The museum's 2026 season is winding down.
Visit us Friday-Sunday, 12-5 PM through the end of October

Michigan's Border War presentation
Friday, September 25 at 5 PM

As part of TROTOM's celebration of America 250, local historian/author Aaron Helman, will speak on the early skirmishes Michiganders fought over the state's disputed Southern border. Helman, whose books include The Turtle, the Mitten, and an Epic History of Michigan and An Incomplete History of St. Joseph County, Indiana, will speak about how that mostly bloodless squabble changed the shape of our state and others.
Helman's talk will take place at 5 PM Eastern time at Three Oaks Heritage Hall, 8 E. Linden Street, in Three Oaks.
There is no charge for this program, though contributions to the museum, a 501 (C) (3) nonprofit, will be appreciated. Copies of Aaron Helman's books will be offered for sale at the event.

Taking the measure of Michigan:
The first Federal survey

Imagine surveying completely undeveloped land with relatively primitive equipment, harsh weather conditions, and Native American who were not pleased that European settlers were getting ready to put their tribal lands up for sale.

Professor Emeritus Robert Tatina told an audience at Three Oaks Heritage Hall about the challenges that first Federal survey faced. The museum-sponsored program, part of TROTOM's observance of America 250, drew a sizable and appreciative crowd. Our thanks to Bob Tatina and those who attended.

New electrical and HVAC systems
at our new building at 7 South Elm

The museum is making great strides in restoring the1933 building given us last year! In September, museum volunteers removed the original boiler in the building, and a new, efficient heating and cooling furnace was installed.

This follows the replacement of the original electrical system (complete with cloth-covered wiring, ungrounded outlets, and a five circuit electrical box) was replaced by modern equipment that meets all building and safety codes.

Crews have also removed large banks of fluorescent light installed in the building in the later years of its use as the office for the vast agricultural operations of the Warren family of Three Oaks. We hope to replace them with light fixtures more in keeping with the building's 1930s origins (there is one original Art Deco light fixture in the building's foyer).

A $10,000 grant from the Pokagon Fund helped pay for these necessary upgrades to the electrical systems at 7 South Elm, and we thank TPF for their assistance.

Work continues on the building we hope to open as a satellite campus to the museum next year. Tuckpointing and other repairs to the exterior are scheduled for this fall.

NEW---- support TROTOM
with an online donation!

TROTOM has established a way for you to support our museum through a secure online portal.

Just click HERE or scan the QR code at left, and you'll be directed to the portal, where you can contribute to TROTOM's efforts to renovate the historic building at 7 South Elm Street and turn it into a campus of the museum, focusing on the Featherbone Company and the Warren family that established it.

The museum is a 501 (C) (3) nonprofit entity dedicated to the preservation and presentation of the history of the region of Three Oaks.

Celebrating Michiana Cinema
at the Vickers Theater

An enthusiastic group of movie (and history) lovers was on hand on September 23, 2025 for TROTOM's program about the history of movie theaters in our area. The event took place at Three Oaks' Vickers Theater, and three folks most responsible for preserving the Vickers as an independent and interesting movie theater were on hand--- Jon Vickers, Bill Lindblom, and current owner Zach Hackett.

Lindblom, Vickers, Hackett, and Bogert

TROTOM Vice President Nick Bogert led off with a pictorial history of early area theaters-- the Fairyland and Princess in Three Oaks, the Flynn Theater in Sawyer, and the Lee Theater, the movie mainstay of the area for decades. The Lees were the first to bring "talkies" to the area, and moved the theater to its present site, a former livery stable at 6 North Elm Street.

Jon Vickers then told about his rescue of the then-abandoned theater in 1994. He and wife Jennifer invested thousands of hours restoring and upgrading the structure. Bill Lindblom, whose entertaining pre-screening introductions were a hallmark of Vickers shows for years, spoke of his experiences running the theater with owners Joe and Judy Scully. Finally, Zach Hackett talked about his initial plans to convert the building to another use, and how the Vickers' passionate customers convinced him to maintain the independent movie house treasured by so many locals. Thanks to the movie "impresarios" for helping us tell the story of movies in Michiana!

Dozens of visitors got a look at a unique, 45-year-old car on display outside the museum in Sunday, July 13. Only 250 Clenet I autos were made in Southern California back in 1978, and one of them resides in Three Oaks! The car's "cool factor" was such that Farrah Fawcett, Sylvester Stallone, Julio Iglesias, Rod Stewart, and heavyweoight boxing champ Ken Norton all owned Clénet's.

Ron Zarantenello read about the car as a kid and vowed to own one someday. Today, he keeps the Clénet at this Three Oaks home. Thanks, Ron, for letting us display this stunning piece of automotive history.

Museum visitors check out
"Three Oaks' coolest car"

Museum receives donation of the
Warren Oil & Gas Building

At a "handover ceremony" on the morning of June 12, the museum accepted the donation of the historic building at 7 South Elm Street in Three Oaks, and agreed to turn the building into a display space.

Donor Jim Barkhurst signed the building (built in1932-33) over to the museum on the condition that it would house displays about the Warren family and its many businesses-, which were the economic lifeblood of the area for decades.

Two of those businesses-- E. K. Warren and Son and the Warren Oil & Gas Company-- operated in the building from the 1930s until the 1980s. The building has been unoccupied since then.

The museum has already begun work cataloguing the building's contents (which included the original blueprints for 7 South Elm) and will begin a capital campaign to restore the building, as close as possible, to its original 1930s elegance.

The new display space, which will augment, rather than replace, the existing museum, will be named in memory of Josephine Warren Hoffman (pictured below), the granddaughter of E. K. Warren and the president of the Oil & Gas Company in the 1980s. The museum thanks Jim Barkhurst and appreciates his confidence in our ability to tell the story of the Warrens, a story which has had such a profound effect on the history of our area.

PrancerPalooza provides holiday cheer
and a nostalgic return of movie cast and crew

35 years after the Three Oaks area provided the charming setting for the filming of Prancer, some of the film's stars came back to town on December 14, 2025 for a celebration dubbed PrancerPalooza. Rebecca Harrell, who played Jessica Riggs, the little girl at the heart of the movie, attended, as did Rutanya Alda (Aunt Sarah) and Belinda Bremner (Miss Bedelia).

The film's director, John Hancock (still an area resident) and film editor Dennis O'Connor and other crew members were also on hand. A. J. Workman, who helped control the robotic reindeer used in the movie, came all the way from

Oklahoma, bringing with him some fantastic print illustrations of movie scenes and of Prancer done by his fellow reindeer operator John Brunner during delays that are a part of every filmmaking experience. He gave the first print of the illustration at right to Prancer's producer, Raffaella De Laurentis.

Sam Elliott (John Riggs) had planned to attend but is no longer able to come, due to an unexpected professional commitment. Mark Rolston (Herb Drier) also planned to attend, but had to drop out after a hiking injury that required surgery.

Cast members who have passed away-- Cloris Leachman, Abe Vigoda, and Michael Constantine among them-- were remembered throughout the weekend.

The film itself was shown three times at the Vickers Theatre, each screening followed by a Q-and-A session, with performers and crew members recalling their movie-making experiences in Michiana in 1989.

At 4 PM, cast & crew were hailed in a PrancerPalooza parade that wound down Elm Street Between Maple and Linden. They rode in sleighs decked out in Christmas finery, accompanied by "rein-dogs" (pooches wearing antlers) and even a pony and a couple of llamas!

The parade ended just outside Three Oaks Heritage Hall, where the museum displayed the scale model of Three Oaks village used in the film's final scene, along with a slide show showing more that 100 images of the cast and crew at work on the streets of Three Oaks and other Michiana sites.

PrancerPalooza was a joint effort of the museum, Three Oaks Village, and the village's Downtown Development Authority. The festivities shifted to LaPorte the next day, where cast and crew answered questions at a screening at the city's Civic Center.