LYON COUNTY MUSEUM

ENTRIES SOUGHT FOR CHRISTMAS TREE WALK
The Lyon County Museum is seeking entries for the 13th Annual Indoor Christmas Tree Walk, which will open on Saturday, Nov. 22 and run through New Year’s Eve. Here is your chance to contribute your creativity and decorate a tree to be viewed by visitors over the holidays. We encourage you to be as creative as you can be, and to share your story with your decorated tree. We have a number of 6-foot-and-over artificial trees available on a first-come basis. Or, you may choose to bring your own artificial tree of any size. This is a great opportunity for businesses and organizations to get the word out about their services.
Visitors will have a chance to vote for their favorite tree or trees. Voters will place money in boxes located at each tree to vote for their favorite(s). There will also be an online option for people to vote. Three organizations/businesses/groups/individuals with the most money in their boxes will win the 2025 tree walk. All proceeds from the boxes will go to benefit the Lyon County Museum’s mission of preserving and presenting Lyon County history.
First-, second- and third-place prizes will be awarded to the top three trees. First prize is $150 in Marshall Chamber Dollars, second prize is $100 in Marshall Chamber Dollars, and third prize is $50 in Marshall Chamber Dollars.
Registration forms are available at the Lyon County Museum or online at www.lyoncomuseum.org. The deadline to register is 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 28. Space is limited. Completed registration forms and a $15 registration fee can be returned by mail, email, or dropped off at the Lyon County Museum.
For more information, contact the Lyon County Museum at 507-537-6580.

GAUL TO PRESENT ON KKK IN SW MINNESOTA IN 1920s ON OCT. 14
Anita Talsma Gaul will present on, “The (Not So) Invisible Empire: The KKK in Southwest Minnesota in the 1920s” at the Lyon County Museum at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
The 1920s was a period of rapid change, causing many Americans to feel a sense of nostalgia and fear – nostalgia for an idealized, simpler past and fear that America was in a state of moral decline. This prompted the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, particularly in the Upper Midwest. Klan activity in Southwest Minnesota began in 1922, peaked in 1924, and virtually disappeared by 1927. Dozens of cross burnings occurred, but there were also Klan rallies, parades, picnics, and meetings.
Gaul is a History Instructor at Minnesota West Community & Technical College in Worthington, MN. She is the author of several local history publications.
The program is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
For more information on any of these activities, contact the Lyon County Museum at 507-537-6580 or director@lyoncomuseum.org.