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New Depot exhibit showcases 90 years of MWCD

| June 1, 2023

DENNISON (WJER) (June 1, 2023) – Ninety years of flood reduction and recreational history for the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District is now on display for the public’s viewing.

That’s the theme of a new exhibit filling a train car at the Dennison Railroad Depot Museum, a mother-son collaboration between Museum Director Wendy Zucal and MWCD Engagement and Outreach Coordinator Ethan Zucal.

Wendy Zucal says it is a natural fit.

“We have a lot of shared history with MWCD starting in the 1913 floods, how it traumatically affected the railroad,” she said.

Ethan Zucal says the MWCD had to take the railroads into account during its infancy while establishing the region’s dams and reservoirs.

“If you go back in time, when the lakes were being created, when the dams were being put in place, there were a lot of works that had to be done and the railroad was at its heyday,” he said.

He says the display features a timeline with pictures of the MWCD’s existence along with numerous cases with different mementos throughout the decades. For example, there’s equipment that was used when the district was mapping out its man-made lakes.

“You’ll see some items in the exhibit that take you back to the 1950s,” he said. “We also have our surveying artifacts within the exhibit.”

Wendy Zucal says the museum always has something featured in its railroad wing.

“It’s fun to get away from your traditional railroad exhibit, or World War II exhibit, and do something like the MWCD exhibit,” she said.

The Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District’s 90th anniversary exhibit is set to remain on display at the Dennison Depot Railroad Museum for at least the next year.

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