Holding History in Our Hands: A Morning with the Batavia Depot Museum

There is something truly magical about watching a child hold a real piece of history in their hands. This month, we had the most wonderful morning at Vanguard Gifted Academy when Kate Garrett, the Director of the Batavia Depot Museum, stopped by our classroom to bring the 19th century to life for our kids.

When Kate arrived with her treasure trove of artifacts, the energy in the room completely shifted. Instead of just reading about history, our students were suddenly touching it. I loved watching their faces light up as they inspected genuine arrowheads and heavy stone tools from the 1800s. Kate brought along some incredible photo reproductions of early Batavia streetscapes and windmills, and it was so fun to see the kids piecing together what our town looked like before cars and modern buildings took over.

Kate is a fantastic storyteller, and she easily drew the kids into conversations about what life was like back then, even touching on Batavia's role during the Civil War. She has a real gift for making these big historical milestones feel deeply personal and relevant to the students.

But I think my favorite part of the entire morning was the realization that history isn't just something that happened far away—it happened right in our own backyard. We learned that Christopher C. Payne, one of the very first settlers of Batavia and Kane County, built his cabin in 1833 just steps from where our school stands today! To bring it all full circle, we took the kids outside to gather around the official Batavia Historical Society marker honoring the cabin site.

It’s one thing to teach children about pioneers; it’s an entirely different experience to have them stand on the exact same ground.

Experiences like this remind me why we prioritize hands-on, community-connected learning. A huge, heartfelt thank you to Kate Garrett and the Batavia Depot Museum for spending the morning with us and giving our students a memory they won't soon forget!