SPRING GROUNDS REVELATIONS TOUR 2025

Photograph (c.1890-1910) sent by John Pape to his half-brother, Johann Heinrich Dittmer, in Germany of the Pagoda, Assembly Hall, Bottling Works and Education Building. (Image courtesy of Patrick Schlesselmann of Selsingen, Lower Saxony, Germany)

The Sweet Springs Historical Society is planning a major fundraiser event to benefit their local museum. The society will host "Spring Grounds Revelations Tour" on Saturday, June 7, 2025.  The event will showcase history through photographs, story boards and various memorabilia detailing sites, and attractions of very early Brownsville and Sweet Springs historical development. Topic covered by the exhibits will include Sweet Springs Hotel and cottages; the bottling works; Marmaduke Military Academy; and, establishment of the fairgrounds, city park and the Gusher.

This event will be a self-guided tour that will lead attendees to the approximate locations and provide detailed descriptive information for each building, cottage, attraction; thereby, allowing a person to visualize each location, event, and building in this historically significant area.  The time period for these exhibits will center around the mid 1860's to early 1950's.  The "Spring Grounds Revelations Tour" will be centered near the area of the city park (located on Columbia Street).

The event will begin at 10:00 AM and close at 3:00 PM. Brenda Hinck, Sweet Springs Historical Society President, will be presenting “Buildings on the Spring Grounds” at 11 AM and “History of Marmaduke Military Academy” at 1 PM.

In the event of inclement weather, the event will be held in the Immanuel Lutheran Church basement, located at 110 Main Street.

Ticket prices are $10.  Children under 12 are free.  Copies of the new book, “Spring Grounds Revelations” can be purchased the day of the event, at The Market or The Cheese Store. Proceeds will benefit the Sweet Springs Historical Society Museum. Sweet Springs Historical Society wishes to thank the Buckner Foundation for providing major funding in 2024 for this event.