Chemung County Historical Society in Elmira has several very interesting exhibits up just now.

*What took us there last week was an EMBROIDERY EXHIBIT, “When Needle, Thread, and Fabric Meet”… all contemporary work, not historical pieces.

*These are dozens of creations from members of the Chemung Valley Chapter, Embroiderers Guild of America. Some works LOOK like historic pieces… many serious needleworkers are very interested in antique designs and techniques, and “samplers” – some of them copies of historic pieces – give them a chance to dig in with multiple approaches in one composition.

*But other works are clearly modern pieces, sometimes with caution thrown to the wind.

*In one picture piece, butterflies stand out three-dimensionally from the fabric. In several others, every square millimeter of the surface is stitched. In others, the design stands alone, stark and self-confident in a sea of fabric.

*Cross-stitch, stumpwork, needlepoint, and bargello are among the techniques on exhibit. If you don’t like butterflies, you might like tigers. Anything goes.

*Another special exhibit was on CARTOONS BY EUGENE ZIMMERMAN (“Zim”), a Swiss immigrant who lived in Horseheads, and was nationally enjoyed for decades on either side of the turn of the century.

*This was especially interesting to me, as I’m a cartooning fan who worked hard at documenting Zim’s books in the Grand Comics Database (www.comics.org). This exhibit includes a review of Zim’s life and career; samples of his work; print blocks of his cartoons, with demonstrations on how they were used; his drawing board and other tools.

*Particularly moving was the original, the very cartoon he had already sketched out in pencil, and was inking literally on the day he died, mocking Depression-era radio radicals Huey Long, Hugh Johnson, and Father Coughlin. It was the last work ever from his hand, after a long and well-loved career.

*Believe it or not, time was when the N.A.A.C.P. was considered a radical, even subversive organization. This made the exhibit on the CENTENNIAL OF ELMIRA’S N.A.A.C.P. CHAPTER all the more interesting. The national organization was barely a decade old when local residents asked for help with “fair housing” issues – owners refusing to sell or rent to African Americans.

*After that issue was addressed the chapter went into abeyance until revived during the Great Depression and World War II, when there were numerous employment issues to be dealt with. Elmira chapter members also engaged in historic national actions, such as Freedom Rides and the several Marches on Washington. And the work continues as the struggle continues.

*Another exhibit focuses on the CENTENNIAL OF ELMIRA’S KIWANIS CLUB, which for many years was in the top ten worldwide for membership. Kiwanis have supported local parks, and athletics, and the Arctic League, and much, much more.

*The Museum has an ongoing program of focused exhibits on Chemung County municipalities in turn. Just now the spotlight’s on BALDWIN, the rural town east of Elmira.

*In the Brick Barn Gallery is a large exhibit, GETTING AROUND: TRANSPORTATION IN CHEMUNG COUNTY. I found this to be a great deal of fun. I enjoyed seeing trolley paraphernalia, including a horrifying safety booklet, “The Little Girl Who Didn’t Think.” More entertaining were the annual early-1900s bicycle tags, receipts for which supported sidepaths… dedicated bike tracks that ran alongside the execrable highways.

*Canals, early autos (with all their marvelous retail accessories), and horse-drawn vehicles… including a sparkling phaeton with the fringe on top… all come into the story, along with buses, the Chemung County Airport (now Elmira-Corning Regional) and Schweizer sailplanes.

*Of course the permanent galleries, A HISTORY OF CHEMUNG COUNTY and MARK TWAIN’S ELMIRA, are always open, and always a pleasure. The Zim, embroidery, Kiwanias, and N.A.A.C.P. exhibits are through September, so if you want to see them you need to hop to it. Baldwin is up until January, and “Getting Around” until May. The museum’s open Monday through Saturday, 10 to 5. Adult admission is $5, with seniors, students, children and members either discounted or free, depending on category. We don’t even live in Chemung, but we usually go at least once a year. Really, it’s worth the visit.