FAVIM Bulletin Vol. 36 No. 1.

P.O. Box 1171 Lancaster, California 93584

Elsie Purdy -Indian Museum Volunteer BY FAVIM HISTORIAN, ANNE KITTLITZ
Elsie Purdy, a long time volunteer at the Indian Museum, has given the museum a very generous gift of $30,000. This money will be used to renovate Yucca Cottage. The project that will be done with it are to put in an updated heating and cooling system, new book shelves and flooring. Also freshly painted rooms will be enjoyed by all.
Elsie became volunteer forthe Indian Museum

in 1982 when she took the Docent trammg class. Her long career as a teacher helped make her an excellent children's tour guide. She led school tours for many years. In recent years she has been a weekend volunteer ~here she welcomes visitors and helps them enJoy the native cultures through the artifacts at the museum. Elsie has accumulated 1840 volunteer hours working at the museum.
Also, during her years as a volunteer she served as the Classroom Visitation Coordinator during 1987 until 1994. This was a program where volunteers went to classes who had made reservations for a tour of the museum. She and her committee would acquaint the children about the cultures and artifacts they would be seeing on their tour of the museum. This prepared them for a much richer visit.
January-February-March, 2020 Volume 36, Number 1
INSIDE THIS ISSUE PAGE #s
Elsie Purdy -Volunteer 1
Short History of Yucca Cottage 2
Excerpt from 1987 Docent Chants 2
Holidays on the Homestead Report 3
Gift Shop Report 5
President Sez 5

AVIM Contact Info & FAVIM Membership 6

http://www.avim.parks.ca.gov/info.shtml
But most of all, Elsie has been and still is an enthusiastic, knowledgeable and dependable volunteer. She has made a difference for many years. And now she has given such a generous gift that will help the State Park for many years. Thank you Elsie.

Page 2 FAVIM

A Short History of Yucca Cottage BY MUSEUM CURATOR, PEGGY RONNING
The kitchen of Yucca Cottage was constructed by the museum's first owner Howard Arden Edwards. It appears in photographs of the museum complex dating to the 1930s, and it may be one of the cottages or outbuildings listed on Edwards' final proof testimony for his homestead claim in 1933.

Yucca Cottage in the 19.30s (Photo courtesy of Elaine Fetterman)
In 1944, the museum's second owner, Grace Oliver, hired Gordon Gain to renovate Yucca and Joshua Cottages and construct four new cottages in the museum complex. Gordon Gain added the sitting room, bedroom, and bathroom to Yucca Cottage. The Gain family lived at the museum from 1944 to 1946 during the construction.
In November 1944, Oliver hired museum founder H. A. Edwards to paint the cottages and the murals on the exterior of the museum. Edwards was in residence at Joshua Cottage (Casa de la Rosa) from November 1944 through the end of December 1945 to comptete the painting. Therefore, Yucca Cottage was probably completed in 1945.
References: Gain-Martin, Lorraine 2009 Memories from the Mid-1940s. Unpublished manuscript on file at Antelope Valley Indian Museum, Lancaster, California.
Oliver, Grace 1973 Letter written to Shelton Gordon regarding Grace Oliver's acquisition and operation of the Antelope Valley Indian Museum. August 15, 1973. Document on file at Antelope Valley Indian Museum, Lancaster, California.

Excerpt from the Museum Docent Chants newsletter, August 1987
This April [1987], a Minnesota couple, Russ and Clarice Olsen, walked onto the museum grounds (someone had obligingly left the gate unlocked). Jack [Atkinson, the museum caretaker] spotted them and was ready to send them on their way until he heard this story:
In April, 1954, Clarice had driven out to the
Antelope Valley from Minnesota in her old
Kaiser [automobile] to be married to the young
Russ at Edwards Air Force Base where he was
stationed. They were housed in a very hot

Quonset hut! As the: summer drew nearer, not suffe~ing-in sileAG:et ClaFice-scanned the "for
rent" ads and eventually found an interesting
one to discuss with Russ. The ad described a
cottage on private grounds in the desert, with
a pool for $75 per month, contact Grace
Oliver!
Russ agreed; Clarice phoned; they moved and lived in Yucca (Docent) Cottage for three months that summer. They sunned on the buttes, splashed in the pool and had a terrific three-month honeymoon at Grace's oasis in the shadow of the present AVIM!
Jack loved their story and took them through
the museum -changed but still unchanged in
many ways, so the Olsens remarked. They had
enjoyed Grace's stories and remembered Joe
Oliver driving a tractor on the property and
doing handyman kind of work.
The Olsens had almost given up finding that honeymoon cottage until a kind librarian in Littlerock gave them a map to the AVIM. We' re glad Sam [Jack's ferocious guard dog] wasn't loose! Thanks for the story, Jack!

room of Yucca Cottage was not built yet. You can also see the barn peeking out from behind the cottag~,~' Th'e: barn wasnot . moved to its current location until 1948.
9th Annual Holidays on the Homestead BY INTERPRETER I, JEAN RHYNE
After a week of rain followed Thanksgiving snow and the Weather Service distributed a cold weather warning for the weekend, attendance for the 2019 Holidays on the Homestead was expected to be low. However, over 130 visitors made the trek despite the forecast, and were rewarded with perfect weather for the event! is
The grounds were exceptionally beautiful this year, with professional lighting services donated by Erick Pelaez of Erick Production De$igns. The up-lighting of the Joshua trees, lighting of pathways and buildings, and highlighting of the activity areas with vibrant colors brought a professional look and feel to the event. Erick had attended the event the previous year, and graciously offered to contribute his talents to benefit our park!

Another improvement this year was a discrete sound system for singer Michael Tcherkassky, so his music could be enjoyed by more visitors as he crooned cowboy poetry around the campfire. His wife, Paulette, served cowboy coffee to those brave enough to try it, and poured hot water for the kids to make cider or hot cocoa.
Rose Edwards' original 1940's chili recipe was reproduced by professional chef Jeffrey Rivera of Lake Los Angeles, so visitors could sample the rib-sticking chili she was known for at the early homesteaders' annual Christmas celebrations.

Page 4 FAVIM Bulletin

Jeffrey also delivered the straw bales for seating around the campfire, loaned for the event every year by The Feed Store. The firewood was donated by Lake Los Angeles' Moses Medina.
This year's chili cook-off winners were returncontestant Joanne Parker with her "Ranch Hand Chili" winning the first prize of a $20 museum gift certificate, the Colman family's "Kick Your Butte" chili coming in second for a gourmet hot sauce set, and the third place prize of a day-use pass to any of the Great Basin District State Parks went to Lydia Alcantar's "Tumbleweed Chili"-which she looks forward to using with her granddaughter!
This year's chili cook-off judge was Bill Walkup, administrator of the Explorers of the Mojave Desert Facebook page and an ardent supporter of our State Parks. "XMD" shares family-friendly, non-political posts about our desert's beauty, and promotes responsible enjoyment of its natural and cultural features.
Originally a 1930's homestead, the museum's historic grounds were decorated in vintage style with live greenery made by volunteers.

State Park Interpreter Jean Rhyne led a nighttime tour of the grounds, including Lizard Cottage which was furnished for the evening with the original Monterey-style furniture seen in a 1950's dude ranch-era brochure.
The craft boutique featured three return craftgr:s~ ~ Debra sQQ(K.itt l-oaf Designs), . Tracy :Alden (Art Resurrected), and Jami Bostjancic (Accent Allusions) -and two new participants, Juliana Quiroz (Flint and Feather) and Sandy Parker (Auntie Bellum's Attic). Visitors enjoyed the needlework, jewelry, ornaments, and other festive creations that invoked the season, and the crafters enjoyed the ambiance of the evening and supporting the park's event.
Volunteers, FAVIM board members, and staff all worked together to make the 2019 Holidays on the Homestead the most smooth-running one yet! We are very happy that it continues to grow into a beloved holiday activity in our community.

New Shipment of Black Pottery BY GIFT SHOP BUYER, SUSY MARTIN
We have some lovely new pieces of black pottery. The artist is Maria Adelicia, a native artist from New Mexico.
We have covered boxes, vases, and large fetish type figures. Come check it out.

FAVI
lletin Page 5

President Sez
BY FAVIM PRESIDENT, DON BORCHERS
I would like to give a big shout-out to Elsie Purdy, a long time Antelope Valley Indian Museum docent. She has given a very generous donation to FAVIM and the Museum. The donation will be used for the renovation of Yucca Cottage.
Elsie has spent many hours in the cottage with other docents eating lunch and talking about past museum activities. We hope to start the renovations in the spring. Thank you Elsie!

f RI ENDS OF THE ANTELOPE VALLEY INDIAN MUSEUM DIRECTORS 2019-2020
President: Don Borchers -d.and.b@mac.com
Vice President: John Martin -smartin@antelecom.net
Secretary: Darrell Walters -dewalters@earthlink.net
Treasurer: Betsy Matheny -d.and.b@mac.com
Corresponding Secretary /Historian: Anne Kittlitz -annekittlitz@gmail.com
Membership: Lynn DuPratt -lynndu@antelecom.net
Gift Shop Co-Chairs: Susy Martin -susymartin101 O@hotmail.com Cydnee Ashmore -sidashmore07@yahoo.com
FAVIM Bulletin Editor: Vacant Position

.., Antelope Valley Indian Museum State Historic Park
Is located at: 15701 East Avenue~ . Lancaster, CA 93534
(Avenue M between 150th St. & 170th St. East)
Phone: 661-946-3055

We're on the Web! Visit us at:
http:/ /www.avim.parks.ca.qov
and FAVIM is now on Facebook
http:// www.facebook.com/AV!ndianMuseum

Your Membership Is Important To FAVIM
FAVIM raises funds to support Projects and Activities at Antelope Valley Indian Museum.
Membership is renewed each September, except in the case of Life Membership.
Please make membership checks payable to "Friends of the Antelope Valley Indian Museum" (or "FAVIM"), and return to: P.O. Box 1171, Lancaster, CA 93584.

If you are not yet a member, and would like to support the Indian Museum, and receive a quarterly FAVIM Bulletin, and also receive a 10% Discount with Membership Card to use in the FAVIM Gift Shop, please send your check to the above address.
Select BULLETIN Delivery Option:
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or USPS Postal mail Dues:
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If your name or address is not correct, or you have moved, or you just need information about the Park or FAVIM, please call 661-946-3055.