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September 2006
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Buffalo NewsFriday, September 22, 2006 Historic house tapped for disability museum Amherst’s historic 1834 Mennonite Meeting House will become a “museum of disability history” under an agreement between People Inc. and the Town of Amherst. The agreement, approved this week by Town Board members, grants People Inc. a 10-year lease on the building and grounds at Main Street and North Forest Road. Terms of the lease also call for People Inc. to pay an annual rent of $15,000 and to renovate the meeting hall to display exhibits. The museum “tells the story of the lives, triumphs and struggles of people with disabilities,” said Kevin Horrigan, director of public affairs for People Inc. Among the exhibits, Horrigan said, are former therapies that included placing mentally ill patients in spinning chairs and dousing them with water, both of which were thought to be effective. The museum – described as the first of its kind – is made up of artifacts and small exhibits collected over the past decade by Dr. James Boles, president of People Inc. It is now located at 1291 North Forest. Terms of the lease call for People Inc. to pay for renovating the former St. Mary of the Angels garage for the storage of records and pay $10,000 to move town records and renovate the Meeting House, and pay for other repairs costing up to repair and renovate the Meeting House, and pay for other repairs costing up to $5,000. e-mail: tdolan@buffnews.com |
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