and East Main are bustling vibrant districts where locals and tourists crowd the sidewalks on evenings and weekends. So, at this year’s second annual Summer Beer Fest at Frazier, raise a mug to the memory of Strassenfest and those twentysomethings (now sixtysomethings) who created such a joyful event

many decades ago!

Steve Wiser, FAIA
Former Member, Third Century
Guest Contributor

Museum Store: ODUOAK Fragrance Bottles

We are in love with Jackie Zykan’s new perfume line and can’t pick a favorite from the four scents in the shop. They are all so good! The spray bottles come boxed for gifting and are available in the shop or online.

Hidden Barn Whiskey Master Blender Jackie Zykan on ODUOAK

As the official starting point of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail®, the Frazier History Museum shares stories of the people, places, and producers of the Kentucky Bourbon industry. To learn more, visit our Kentucky Bourbon Trail® Welcome Center or tour our Spirit of Kentucky® exhibition.—Simon Meiners, Communications & Research Specialist

For the past seven years, I proudly served as master taster for the Old Forester brand. However, as of late, I have taken a different path, deciding to stretch my entrepreneurial legs and assume a role as a partner and blender at Hidden Barn Whiskey. Blending has always been a true passion of mine, whether it be cocktails or purely Bourbon, and over the course of my career I’ve explored every avenue to grow my sensory bank and fine-tune my skill set.

This is what led me to perfumery.

While perfume is obviously not for consumption, aromatically speaking, the approach of constructing and understanding fragrance is unique compared to our beloved world of Bourbon. Whiskey in and of itself contains a plethora of diverse and nuanced aromatic notes, so much so that wearing fragrances or perfumes are frowned upon while tasting it to ensure the whiskey can shine. This unwritten rule of aromatic neutrality has always been an observation at the forefront of my mind, as an individual who, prior to working in this industry, was usually generously slathered in whatever scent fit my mood.

ODUOAK was my way of bringing two worlds together. Have your cake and eat it, too, as they say—because what good is cake you can’t eat?!

Traditionally, perfume is based in a neutral alcohol to fully allow the fragrance oils to shine. What I have done is utilize Bourbon in its pure form as a contributor of dimension in the fragrance blend. This allows for construction around that with complimentary fragrance oils, the selection of which is inspired by experiences had with a glass of Bourbon in hand. ODUOAK captures moments in time in the form of fragrance. Some expressions lean more feminine in nature, some more masculine; but ultimately, they’re meant there for anyone with whom they resonate. The products speak to Bourbon lovers, of course, but also to anyone who has ever fallen in love, been afraid of change, assumed incorrectly, or basically just been human. The experiences are written on the packaging, giving the wearer a little peek into what inspired the blend. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy making them. Cheers!

For more information, visit ismellwildfire.com.

Jackie Zykan
Owner, ODUOAK
Guest Contributor

2022 Owsley Brown Frazier Classic Sporting Clay Tournament

You hit some, you miss some, but you’re always having fun!

The Owsley Brown Frazier Sporting Clay Tournament can make for an exhilarating day or a day to enjoy nature. One thing that never waivers is the fun teams have when they challenge themselves and others for the highest scores.

The Frazier Classic is the perfect way to experience the thrill of the hunt without actually hunting. Beginners can have fun learning the sport, while the more experienced shooters use the elements of the target throw, the weather, and their equipment to improve their score. We invite beginners and experts alike to join us for a day of competition and fun on Friday, September 30, for the seventh annual Frazier Classic.

This garden and gun–type event will be held at the picturesque Sporting Club at the Farm in New Albany, Indiana, just twenty minutes from the Frazier’s home on West Main Street. The Tournament day will include a mouthwatering lunch with Kentucky Bourbon and craft beer, an award presentation, and a silent auction of uniquely Kentucky experiences. All participants receive a special swag bag to remember the day. All proceeds support the Frazier’s educational outreach, exhibitions, and programming. We hope you’ll join us!

Tickets are $300 for individuals and $1,200 for teams of four. To register or more information, click here.

Bridging the Divide

Dedication Ceremony for Nugent House in Old Louisville August 7

A historic marker will soon “mark” the spot of what was once a nucleus of activity in advancing the cause of voting rights during the suffrage movement for African American women.

That marker at 845 South Sixth Street will be dedicated on August 7 at 2 p.m.

It’s part of the National Votes for Women Trail program, and will be dedicated at the home once owned by sisters Georgia and Alice Nugent.

The Nugent sisters purchased the home in 1919 (a feat all of its own with discriminatory housing policies), and it soon became a central meeting location to advance their social and political causes.

Their father George, sister Mollie, and brother-in-law Thomas Williams also called the Nugent House home.

The Nugent sisters co-founded and led Louisville’s Women’s Improvement Club, an organization that advocated for Black women’s suffrage.

The Nugent House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 1, 2020, an effort Laura Bache spearheaded as part of her Girl Scout Gold Award Project.

The public is invited to attend the marker dedication to learn more about the Nugent sisters and the vital role they played in history. Bache will speak as well as others.

And talk about a full circle moment: Louisville was the site of the very first of these historical markers. The first one was dedicated to Susan Look Avery in front of the Woman’s Club of Louisville at 1320 South Fourth Street in March 2019. (Notice the numerical “1” in the right hand corner.)

Now, just a couple of blocks away, the two-hundred-and-second marker (one of the last) honoring the Nugent sisters will be installed.

In all, there will be 209 markers nationwide thanks to this overall effort by the National Collaborative for Women’s History Sites.

This is history worth knowing and learning, now made easier with markers—and, in the case of the Nugent sisters, showing us the “house” where it happened.

Rachel Platt
Director of Community Engagement

History All Around Us

Pam Platt on First James Webb Space Telescope Images

There was nothing scientific about my reaction to the James Webb Telescope’s first baby pictures of the universe. I was as excited about their recent unveiling as I would have been about family photos of a new arrival. I didn’t take off from work, but I had my personal laptop beaming NASA.gov to my desk, in its own way as much of a miracle to me. Thank you, science.

I wouldn’t have missed it for anything . . . the first public sight of billions of stars at their births and some at their deaths, galaxies dotting inky space like lightning bugs in our backyards at this time of year, the awesomeness of the achievement that planted each of these images in the minds of those watching and those of Earthlings to come . . . I kept looking at the palms of my hands, knowing that we are made of the stardust Webb showed and will show us. That always astonishes me.

I think the astonishment has just begun: I read this morning, July 21, that the Webb had allowed Earth’s scientists to detect signatures of water on a planet 1,150 light years from our home. You don’t have to imagine that. The day that we know it is here.

No, I can’t quite wrap my head around any of it, either.

I only know that when I looked into the speck of infinity the Webb photos showed us, I saw unimaginably beautiful images that presented questions, challenges . . . and joy. Glad to be alive to see this for myself, happier that scientists around the world worked together to bring us this perspective of our place in space and time.

We haven’t made a complete mess of everything, have we?

One last near-Earth observation: the number of women scientists involved in this project prompted a lump in my throat. STEM rules! And how great it was to hear the astrophysicist presenting the photos say for all she represented: “It takes a planet.”

Pam Platt
Former Editorial Director, Courier Journal
Guest Contributor

Schnitzelburg Area Community Council Debuts All-ages Dainty Batting Cage

Today is the fifty-second annual World Championship Dainty Contest!

New to this year’s competition: a Dainty Batting Cage.

As a Louisville history buff—whose German Catholic immigrant ancestors settled in Schnitzelburg over a century ago—I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never actually been to a Dainty Contest! So this year I decided to see what all the fuss is about.

Who Started the Dainty Contest?

Founded in 1971 by George Hauck and his longtime friend Charlie Vettiner, the World Championship Dainty Contest is a community event that brings hundreds of area residents to the intersection of Goss Avenue and George Hauck Way on the last Monday in July.

In 1912, George’s parents, William and Elizabeth Sprenger Hauck, opened Hauck’s Handy Store—a dry goods store that would later become a grocery—at the southeast corner of Goss and Hoertz. In 1946, George took over the business, and in 2002, the one-block stretch of Hoertz between Goss and Ash Street was renamed in his honor. He passed away in 2020 at the age of 100.

What the Heck is Dainty?

According to Hauck’s Corner, dainty is a street game children of German immigrants played in Schnitzelburg back in the 1860s. A player takes a stick, whacks a small piece of wood called a dainty (to propel it up off the ground), then strikes it like a baseball, the goal being to hit the dainty the farthest of all the competitors.

What is the Dainty Contest?

In 1971, Hauck and Vettiner decided to revive their childhood game for an annual tournament, with one notable catch: To participate, you have to be forty-five or older.

The earliest reference to dainty in the Courier Journal I can find is a feature detailing the first annual competition, held in 1971:

With a cry of “All you Dutchmen, get over here!” Louisville’s first “dainty contest” in probably more than fifty years got under way last evening in Germantown.

A sign listed eight rules for play. Nine, if you counted the requirement that only forty-five-year-olds and older could enter. But the rules were sometimes ignored by popular demand, as when some of the ladies found they had trouble tipping the dainty off the ground.

Few of the participants, who ranged from just above forty-five to eighty-two, needed to be refreshed about the rules, though, because many played the game during its height of popularity in the Schnitzelburg neighborhood of Louisville around 1915 to 1920.

Schnitzelburg, several contestants agreed, is the area of Germantown bounded by Goss, Burnett, Texas, and Shelby.

The game is deceptively simple. A dainty, a five-inch section of broom or mop handle sharpened at both ends, is laid on the starting line. It is tipped up into the air with another section of handle about four feet long, then struck forward, much like a baseball swing.

The dainty must stay within the curbs of the street to count, but it can bounce any number of times before it finally comes to rest.

In addition to the actual competition, there is a three-day Dainty Fest, with bands, drinks, special games, raffles, bologna sandwiches, and more.

When is This Year’s Contest—and What’s New?

In keeping with tradition, this year’s Dainty Contest is the last Monday in July: it’s today, July 25. The Dainty Fest began Saturday with the Second Annual Dainty FUNdraiser at The Merryweather.

A new element of this year’s Dainty Fest: a Dainty Batting Cage, sponsored by Brewgrass Homebrew Supply. The cage is open to folks of all ages (although, today only, people forty-five and older are prohibited). You pay $5 for three tries, and if you hit the target, your name is entered in a drawing to win a $100 Germantown gift card.

My friend Gwen and I each gave it a shot. (It’s harder than it looks—but full disclosure: I did hit the target once!)

If you’re interested in participating, or just want to join in the festivities, stop by today: There’s the opening prayer and national anthem sung by local musician Sylvia Walters, 5 p.m.; dignitaries compete, 5:15; open competition, beer garden, and Boom Pah Pah, 5:30; and band and DJ performance, 8 p.m.

Last but not least, be sure to visit the Dainty Museum at the newly renovated Hauck’s Corner, which opened to the public yesterday!

Sources

McConnell, Robert. “Dainty! Game From the Past Draws the ‘Dutchmen’ to Schnitzelburg.” Courier Journal. August 10, 1971: B1.

Kauffman, Dan. “Dainty Contestants Test Their Skill and Bat Around Memories of the Past.” Courier Journal. August 15, 1972: B2.

Filiatreau, John. “Ein Schoener Tag: It was Beer and Sauerkraut and Nostalgia When the Schnitzelburgers Joined Together for their Annual ‘Roll Out the Barrel’ Fete.” Courier Journal. November 15, 1973: C8.

“Dainty.” Hauck’s Corner.

“World Championship Dainty Contest.” Schnitzelburg Area Community Council.

Simon Meiners
Communications & Research Specialist

Membership

One-tank Trips: Summer Road Trip to Behringer-Crawford Museum

Here is what you need to know when you travel this summer!

Being a Contributor ($106) level member or higher to the Frazier means you have access to over 1,200 museums throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico!

This benefit is called NARM: the North American Reciprocal Museum Association. When you become a member with us, you essentially become a member to all of the art galleries, historical museums, botanical gardens, children’s museums, zoos, and many more institutions that participate in the program.

With over ten participating institutions in the Chicago area, that’s enough to fill a whole weekend!

But let’s talk closer to home. With gas prices on the rise, maybe our summer road trip turned into a one-tank trip. That’s okay! Because with your NARM benefits, you still have access to institutions within Louisville, Franklin, Maysville, Paducah, Lexington, and Bowling Green!

If you find yourself on the way to Cincinnati, take your Frazier membership card with you! In Covington, Kentucky, there is the wonderful Behringer-Crawford Museum, a participating NARM institution with a focus on interpreting Northern Kentucky’s heritage. The family-friendly, interactive exhibits chronicle the growth of the region as seen through the lens of transportation—presenting a broad range of ongoing creative, innovative, and educational programs for all ages.

So save money . . . support your favorite local historical museum (that’s us!), become a member, and you’ll automatically be connected to some of your favorite places to visit, and some that you’ll be able to discover the next time you travel.

We mean it when we say Members Experience More!

Make sure you follow us on social media to find out more about the NARM program and other participating institutions. During the month of July, we will be highlighting different fun facts and one tank trips to take on our #MembershipMonday posts.

*Certain museums have restrictions, please check online or with the specific institution for any current restrictions that may be in place.

Amanda Egan
Membership & Database Administrator