BCHS- The Barnes County Historical Society Lecture Series Season 24 Presents – Tim Burchill: The Chautauqua Movement in North Dakota. 7:30 PM Thursday, June 19 at the Barnes County Museum. (315 Central Ave N. Valley City, ND)

Chautauqua started in upstate New York as an outdoor approach to training Sunday school teachers. It blossomed into an educational program which swept the nation, and brought lectures, drama and dance productions, big-name speakers (e.g. William Jennings Bryan), and progressive ideas to people, mainly in rural areas, who otherwise would not have a chance to experience them. Chautauqua was particularly strong in North Dakota and in Barnes County from the 1890s up until about World War I. His talk will focus on the two-week Chautauqua gatherings held in Valley City in 1913 and 1914.

Tim Burchill was born in Valley City in 1961 and raised on a farm in the northeast corner of Barnes County near Pillsbury. His parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents all farmed in Barnes County, so his roots run deep in the area. Tim attended school in Pillsbury and Page, graduating from Page High School in 1978. He attended Valley City State College, and graduated from Concordia College in 1982, with a degree in hospital administration. In the fall of that year, he began a 39-year career in health care administration at Kenmare, North Dakota, ending with a 14-year stint as administrator of Ave Maria Village in Jamestown. Tim retired in 2021. Since he was a child, his lifelong passion has been the study of North Dakota history. He has a collection of several thousand books, maps, and other materials pertaining to our state.

He is married to Christine, and has two sons, two stepchildren, and two grandchildren. Tim’s dad, Nyle Burchill, was once chair of the Barnes County Historical Society and passed away in June 2024. His mother, Arlene, is now a resident of Bridgeview Estates in Valley City. Tim plays the piano, organ, and accordion, participates in music ministry at two churches, is a longtime active member of Kiwanis, and serves on the local hospital board. He and Christine also operate a small non-profit farming project in Liberia, West Africa. (This is his second presentation for us!)

Proceeding this presentation is the annual meeting for the Barnes County Historical Society. Organization reports and the election of new board members. ALL Members are encouraged to attend. Need not be a member to attend, just not for voting.

The public is cordially invited

All Lectures are at the Barnes County Historical Society Museum and held in conjunction with Valley City State University. They are free and open to the public. For more information contact Wes Anderson at 701-845-0966