Elementary students had the opportunity to learn about the Cedar Springs community during their trip to the local museum.

The Cedar Springs Public Museum more than 100 CTA students visit earlier this month. All of our 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade students had the opportunity to learn many things about the history of our country, state and the town of Cedar Springs. We appreciate the opportunity to visit our local museum and give our students the opportunity to learn more about their community.

By Post editor, Judy Reed

What were you doing, in July, 29 years ago, when the Cedar Springs Post was born? Some of the headlines for July 1988 included:

• USSR launches Phobos II for Martian orbit
• Sting performs first rainforest concert
• Florence Joyner runs 100m in 10.49 seconds for world record
• 4 billion tv viewers watch Nelson Mandela’s 70^th birthday tribute
• Michael Dukakis selected as Democratic presidential candidate
• Pedro Delgado wins Tour de France
• Gorbachev pushes plan to elect president and parliament in March
• Cedar board sets millage election to recover earlier budget cuts

Many people that have grown up here (at least those under 30) don’t remember what it was like not to have their own hometown newspaper. The previous newspaper, The Cedar Springs Clipper, served the area well for over 100 years. Once it closed, the area relied on out-of-town newspapers for several years to publish only bits and pieces of Cedar Springs news, much like area newspapers do today. Then on July 28, 1988, Roger and Alice Allen, founders of the Rockford Squire, rented out an office from Sipple TV, on 36 E. Maple Street in Cedar Springs, and started the great little newspaper you still have today—The Cedar Springs Post.

Roger’s daughter, Lois, took over operation of the paper, with her mother Alice, in 1989, and she’s still holding the paper to a strong standard today. The introductory issue of the Post pledged that “the community will once again receive the concentrated attention of its own local newspaper. The newspaper will be dedicated entirely to Cedar Springs and to the Cedar Springs area, and should prove to be the stimulus that the district needs to reach its highest potential.” Those are lofty words, but a promise that we still strive to fulfill today. We try to deliver the news you can use each week. In addition to the regular “hard” news such as accidents and fires, where else will you find what size catfish Johnny caught, who won the spelling bee, what the women’s club did last week, and who was arrested for drunken driving? Nowhere! Because the other papers don’t care but we do. This newspaper is about you and for you. And it will continue to be as long as we’re here.

Many people don’t realize that we wouldn’t know much about the history of our area if weren’t for the local newspapers. The Clipper told us about the early days of our town and the surrounding townships. And we can find most issues on microfiche at the Cedar Springs Historical Museum. That’s 100 years of history! The Post carries on that heritage by having a year’s worth of Post newspapers bound in a book each year. We then give that book to the Museum so that future generations can look back on the history we are living today.

Our readers tell us they love the paper. We continue to print 5,000 copies each week with the bulk delivered to newsstands and businesses, and they are gone within days. We wish we were able to cover even more of your local news and print more copies; but as advertising evolves, our revenues have declined, and so has our budget and our staff. The paper is free to our readers, but printing the paper is not free. We have overhead such as payroll, taxes, equipment, and supplies, along with the cost of just getting the paper printed. The Post is supported 100 percent by local businesses advertising on our pages. We sincerely appreciate those businesses that choose to advertise with us because they know that the newspaper and the information it supplies is important to this community.

Besides our printed paper, you can also visit our website at www.cedarspringspost.com to read some of our news stories, or you can download our e-edition from our website, which is an exact replica of our printed paper, as a pdf. You can also like our facebook page for breaking news and/or updates.

Thank you for letting us into your home each week, and we look forward to our 30^th year of serving you.

Signal Trip, a local band, was one of the performances.

The second annual Founders Day weekend, put on by the Cedar Springs Area Chamber of Commerce last weekend, had a little something for all ages, and helped everyone know just a little bit more about the history of Cedar Springs.

It kicked off with a children’s street fair under tent at Main and Ash Streets Friday from 4-7 p.m., with balloons, carnival games, animals, face painting, story time, a magician, a model train set, and loads of fun. The event was put on by Double K Farms and 4H.

On Saturday, March 29, kids gathered at the library for pioneer storytime and did pioneer crafts; the Cedar Springs Historical Museum was also open for tours. The tent was reopened from 4 to 10 for free concerts by two area bands, and good food and local craft beer and hard cider was available to purchase.

Children enjoyed the petting zoo at the Founder’s Day Celebration

Matthew McQueen shows off his crafts he made at the Library.

Chamber president Shawn Kiphart was pleased with the turnout. “It was double that of last year,” he noted. “But we still have room to grow.”

He said he had positive feedback from the events at the library and museum, and that the children’s street fair would become a permanent addition to the event. “Next year they will have more time to plan for it,” he said.

One thing that added to the comfort level this year was that the tent was enclosed and actually felt heated. “It really made a big difference,” he said.

Kiphart noted that they are always looking for new ideas, and would welcome other community groups to join them in planning for Founders Day next year. “If anyone has an event they would like to do, it doesn’t have to be on Main Street. We would put it under our umbrella and get the advertising out for it,” he said.

You can reach Kiphart at shawnkiphart@csacoc.com or (616) 773-5126.

By Judy Reed

It was a long time coming but worth the wait. The Cedar Springs Historical Museum in Morley Park officially held an open house Saturday to show off the new addition and many artifacts they were never able to show before. What they have is a treasure trove of Cedar Springs history that you won’t find anywhere else.
“We still have a lot to add, and we’ll keep polishing it,” said Museum Director Sharon Jett.
The museum has made many of the exhibits hands-on and included cards about the exhibits that patrons can take with them. One of the more striking exhibits is that of an Indian wigwam, which is still under construction. It features many tools used by the Indians. Another is the exhibit dedicated to the railroad, including a large photo of one of our old railroad depots. Other exhibits in the new addition include a livery stable, millinery and dressmaker shop, a general store, a doctor’s office, lumbering exhibit, and Clipper newspaper exhibit. There are many photos of Main Street from the 1880s. Coming soon to that area will also be a jail cell, with some of the bars from the original jail cell in Cedar Springs.
As you walk in the door of the museum, there is an exhibit dedicated to our firefighters, including an old engine from the late 1800s. Other exhibits in the front portion include a military exhibit, old-fashioned kitchen, living room, and a barn. The boards on the barn floor are 14-inches wide, and made from the tree that was cut down in Morley Park to make room for the new addition.
The genealogy area has grown and includes a desk from the old Rockford railroad station. There are many references for those researching family history.
Historical Society President Fred Gunnell was pleased with the way the open house went. “We had a nice turnout, and the boy scouts did a great job,” he said, referring to the lunches they served.
The museum is usually open on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jett said that they will also be open on Veteran’s Day, November 11, and will have special military books, uniforms, and other paraphernalia out. A Chinook helicopter will be landing here in Cedar Springs for the occasion. Watch the Post for more details!