Events
Rockford through the Pages: A Peek into Vintage Scrapbooks Exhibit
04/10/2010 - 02/12/2011
A Feather in Her Cap
07/29/2010 - 02/12/2011
Behind the Scenes Tours
09/12/2010
Aviator Bessica Medlar Raiche Centennial Celebration
09/16/2010
World War II Days
09/25/2010 - 09/26/2010
Midway Village Mystery Dinners
10/01/2010 - 10/16/2010
Scarecrow Harvest Festival
10/09/2010 - 10/10/2010
All Hallows Eve
10/23/2010
Find Your Place in History



Midway Village Museum is a 137-acre campus conveniently located near I-90 yet comfortably nestled among the trees to give visitors the step-back-in-time experience. 

The museum campus consists of a Victorian village with 26 historical buildings filled with artifacts of the era as well as several beautiful 19th century gardens that depict life in northern Illinois from 1890 to 1910. Interpreters in authentic period dress are available seasonally for guided tours.  The main museum building holds large group meeting rooms and exhibit space with a number of permanent exhibits reflecting Rockford's history and culture that include The Girls of Summer: Rockford Peaches of the AAGPBL, Queen City of the Prairies: Rockford's First 20 Years and The Missing Link: Socks, Monkeys and Rockford's Industrial Past.

Aviator Bessica Medlar Raiche Centennial Celebration
7 p.m. Thursday, September 16
Main Museum Center . Midway Village Museum

On September 16, 1910, Bessica Faith Medlar Raiche made the first accredited solo flight by a woman in the United States. This first woman aviator, which few people have ever heard of, lived in Rockford, Illinois, during her childhood.  Admission for this special museum fundraising event is $20 per personAdvance registration is requiredSpace is limited to 150 people.  Revenue from this centennial celebration will go to support our museum education outreach programs.

To celebrate this centennial achevement, Midway Village Museum will be presenting an original one-woman play written by Jessica MacDonald titled Flying Solo: The Remarkable Bessica Raiche First Woman Aviator of America featuring local actor Lydia Berger as BessicaPrior to the 45 minute play, there will be a special performance of popular music of the 1900 to 1920 era arranged and performed by Julie Marek.  Additional activities relating to the early history of woman aviators are also being planned.

Call Mark Herman, Curator of Education at 815 397-9112, ext. 105, for registration and additional information or email him at mark.herman@midwayvillage.com.

Board Chair Featured in Rockford Woman Magazine
Jan Jones, Midway Village Museum Board of Director, Chair, is featured in the current issue of Rockford Woman Magazine. Follow the link http://tiny.cc/v61qp to read more about Jan and her work to improve District 205. She was at the forefront of change in the late 1960s and worked as the first special education teacher for the Marsh School District which eventually joined District 205. Jan's career has also included consulting other districts and teaching at Rockford College. Thank you, Jan!


Special Hotel Discounts To Midway Village Museum Visitors
1. Visitors to Rockford may stay at a Rock Hospitality Group hotel with a special overnight rate of $89.   Those visitors staying at the Holiday-Inn Express enjoy with the special rate a complete Continental breakfast, a fitness area and swimming pool for the children.  Visit
www.rockhospitality.com or call 815-654-4100 for completed details.

2. A second hotel promotion with Residence Inn by Marriott also offers an $89 room rate for Midway Village Museum visitors. Visit the website for hotel accommodations at
www.marriott.com/rfdil or call 815-227-0013.   All spacious suites have fully equipped kitchens including refrigerator, microwave & stove and separate rooms for living, working, eating and sleeping. A hot breakfast buffet daily, evening Social Hour Monday through Thursday, on-site pool, Jacuzzi and fitness center make our hotel "home away from home" for our business and leisure travelers.  Ask for code MVFC or MVFD.


Exhibits
The Village
Picturesque Midway Village features twenty-four historic structures including a hardware store, general store, print shop, blacksmith shop, one-room schoolhouse, general store, hotel, fire station, police station, hospital, bank,carpenter shop, town hall, law office and a variety of homes.
Queen City of the Prairies
In only 20 years after its founding, Rockford became an important regional center of government, industry and commerce.  Find out how in this new, engaging and interactive exhibit.
The Girls of Summer
During World War II, to keep people interested in baseball while many of the best MLB best players were in the army, the “All-American Girls Professional Baseball League” (or AAGPBL) was created in 1943.  The Rockford Peaches was one of the best teams in the League.  The Girls of Summer  tells the story of the team and the women that played on it.
The Missing Link: Socks, Monkeys and Rockford's Industrial Past
This is Nelson, named after John Nelson, the inventor of the seamless sock machine. The machine was perfected in 1879 and was used to make famous  "Rockford" socks for over 100 years. Learn about Rockford's former knitting industry and the history of the sock monkey doll which is its legacy.