OSAGE COUNTY — The Osage County Historical Society is celebrating its 40th anniversary by preserving something that cannot be displayed in a museum case: the voices and memories of the people who lived the county’s history.

At a Feb. 23 presentation at the Barefoot Event Center in Linn, the society premiered a video project titled “Osage County Through the Years — A Personal Perspective,” featuring interviews with some of the county’s oldest residents.

The project began when several members of the historical society’s board applied for a grant from the Missouri Humanities Council to record the stories of residents who grew up nearly a century ago.

“Our vision was to have a video of some of our oldest Osage Countians and have them tell us what it was like to grow up nearly one hundred years ago,” said Mary Zeilman during opening remarks at the presentation.

Nine residents age 90 and older agreed to participate in the interviews: Ann Rackers, Dorothy Welch, Robert Branson, Hubert Bescheinen, Clarence Meburer, Rose Balkenbusch, Herbert Meyer, Margaret Kliethermes, and Darlene Schaefer. Meyer, Kliethermes, and Schaefer have since passed away.

The project received $5,375 in grant funding from the Missouri Humanities Council to support the effort.

The interviews were filmed and edited by videographer Chris Kennison, who produces the morning program on KRCG. Kennison compiled the interviews into a two-hour version before editing them into a 50-minute presentation for the event. Copies of the project will be provided to local public and parochial schools for use in classroom instruction. The video will also be available for purchase from the historical society.

The interviews capture vivid memories of daily life in rural Osage County during the early and mid-20th century.

Participants described growing up in large farm families where work began early and every member of the household contributed. Many recalled homes without electricity, indoor plumbing, or telephones. Kerosene lamps provided light, water was drawn from wells or cisterns, and winter meant relying on wood heat and heavy blankets.

For several of the participants, the arrival of electricity was a major milestone that changed daily life on the farm.

Education also looked very different for rural children at the time. Some interviewees attended one-room schoolhouses and walked to school regardless of the weather. Others attended small Catholic schools taught by nuns. In many homes, German was spoken alongside English.

The stories also reflect the hardships families faced and the ways neighbors supported one another during difficult times.

One interviewee recalled a frightening moment shortly after the birth of a sibling at home. The doctor had not properly tied the baby’s umbilical cord before leaving, and the infant began bleeding heavily. The child survived only because the father quickly retied the cord and rushed the baby to the hospital for a transfusion.

Other memories include military service during World War II and the Korean War, early jobs in factories and stores, and the courtships that eventually led to marriage and large families.

Participants also reflected on major national events that shaped their lifetimes, including the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Throughout the interviews, however, several themes appeared repeatedly: family, faith, hard work, and strong community ties.

Many of the participants described growing up in households where resources were limited but neighbors helped one another whenever possible. Instead of organized entertainment or sports leagues, children often spent their free time visiting neighbors and playing together in the countryside.

Organizers said preserving those memories was the central goal of the project.

“This video is a labor of love,” Zeilman said. “An oral history of what growing up and living was like nearly 100 years ago.”

“We did this to preserve our history,” she continued. “I hope it encourages you to think about documenting your own history in some way, either in written form or video.”

Through the voices of the people who lived it, the project preserves a piece of Osage County history that might otherwise have been lost.