(La Porte County, IN) - The popular Pioneer Land at the La Porte County Fairgrounds has a new leader.  Darla Quinn has moved up from treasurer to president of Pioneer Land as a result of a majority vote last month by more than 60 members of the 1840’s style village.

 

Quinn, a La Porte County native and volunteer at Pioneer Land for the last 22 years, is the third new person to hold that position since the 2022 death of Pioneer Land founder and long-time president Dick Reel.

 

“I want to resolve all of the conflicts that we’ve been having and just be able to move forward with Dick Reel’s ideas,” she said.

 

Pioneer Land member, Mark Parkman, said the friction was simply over “differences of opinion” on how things should be done.  Parkman emphasized all of the Pioneer Land members are on the same page, though, in their desire for what some people consider a magical place to continue flourishing.

 

“They’re doing it for the right reasons.  With Darla Quinn being elected, we’ll just have to see what happens.  I think she’ll do fine,” Parkman said.

 

With more than a dozen buildings like a blacksmith shop, general store, one room schoolhouse and log cabin, Pioneer Land is a huge attraction during the fair and during other times when it opens during the year.  The village, which doesn’t charge admission, often draws a few thousand people in early December when it opens as a weekend kick-off to the Christmas season.  Pioneer Land also opens for school tours.

 

Quinn said she will carry on with Reel’s vision, which included using Pioneer Land to provide children a glimpse of life as it was back in the day and a wholesome source of entertainment while roaming the grounds.

 

During their visits, children have free access to wooden stilts and old fashioned games such as washer toss they can play with their families.

 

“It’s a learning device.  He would do anything for kids and youth and we’re there to preserve that and maintain that for the future years,” Quinn said.

 

When the village is in operation, more than 100 volunteers dress like Pioneers perform an assortment of jobs like wood working, crafting tools and other products from steel, manning a camp fire, cooking and tending to a vegetable garden.  Their labor of love is often returned by people whose yearly visits to Pioneer Land are now a tradition passed on to their children and other family members or friends.

 

“We have people that show up year after year after year and have taken it to heart.  They’ve loved it their whole lives and I want to continue that,” Quinn said.

 

Pioneer Land began with construction of the log cabin in 1995.  The cost of building all of the structures was paid for with donations and money raised from the annual ham and bean dinner and auction during the fair. 

 

Funds from the dinner and auction now utilized strictly for building maintenance. Many of the items offered during the auction such as quilts, knives and rugs are made by the Pioneer Land volunteers.

 

This year’s La Porte County Fair is scheduled July 6-13.  The ham and bean dinner at the log cabin is scheduled for July 7th from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.  The meal is served with cornbread, homemade pie and a drink.  Quinn said chicken and noodles will be served for people who prefer that over ham and beans.  Each serving costs $10. 

 

Quinn said more than 700 meals were served last year. 

 

Quinn replaces Merle Miller, who served as president after Dana Conboy resigned, who was Reel’s handpicked successor.