The city of Riverside has begun expressing its patriotism as people gathered at the historical Riverside Heritage House Museum to celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States.
City locals gathered at the museum’s “Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Social” event on May 16, to listen to live vintage Swing music, make 1890s-inspired crafts and eat complimentary ice cream.
The Thrifty ice cream brand provided the treats for the event, bringing 40 tubs of ice cream, and they were already down to just 10 tubs by 2:45 p.m. The traffic jam caused by the lines was helped by the Riverside County Fire Department, which sent firefighters to hand out popular flavors such as chocolate and vanilla.
“I’ve been a part of the museum for two decades,” said Teresa Woodard, the Education Manager of the museum. “It’s fun to see it grow and it’s how we give back to the community,”
The house lawn was surrounded by white tents from local organizations such as ‘Blue Matters,’ which used the event to promote their campaigns. The organization brought along games like bean bag toss and served their own all-natural mango-flavored soft serve.
The museum itself provided Victorian-style games, letting attendees make their own thaumatropes of a Victorian house and play Jacks.
The Riverside Transit Agency also made an appearance with a time-period red trolley that was fully operational and open for guests to take pictures and sit inside.
Despite being set in the summer, the weather remained gloomy and cold with wind sweeping past guests and adding to the chill of their ice cream. Locals seemed unaffected as they tasted all the frozen flavors and walked animatedly to upbeat renditions of “God Bless America.”
The hosts’ celebration of America helped bring promotional activity to the museum. People lined up for a free tour of the house and got a side of history with their ice cream.
Walking around, museum employees could also be seen dressed in Victorian attire, long dresses and lace umbrellas for the ladies and heavy, fitted suits with top hats for the men.
One employee stood out, as he was dressed as George Washington. He posed for photos and served as a guide for attendees to try all the different activities. Each activity went along with some part of the city’s history.
Amy and Patrick Dodd, two locals, said this was their second time at the event and praised it for its vintage themes.
“We come here from Corona, love the music and love the ice cream,” Dodd said.
Alongside the guests were Jean, 88, and Harry, 86. Living in Riverside their whole lives, this was their first time at the house and ice cream social.
“It is very fun, we even ran into some friends and people that we know who said it was their first time here too!” Jean shared.
Surprisingly, the Riverside City College history and art programs seemed to be a recurring theme among guests and workers.
“I actually take history classes at RCC,” Jean said, explaining that the event helped her learn about the city in a fun and new way.
Carla Rey is another RCC alumnus, serving as a volunteer who manned the gift shop table near the big swing band. She said it is her passion and her degree in history that help her sell and bring items to show others.
“You need a degree to be a museum curator, that’s what I wanted to do at least. Life happens. I had two daughters and did not have time for school, but I went back and graduated seven years ago.”
Her passion helped sell and catch the attention of curious onlookers. She had selected vintage postcard prints from different Riverside cities in the county, along with old scarves and hats that matched the time period.
When asked why she voluntarily devotes so much time and thought to her gift shop stand, Rey revealed her retired status and why she is so invested in learning about her background.
“You have to know where you came from to know where you’re going,” Rey said.
