A journey to the past

The Oregon Trail event at Anderson Conservation Area has rebranded under a new name and at a new location.
On May 1, Pioneer Days debuted at the Montgomery County History Center. The historical buildings on the site were opened up and presenters were stationed to give students in attendance a glimpse of what it was like in the earlier days of the nation’s history.
Naturalist Cassandra Barbossa said moving the event from Anderson Conservation, where it’s been for nearly 30 years, was not an easy choice, but a necessary one.
“This year I was pregnant, so I knew I was coming back from maternity leave, and that I was going to need a little extra help. I came out here and I presented to the History Center and asked if they would be interested in a future partnership with this event. It’s a historical event, so I knew I would love to have the History Center’s name tagged onto this and collaborate with the event,” said Barbossa. “Then they showed me all the buildings out here and it got me really excited to collaborate with them, and so we just ran with it. I did the legwork of the planning and trying to coordinate over here for the transition.”
The format included stations at the historical buildings on the site, including the church and the schoolhouse, as well as the familiar trading post and music by Faye Mullinex. Barbossa said next year remains open.
“It might look completely different in 2026. We’ll chat with Dave and Roxanne and see what kind of things they want to spruce it up with and all that jazz. One thing that will not change is the location. We’re going to continue to hold the event at the Montgomery County History Center for the foreseeable future,” commented Barbossa.
When the event comes around next year, Barbossa said she’s looking forward to playing an even bigger role.
“I love it. I told them next year that I’m happy to be one of the presenters, too, if they want me to do fur trapping station or any other topic. Just give me something and I’ll talk about it. It’s also been been really neat to be in these buildings that are relevant to Montgomery County,” Barbossa explained.
Most of the same schools that have been participating in the Oregon Trail event over the years were present for Pioneer Days, including Red Oak, Stanton, Griswold, and South Page. Corning was not at the event this year, as both the classes participated in the Oregon Trail lest year. Barbossa said next year, she’d love to incorporate home school kids participation as well.
Montgomery County History Center Museum director Dave McFarland said they jumped at the chance to participate in the new event.
“We’ve got two log cabins, a barn, country school, the oldest church in the county, all of them are opened up for the kids to see. Since we were losing the trail aspect of it, we decided to call the event Pioneer Days and use the actual setting, the real buildings, to make it authentic. It’s been a learning experience; it always is the first time out for a brand new program, but I think the kids are happy with it, and I think it’s an outstanding learning opportunity,” advised McFarland. “The country school out there, we just got it moved in and it needs a little work, but it was built sometime around 1870, the church was built in 1871, so you really get that taste of what it was like. And then, of course, we’ve got Native American exhibits and just a little bit of everything, so the kids can really get that hands-on experience.”
Also, the event was able to incorporate a number of the Oregon Trail presenters, as well as feature some new ones.