Colonel Davenport Historical Foundation
Volunteer
- Tour Guide
- Gift Shop Assistant
- Event Assistance
- House Maintenance Projects
- Cataloging Collections
For general information, please contact the house at 309-786-7336 or coloneldavenport1883@hotmail.com
Tour Guide
Guides are the voices that speak where walls cannot. Through the passionate, enlightening, and entertaining tours, guests are whisked away to the days of fur trading, horse transportation, the cast iron stove, and the handwritten letter. What better way to learn from the past than to become a part of it? You will receive a prepared script and train with a current guide until comfortable giving tours on your own. Contact Bill Hampes at 309-792-1769 or riverrunner@mchsi.com
Gift Shop Assistant
We call our gift shop the Sutlery in honor of George Davenport's role as sutler in the U.S. Army. And gift shop volunteers are called sutlers. Sutlers generally sign up to work 1 or 2 afternoons per month and are in charge of the gift shop that day while a volunteer guide gives tours of the house and grounds. A sutler greets guests as they come for tours and handles ringing up admissions and gift shop purchases. You will receive training and you can shadow other gift shop volunteers. Contact Ginny Bauersfeld at 309-236-0741 or gbauer15@aol.com
Event Assistance
The Colonel Davenport House holds several annual events. Volunteers are needed at these events to assist with set up, taking admissions, answering general questions, and tear down. Contact Jessica Waaytenick at 309-737-4280 or jessica.waytenick@gmail.com
House Maintenance Projects
The Colonel Davenport House is an old house. And with any old house, it needs constant maintenance and upkeep. Not all projects need a contractor and construction crew. Sometimes it might be some sanding or painting or filter replacement or storm window cleaning. If you are handy and like old houses, please contact Jolene Keeney, victorianhouse29@yahoo.com
Cataloging Collections
The Colonel Davenport House has been going through a major project of electronically cataloging all of the items in the house and the collection. If you like research and computer work, this is right up your alley. Contact Chet Doyle at 309-234-5921 or ckdoyle2@frontier.com
Internship Opportunities
College students majoring in history or a related field who are interested in obtaining museum experience are welcome to contact the Colonel Davenport House. The number of volunteer internships per semester will depend upon project availability. To contact us to volunteer or for an internship, email coloneldavenport1833@hotmail.com
