Letter: Manlius Historical Society pays tribute to Robert Andersen

Manlius Historical Society wishes to pay tribute to Robert (Bob) Andersen for his great leadership and accomplishments while serving as its president for 12 years from 2012-2023.

Bob passed away Wednesday, June 28, at CGH Medical Center in Sterling after a short illness.

Bob became a member of the Manlius Historical Society following in the footsteps of his parents Paul and Ona Andersen in 2008.

There are not enough words to express our thanks to Bob for his many years of service, leadership and the countless number of hours that he volunteered. He helped with the restoration of the historic First State Bank and Museum of Manlius and spent countless hours of time doing whatever it took to keep the doors open; a big task.

He spent hours researching grants, the history of Manlius and nearby towns and volunteering when we were open, at fundraisers, the annual Manlius Days and more.

He was able to get most of our albums about the history of Manlius and our 75 Manlius High School Annuals digitized at minimum cost.

Through his leadership and the many donations from the Manlius Alumni and others, we were able to get the exterior of the building, which was badly deteriorated, refurbished about three years ago.

Bob was the king of all of our fundraisers always selling more than his share of tickets. Thank you to everyone who always were very supportive for the cause. He was always willing to volunteer any time that was needed. He will be greatly missed.

He was very proud of the Manlius Historical Society, the First State Bank of Manlius and Museum which is on the National Register of Historical Places, because of the architect Parker Nobel Berry who graduated from Princeton High School.

Deborah Glafka Cushman will replace Bob as president, Barb Bolin is secretary and treasurer and Hilary Carlson was elected vice president. Keith Bolin and Mark Glafka are trustees.

We are in need of a trustee. Anyone interested in joining and becoming a trustee can contact Deb Cushman at 815-716-0956 or Barb Bolin at 815-878-3975. We always welcome new members.

Come visit our museum which is full of pictures and binders filled with the history of Manlius, most all of the Manlius High School senior group pictures are from 1921-1996. There are 35 canvas prints depicting early days of Manlius and a lot of other items from the surrounding area.

Our latest display is a veterans area with several uniforms from Army, Navy, Air Force and more. We are open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April through October.

Thank you to everyone who recently donated to the Manlius Historical Society in Bob’s memory and for your continued support of this very unique historical building that is full of a lot of history that dates back to late 1890s of Manlius and nearby towns. It is located on Maple Avenue in Manlius.

For appointments of questions, call Barb Bolin at 815-878-3975, Lois Swanson at 815-915-3993, Barb Cushman at 815-716-0956 or Pat Glafka at 815-713-5318.

Pat Glafka

Manlius Historical Society