News Release – Friends of Ladbury Church

30 June 2005 – For Immediate Release

Kathy Elijah, history intern at the Barnes County Historical Museum, Valley City, will present a free public program on “Ethnic Diversity in Barnes County” at the old Ladbury Church, between Dazey and Sibley, 6:30 PM Sunday 10 July. Elijah will discuss her work documenting the history of immigration and ethnicity in the area and invite citizens from the north part of the county especially to share information about their families and communities.

The Barnes County Historical Museum, under the directorship of Wes Anderson, has launched an effort to document the ethnic heritage of the Sheyenne valley, beginning with Barnes County. As an intern Elijah has been charged to research the ethnic heritage of the county in newspaper, census, and other sources. At the Ladbury program she says she is particularly keen to hear from people about “family traditions you may not think are significant, but others do.” People are invited to bring the stories of their families and communities, also documents and artifacts, for showing and telling with their neighbors.

Barnes County has a strong history of ethnic diversity. Ladbury, for instance, was a Congregational church associated with Anglo-American settlers. All around it settled other ethnic groups, particularly Germans and Norwegians, but also numbers from other national backgrounds.

Elijah, who hails from Lisbon but now lives in Fargo, is a student in the public history program at North Dakota State University.

The program is sponsored by the Friends of Ladbury Church. The old Ladbury Church stands 4 miles west, 1 north, and ½ west of the Sibley Crossing of Lake Ashtabula. Those attending programs are welcome to come early and picnic on the church grounds.

The program on ethnic diversity is the second in the Ladbury Lecture Series for summer 2005. The first event was a concert by folksinger Chuck Suchy on 26 June, and additional events are planned for late summer. For further information, or to suggest a program, contact George Amann, 701-733-2119.

Information about program arrangements— George Amann 11611 16^th Street SE Dazey ND 58429-9729 701-733-2119

Information about program content— Kathy Elijah Barnes County Historical Museum Valley City ND 701-845-0966