he St. Ives Historical Society was formed to promote an interest in the lifestyles, arts, and crafts of past eras, and an awareness of how our history and culture shape the people we are today. It is our aim to make history come alive, to make it personal rather than a mere recitation of dates and famous personages.

We will keep even our most scholarly presentations lively and entertaining, and have a solid backbone of historical fact in even our lightest entertainments. We will create programs to appeal both to serious students and the general public, in the hope that we may awaken in the latter the desire to become students themselves.

We will act as a resource for teachers, scholars, and historical re-enactors, helping them with details from our library and our experiences. We will invite people who have skills and learning to teach our members, in order that our members may teach others. We will work within the educational system, bringing our music, dance, crafts, and lectures to schools at all grade levels. We will reach people through theatrical presentations, educational lectures, participation in crafts, and whatever else may awaken an interest in discovering ways of life and living, philosophies, arts, and diversions of other eras.

Finally, we will strive to understand, and to impart to others, the workings of other societies, their strivings, their arts, and literature, in the expectation that these things viewed in context will help us comprehend different facets of our own humanity.