Museums have come a long way from dark and dusty displays of cabinets filled with curiosities, the best objects locked away in storage to keep them safe and away from the public. Today, museums embrace educational, interactive exhibits which provide interpretation for artifacts and promote a sense of shared history.

One new trend is a pop-up museum, which creates a temporary exhibit curated by whoever chooses to show up. Many people collect things, whether as a formal hobby or for nostalgic reasons. A pop-up museum allows everyone a chance to display their items in a venue with people who have similar interests.

On Thursday, Sept. 13, the Niles History Center and the Niles District Library will host their first pop-up museum event. The theme for the evening will be “School Days.” Anyone who has class pictures, yearbooks, awards, sports items, or anything related to elementary, high school, or college, is invited to participate.

The History Center and Library will display artifacts and images from its collections which have not been on exhibit before, as well as new donations. One recently received collection features Niles High School sports memorabilia, including belongings of legendary coach Ed Weede and a photo of the 1927 Niles Cardinals football team, before they were known as the Vikings.

Attendees to the pop-up museum learn about area school history, dating back to the 1822 Baptist Carey Mission. Founded on Niles’ west side, Carey Mission taught reading and writing to Native Americans and also “practical education” in farming, blacksmithing and sewing. After Carey Mission, Titus B. Willard is believed to be the area’s first schoolmaster. Willard held classes in a log house in 1830, reportedly near the 200 block of Main Street. In 1833, the first official school house was erected. Other buildings were added as more people settled in the region and recognized the value of education for their children.

With a growing population, the need arose for better school facilities along with more professional teachers. Small, one-room schools consolidated and funds were appropriated to build a new, large Victorian-style building and to pay a competitive wage for teachers. The Union School opened in 1856 and drew students from as far away as St. Joseph and Elkhart. In 1912, another building, which became known as Central School, was built adjacent to the Union School.

Another interesting school in Niles was the Ferry Street School, which was built in 1867 for “colored” children. By 1870, schools in Niles were integrated and the Ferry Street building closed. It reopened just a few years later, no longer a “colored school,” when the school system grew more crowded. A west wing was added in 1903 and students continued to attend until 1975. Recognizing its historical significance, a citizen group restored the original, eastern half of the building as an 1870s one-room school house. A designated Michigan State Historic Site, the building still stands today at Ferry and 6th streets. It serves as the home of the Ferry Street Resource Center.

Besides teaching history, exhibits bring people together. Whether a Niles Viking, a Brandywine Bobcat, or a Fighting Irish alum, the pop-up museum will also offer a chance to reminisce and share stories. Attendees are encouraged to wear their school colors as they meet old friends or even stir up past rivalries. 

The Pop Up Museum: School Days will be hosted from 4 to 7 p.m. on Sept. 13 in the Library Rotunda. The event is free and open to the public. All ages are welcome to attend. Children who attend will enjoy looking through early school readers and completing old-fashioned lessons on reading, writing and ‘rithmetic. If you wish to display items, please contact the Niles History Center at (269) 845-4054 to reserve a space.

Christina H. Arseneau is the director at the Niles History Center. She can be reached at HCdirector@nilesmi.org