Historical Society to host Memorial Day events

IOLA – The Iola Historical Society, in partnership with the Sheveland-Taylor American Legion Post 14, will host its Annual Tribute to Military Veterans Memorial Day Pork Roast Dinner on May 25.

The day’s events will begin with a parade that starts at 11 a.m. from the Iola-Scandinavia High School parking lot. The parade route will proceed to Veterans Park on North Main Street for a Memorial Day service. Following the service, the parade will continue and conclude at the historical society’s historic village on Depot Street.

The pork roast dinner will run from noon to 2 p.m. at the society’s Machine Shed, located at 222 Depot St. The event includes a free meal for all attending veterans in honor of their service. While the dinner is free for veterans, the suggested donation for spouses and the general public is $15, and $8 for children 12 and under. The meal includes all the trimmings. Iola’s Boy Scout Troop 631 will be selling soda and bottled water.

Local American Legion members will be on-site to record the military branch and years of service for each veteran in attendance. During the dinner, visitors can tour the historic village, where six of the seven buildings will be open.

Open buildings include the main museum, machine shed, the original Helvetia Town Hall, a replica one-room schoolhouse, a 1930s-era log hunting cabin and a replica fire station that houses some of the town’s early firefighting vehicles. The original Iola & Northern Railway depot is currently closed for renovations and will not be available for tours.

Inside the museum, docents will be on hand to guide visitors through several featured displays. Attendees can view a tribute to Iola World War II veteran Lee Nelson, who flew 31 B-17 “Flying Fortress” bomber missions over Germany and German-occupied France.

The museum also houses the Towne Native American Artifacts Collection and a vintage 1920s Norwegian flag, which belonged to Iola’s Sons of Norway Fram Lodge 357, established in 1928 and disbanded in 1932, along with the lodge’s original charter. Docents will also be available to answer questions.

The Memorial Day event is the first event of the historical society’s regular summer season. The historical society will be open on Saturdays from noon to 3 p.m. June 6 through Aug. 29.