The McConnell Mansion was built back in 1886 and has become a historical attraction in Moscow. The mansion’s original owner, William McConnell, would go on to be governor of Idaho before selling his home in the wake of an economic downturn at the end of the 1800s.
In the 128 years since the mansion was built, it would see several different owners. Eventually, the last owner of the mansion, Dr. Frederic Church, deeded the historic home to the Latah County Historical Society (LCHS) at his death in 1965.
The mansion is now an open house and also serves as the venue for several events put on by the LCHS, like Victorian Valentine’s Day.
The Victorian Valentine’s Day was held last Saturday at the McConnell Mansion and was met with a great turnout.
The event itself is an open house of the mansion with cookies and punch provided. For children, there were Valentine-themed arts and crafts, as well as the opportunity to explore the mansion.
Two volunteer Washington State University graduate students provided live music by playing the mansion’s vintage pianos and a violin.
The LCHS wasn’t the only group involved with the celebration, the Appaloosa Lace Guild was also there doing demonstrations.
“Most lace that we buy today is factory produced, but 100 years ago it would have been produced by hand,” said Dulce Kersing executive director for LCHS.
The Appaloosa Lace Guild strives to preserve the craft of hand making lace and shows up for demonstrations at several of the events put on by the LCHS.
The event isn’t only a celebration of Valentine’s Day, it’s also a great opportunity for the people of Moscow to see what kind of work the LCHS does.
“We hope to ensure the people of the county and the area at large that we are doing good work for them,” curator of MConnell Mansion, Zachary Wnek said.
Jared Jonas can be reached at [email protected]