Birth of a museum

Celebrating and preserving history are very important to the five committee members who founded the Catholic Heritage Museum of Apple Creek and Biehle. For several years, they envisioned opening a museum to display the heritage of St. Joseph Catholic Church and St. Maurus Roman Catholic Church. In 2012, they saw that vision begin to form.

Six miles separate the two towns, which are about 30 miles north of Cape Girardeau in southern Perry County.

The museum is housed at St. Joseph, "a country church sitting out in the middle of nowhere," said Mary Jane Buchheit, one of five committee members overseeing the museum. When reminiscing about how the museum got off the ground, Buchheit said that after meeting to discuss it for two years, they dived in.

"We had great interest in forming a museum," she said.

The others on the team are Ed Welker, Margie Welker, Pat Schumer and Russell Schumer.

Musical and entertainment items on display in the Family Heritage room at the Catholic Heritage Museum of Apple Creek and Biehle, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015. (Laura Simon)

Buchheit credited Carla Jordan with planting the original seeds of interest. Jordan is director of the Perry County Lutheran Historical Society's Lutheran Heritage Center and Family Research Library and Museum in Altenburg and was instrumental in establishing the newly opened Cape Girardeau County History Center in Jackson. She suggested the group establish a Catholic museum and helped them get started. The Rev. Tony Dattilo, who was the shared pastor of the churches at the time, supported their endeavor, as does the current pastor, the Rev. James R. French.

The museum is open by appointment, and Buchheit said their long-term goal is to "establish regular hours." She added, "We're happy to [open] if people call ahead ... by appointment. In time, we hope to be open regularly on weekends, but we don't have enough staff for that yet."

What they do have is a growing interest in the museum, which is comprised of two rooms. The Religious Heritage room "features priests and nuns who grew up in Apple Creek and were ordained, as well as people who served here," said Buchheit. It also contains photographs of the school's students -- their graduations and baseball teams, for instance.

Visitor response has been encouraging. "People enjoy coming here and finding themselves" in the pictures.

The Family Heritage room displays old household items; farm artifacts; tools, such as those used in blacksmithing; and memorabilia from a live "Hee Haw" show parishioners performed there for more than 25 years -- not the remnants of the old television show. The room showcases its costumes and other country items.

Clockwise from top left, Russell Schumer, Margie and Ed Welker, Mary Jane Buccheit and Pat Schumer pose for a photo at the Catholic Heritage Museum of Apple Creek and Biehle, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015. (Laura Simon)

Part of the area history is Shawnee Indian heritage, as well as its integral place in black history. Freed slaves, Buchheit shared, settled there along the banks of Apple Creek, where they built log cabins. Pictures in the museum tell the story.

"We just had a group of about 45 people from St. Louis, who descended from [these freed slaves]. ... They have a reunion in St. Louis every two years, and they wanted to see it." At the museum, they were able to see their own history in that which is preserved at the Catholic Heritage Museum.

Looking to the future, the committee would like to offer tours that would include the Lutheran Heritage Museum, the Catholic Heritage Museum and Perry County Military History Museum in Perryville.

For now, those interested in visiting the museum may contact the following to schedule an appointment: Ed Welker 573-788-2730, Pat Schumer 573-768-4640, St. Joseph office 788-2330 and Mary Jane Buchheit 573-587-1461.

No appointment is necessary on Saturday, Sept. 5, however, as the museum will be open all day during the parish picnic.