Completed!
Our Idaho Day 2024 was delayed by weather, but we observed it on May 6th.
Our Theme this year was "A History of Transportation in our State."
An outline of out transportation history was presented.
Student Contest awards were featured prominently in our program.
It was held at Taylorview Middle School in Idaho Falls
Our Fall Presentation was given on September 20, 2023.
Our Theme this year was "The Navy's History in Idaho"
There was a an interesting history of our Navy in Idaho
By retired Navy Captain Robert Skinner, Plus an honoring veterans, info on other military
history, entertainments, and artifacts.
Idaho Day 2023 was celebrated on Thursday March 2, 2023.
Our Theme this year was "We Love Idaho and all of
Her Gems." There was a great short film showing many of her unique and
beautiful "gems", including her mountains, rivers, lakes, wilderness, towns,
and all the special things that make up Idaho.
There was entertainment by the 4th grade students from Dora Erickson and
Westside elementary choirs, Bonneville High Dance Team, and
Chief Tahgee Academy Dance Team. Jenny and Bruce Stanger provided
prelude music.
Student Contest submissions were on display for viewing in the
Carr Gallery.
Winners of the Student Contests were
announced and honored during the Program.
Downtown Idaho Falls in the 40's and 50's.
A fun and interesting event was presented by the BCHA in cooperation
with the Museum of Idaho. A slide show and narrations described the
evolution of the Idaho Falls "DownTown" into a center for entertainment.
music, and dancing during the 1940's and 1950's. Photos comparing the
lights and activities back then to the quieter state we have today showed
how much things have changed. Dancers from the
Thunder Ridge High School presented a live demonstration of the
dance forms of the 1950's, which concluded the evening.
Announcing the Naval Reactors Facility Oral History Project
Colorado State University's Center for Environmental
Management of Military Lands (CEMML) and the
Public Lands History Center (PLHC)
are honored to be supporting Fluor Marine Propulsion and Naval Reactors,
Idaho Branch Office to collect and curate oral histories as part of the
Naval Reactors Facility Oral History Project. The project is supporting
ongoing efforts to preserve the history of three prototype reactors at the
Naval Reactors Facility in Idaho: the S1W, A1W, and S5G. These prototypes
were the land-based precursors to the reactors deployed for use in the
USS Nautilus, USS Enterprise, and USS Narwhal. The project is inviting
those who worked or trained on one or more of the prototypes at the
Naval Reactors Facility (NRF) to share their stories and personal experience
during an in-person oral history event to be held in Idaho Falls,
ID on July 18-20, 2022.
To learn more about the oral history project and how to participate
in the event, please visit the
Naval Reactors Facility Oral History Project webpage.
The Keefers, a one-hour documentary from Eagle Rock Films that was shown
on April 20th at The Colonial Theater in Idaho Falls.
Read and description and view the trailer here
Student Contest winners and Home Town Heroes Achievement Awards
awarded at a special meeting.
Our Student Contests have been concluded and judged.
At our event student contest winners and achievement winners received their awards.
Home Town Heroes Achievement Awards were presented to
four recipients at this meeting as well.
Our March 4th Idaho Day for 2022 is not being scheduled
due to the continuing risk of Covid-19
On a better note, our Student Contests are proceeding!
Teachers, students, and parents can download them (a Zip file with 23 Word documents)
here.
Our March 4th Idaho Day for 2021 has been Cancelled
due to the continuing risk of Covid-19
The theme was "A Tribute to the 75th Anniversary of World War II"
On a better note, our Student Contests have proceeded!
Eight schools participated, and 138 entries were received and scored.
At least one person from each school won one of the 14 First Place awards of $100.
Schools participating were: Alturas Academy, American Heritage Charter School,
Fox Hollow, Iona, Longfellow, Taylorview Middle School, Sunnyside, and Westside.
We congratulate the First Place winners and all the participants for honoring Idaho Day
by their efforts in learning, capturing, and presenting knowledge of our great State.
Idaho Day 2020 is come and gone -
On March 4th, 2020, we celebrated Idaho Day.
Our youth were invited to join in the study of our history and heritage
by participating in our student contests. Winners were announced and prizes awarded
at the event. This year again, top winners received cash prizes.
Remember, Idaho Day is celebrated each year on the 4th of March.
Our Fall Presentation was a big hit!
At the Museum of Idaho on Monday, October 9th we had a fascinating presentation by David Leroy.
In period dress and in first person, he spoke as William Wallace, the first territorial governor
of Idaho. He told of his friendship with Lincoln since the 1840s and recounted how
Lincoln, by word and deed was a friend to everyone in Idaho Territory.
A display of Lincoln and Idaho memorabilia set the tone before the presentation,
and added greatly to the store of knowledge gained by attendees.
Idaho Day 2019 is history -
On March 4th, 2019, we presented
"Downtown Memories" of Idaho Falls
[Click here to see Flyer!]
as an example of the 2019 Idaho Day State theme: "My Town, Idaho".
Downtown Idaho Falls was chosen as "Our Town" because it has, for decades, been
the place for many people in smaller towns "to go to town" for shopping and entertainment.
The growth, decline, and revival of Idaho Falls downtown district were reviewed in stories and pictures.
Watch the 20-minute video we presented that night:
"Downtown Memories"
Are You Feeling Social?
by Jessica Donnelly
If you're like most people these days, you're probably confused by all the social media options out there! Who can keep track?
And do we really need to know what our friends and family ate for breakfast? The answer might surprise you when you consider
they are a fun and social way to preserve memories.
Social media is a powerful tool because of the ease it keeps us in touch with our family, friends, and colleagues. Distance
becomes less of a problem when your loved ones are a click away! Social media is also interesting for another, less obvious
reason. It also is a way to preserve our own personal histories. Part of the fun is looking back and preserving all those
precious moments we may have otherwise forgotten. It is a photo of a happy summer day or a particularly good book you enjoyed.
It's even that special dish we successfully cooked and were proud about. It's our daily lives that we share with social media
and those are our stories. You can look back and enjoy these snapshots of your life because they are the moments big and small.
If you are new to social media, there are many options to choose from. Facebook allows you to have a profile and post updates
and photos to friends and families. It also allows you to follow pages of businesses and organizations you are interested in.
(Be sure to check out BCHA on Facebook if you decide to join us!) Instagram, a photosharing social media platform, allows you
to keep a record of all your moments in visual form. It's these new digital technologies that we often think are perhaps
frivolous, but can be powerful in preserving our own life stories.
Bonneville County Heritage Association's mission is to preserve our heritage and collect memories of the lovely place we call home.
As digital technologies continue to become a part of daily life, we are so excited to embrace new methods of historical preservation.
As we, and our members, work to preserve the important legacy of Bonneville County, we also look forward to sharing those precious
moments and personal histories of our community.
Be sure to visit us on Facebook for events,
Idaho trivia, and share your own personal Bonneville treasures!
If there is any BCHA website content you wish to see added or changed, contact Dave Nipper (the webmaster) or any member of the Board.
Idaho Day 2024
We presented this year's celebration on May 6th.
See the article on the left!
"The Navy's History in Idaho" was our September 20th Fall Event
See the item on the left!
BCHA Board Meetings
will be scheduled and announced via email.