Childhood visitors help preserve history at Pioneer Museum
When the Pioneer Museum of Alabama first opened, its future director was among the visitors, then wearing her girl scout uniform.
That visitor is the museum’s director, Barbara Tatom. She and assistant Jasmine Parris, another childhood visitor, handle everything from tours to storm cleanup as they work to pass local history on to another generation.
Today, a desk from her great-grandfather's store in Banks is part of the collection she helps preserve.
“It’s something that I want to protect and save for future generations,” Tatom said.
Tatom became director in 2018 after about 30 years in consumer food sales with Kraft Foods and General Mills. She took early retirement and cared for her mother before joining the museum.
For Parris, childhood visits with her family were part of her education, with exhibits illustrating lessons about farming and children’s toys.
One early memory is burning her tongue on hot cocoa made over a cabin fire during a Christmas event.
After about two years on staff, she now sees the weeks of preparation behind those events. She checks visitors in, cleans bathrooms and gives tours of the general store and rolling store.
The job has also allowed her to get to know the demonstrators who share traditional crafts during museum events. She said working alongside them has deepened her appreciation for their knowledge and preparation.
“They’re doing it because they love the history,” Parris said.
Tatom said she and Parris are the museum’s only two staff members.
“You met me. You met Jasmine. That’s it,” Tatom said.
In the two days before the interview, they had picked up limbs and cleared leaves after a storm. Tatom said many board members are unable to do physical work because of their age or health, making volunteers especially valuable.
The historic structures require upkeep, too. Tatom said the museum replaced roofs, updated signs and repainted its logging locomotive since she became director. Adding a rolling store also meant raising money for a shed to protect its wooden components.
Tatom said the nonprofit museum seeks grants, memberships and donations to help cover those expenses.
Inside, everyday objects give visitors and way to consider how earlier generations lived.
Tatom points to a doll with a wooden head and no face when talking to children about toys from the past. A quilt backed with fertilizer bag shows how families reused materials, while farm equipment illustrates the labor involved in growing crops.
Parris said the museum also helps preserve traditional skills, including textile work and furniture making. She worries that knowledge will disappear without people to pass it on.
She said the exhibits can also help visitors understand the experiences their grandparents and great-grandparents described.
Tatom hopes more Troy University students will visit, pointing to the museum’s artwork, music displays and local history as subjects that could connect with their interests.
The museum will hold its annual Pioneer Days on Oct. 30 and 31, featuring demonstrations of traditional crafts.
Looking ahead, Tatom said the museum will need a new roof on its bridge in the coming years and continued support through memberships, donations and volunteer work. Students and campus organizations seeking service hours can contact her to research artifacts, maintain the grounds or help with events.
“It’s a treasure that I’m very proud of, and I want it to go on,” Tatom said.
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