A piece of Prescott history is coming back to life.
The Prescott Area Historical Society is resurrecting a costume ball that was once one of the city’s biggest annual events. The celebration dates back to the late 1800s and is being brought back this November.
From about 1886 to 1938, Prescott residents had a unique way to celebrate the season.
People dressed in costumes, walked down Main Street and drew crowds of spectators before heading to an evening of live music and entertainment.
Now, the Prescott Area Historical Society is bringing that tradition back as a unique fundraising event. President of the Prescott Historical Society Dallas Eggers stopped in to KDWA to offer more details.
“Well, KDWA, we’ve been listening to it for decades, and they are one of our friends, and we are resurrecting an old
event in Prescott that was the biggest event in the year, from about 1886 to about 1938. It was a costume ball where everybody would get dressed up. They would get dressed up. They would walk down Main Street both ways. All the people would come down, stand on the sidewalks, and hoot and holler and laugh at them. And then they would go for live music and drinks and entertainment for the evening.
So on Nov. 7, from 6 to 9 o’clock, we have live music. We will have costumes. We will have all kinds of things. We will have a silent auction, and all to keep our history center running. Also to resurrect history.”
The revived event is set for Nov. 7 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Prescott Area Historical Society.
And there’s no admission charge.
“It is free; just walk in. We have found out that when we put these events on, we ask for donations, and the public is very generous. They have helped us stay in business. They help us keep the doors open, so our events are always free. But we’ll have a silent auction, and we will ask you to donate. Some people can; some people can’t. We don’t want to exclude anyone.”
Eggers says the Historical Society’s current exhibit highlights Prescott’s steamboat, towboat, and river history,
including Hastings’ role in that story.
He says the costume ball is also about getting people out of their homes and back into the community.
“We sit in our homes in front of our screens of various types. We often don’t see our neighbors. We don’t see our friends. This is a night. Get out, meet some people you don’t know, and invite some friends along and dress up some kind of a goofy costume. Costumes can be any kind, any era. I don’t care if it’s George Jetson or Mark Twain; they all fit.”
The Prescott Area Historical Society’s costume ball is Nov. 7 from 6 to 9 p.m.
Admission is free, with donations and proceeds from a silent auction benefiting the Historical Society.
More information is available on the Prescott Area Historical Society’s Facebook page.