Heritage Homestead Picnic at the White Farm on Saturday

The McIntosh Heritage & Arts Center will host a Heritage Homestead Picnic on Saturday, August 15, 2015 at the home of Gerald and Joyce White in rural Winger. The picnic will take place at their farm at 25599 420th Street SE from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. There will be signs off of County Road 8 to mark the road to the farm.

The picnic will feature tours of the 1884 homestead, tours of the Chapel as well as Sletten Township History from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. 

There will also be a stained glass demonstration by Joyce White during this time. Neil Bursheim will be on hand to perform as well. (Editors note: Due to health concerns, Neil may or may not perform on Saturday, though he is currently scheduled to do so.)

From 3:00 pm to 3:30 pm the White Sisters will perform and Gerald White will give a presentation about the farm and the chapel.

There will be a Silent Auction fundraiser for MHAC, and you must be present to win and pay for your bid. Winning bids will be announced starting at 3:30 pm. Lunch will be served throughout the festivities for a free-will donation.

The White Farm is worth a visit for its rich heritage in our community. The farm is about the 3 R’s: Remembering, Restoring and Recycling. 

Gerald White was born and raised on this farmstead and returned in 1978, where he and Joyce began the journey of building, rebuilding, and restoring their homestead. 

The main house still features the original homestead cabin build in 1884. The house has been remodeled and added to but the cabin portion near has been maintained to near what it looked like in the 1800’s, though adapted somewhat to meet the needs of the family. 

The outbuildings on the farm have been converted and restored into useful buildings including a chicken coop that was converted into a woodworking shop and a granary that has been attached to the Chapel and converted into a small apartment, using reclaimed and recycled finds to add to the charm. The White’s have even restored an old outhouse to working condition.

Some years back when the foundation of Sand Hill Lutheran Church between Winger and Fosston became too unstable. 

The Cemetery Association which owned the church thought to tear it down, but the White’s offered a place to house the contents of the church in honor of the immigrants who settled the community and built the area schools and churches. 

In 2011, the White’s poured a slab foundation and built the walls. The altar furniture, including an altar painting by A. Klagstad, pump organ, and vintage hymnbooks were given to the White’s by the Sand Hill Association. 

The communion set comes from the original Dutch Reformed Church in Bejou. Some of the pieces were donated by the Calvary Lutheran Church of Winter as well. They also used the siding, trim board and doors from the Sand Hill Chapel. 

Joyce made the stained glass windows using gothic style frames from a remodeling project at Dovre Lutheran Church in Winger. There is also a tower bell from an old school house near Thief River Falls.

The White’s purchased five pews from Sand Hill, and opened the Chapel for small group gatherings and memorial worship services in 2013. 

The White Family Farm is a great place to visit and to learn about the history of the area and Saturday is a great day to do so, with a great cause for McIntosh Heritage & Arts Center, who continues to document and preserve our area’s past. 

So, this Saturday, August 15th, bring your lawn chairs and have a picnic lunch and enjoy some great entertainment, history and fun with your neighbors and friends from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at the White Farm.

All proceeds of Saturday’s events will go to the MHAC General Funding and Building Resotration Projects.