Dick Perue will make donation during June 26 event at GEM
The Town of Saratoga is represented in the artwork from pioneer artist M.D. Houghton. Two plates with Houghton's work will be donated to the Grand Encampment Museum on Monday.
Local historian Dick Perue has held a life-long goal of preserving local history, one picture at a time.
That goal is now paying off for the Grand Encampment Museum. Monday, the former Saratoga Sun publisher will be donating two rare printing plates. The donation will be made during a program presented by historian and author Mike Amundson as he presents the art and life of pioneer artist M.D. Houghton.
The engravings were used to print the Houghton images of the 1903 Grand Encampment Mining District and the Town of Saratoga. For the past 120 years, the coppertop cuts have survived several owner changes, two World War scrap drives and numerous attempts to chuck them in the trash. Perue has been caretaker of the plates since 1968.
Perue will relate the history of the plates' survival during the presentation at the GEM at 6 p.m. on June 26.
According to Amundsen, while doing research for the book he had discovered more than 200 images. The two engravings possessed by Perue, however, are the only known printing plates still in existence.
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