Rob Rutke (left), a direct descendant of the Durant family who built and lived in what is now the Durant-Peterson House Museum, with Debra Corwin (right), Director of the Durant-Peterson House and Sholes School Museums.
Primary sources—original documents created by people from the past—are among the most coveted by historians. Primary sources, such as the diaries of Abba and Emma Durant, usually improve storytelling accuracy and help museum visitors connect to the people of the past. Primary sources make a history museum much more relatable.
A few months ago, Rob Rutke, a direct descendant of Bryant and Jerusha Durant, who raised their six children in what is now the Durant-Peterson House Museum, visited the museum and brought with him a few items to donate. Rob brought five books from the Durant Family Document Series by Alexander G. Rose III, the individual who, in 1978, worked closely with Lorraine Miller and Norma Shearer (charter members of Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley) on getting the family diaries printed. We were delighted to find a handwritten note, penned by Alexander G. Rose III, and various letters from Durant family members that were tucked inside the manuscripts! Even the simplest of primary sources can yield enormous historical information.
As Rob toured the museum for the first time in many years, we could not help being a bit starstruck by a direct descendant wandering the rooms of his ancestral home. The Durants from nearly 200 years ago were, in some respect, alive with the presence of one of their descendants in their home.
We are grateful to Rob for donating the manuscripts from the Durant Family Document Series and the handwritten letters within the books. They add another piece to the story we share with guests at the Durant-Peterson House Museum.
To understand his relationship, this partial family tree for Rob Rutke will help:
Jerusha - Bryant Durant
built and lived in the Durant-Peterson House Museum
(great-great grandparents)
|
Julia (Durant) Johnston – John Johnston
(great grandparents)
|
Julia “Jessie” (Johnston) Draper – Walter Draper
(grandparents)
|
Julia (Draper) Rutke – Robert Rutke
(parents)
|
Rob Rutke
(self)
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