Conestoga Area Historical Society Museum curator Ken Hoak puts the "art" in artifact.

Hoak has been tasked with arranging the displays and exhibits since the museum was founded in 1990.

A former art teacher and department chair at Solanco High School and adjunct professor at Millersville University and Elizabethtown College, Hoak brings unique experiences to the position.

"It takes someone who can take objects and figure out how they can be displayed to the best advantage," he said.

It also requires a great deal of dedication. "Since I retired (in 1993), it has taken up almost all of my time," said Hoak, who is 90 years old.

Hoak's ancestors came over from Germany in 1737. "My family is from a minor branch of the Hohenzollern royal family of Germany. That may imply that I have Germanic royal blood," he joked.

A lifelong resident of Conestoga Township, Hoak has donated items to the museum that he has collected from the four generations of his family that have lived in the area. "It was natural for (the Conestoga Area Historical Society Museum) to be the repository of it," he said, adding that when he sees artifacts, "it brings back nostalgia and a rush of memories, because I can associate these items with my lifetime."

Hoak earned an art degree at what was then known as Kutztown College and a master's degree from Columbia University, but he noted that he has always had an interest in history.

He wants museum visitors to have that same sense of appreciation for the past. "I hope that when someone comes here, they will gain an understanding of the choices people made and how people lived their lives here," said Hoak, who is president emeritus of the Conestoga Area Historical Society. The museum, 51 Kendig Road, Conestoga, will be open every Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. through Sunday, Dec. 14.

Hoak calls the Conestoga Area Historical Society's exhibits an ethnological museum. Merriam-Webster defines ethnology as "a branch of cultural anthropology dealing chiefly with the comparative and analytical study of cultures."

"I hope the younger people will become aware of the culture and the history that is involved here," said Hoak. "Every location has its own history, and sometimes the history of the area is unique to it. Our area, the Penn Manor region, is a unique area because its population ranged from illiterate people to highly educated people, thanks in part to what is now Millersville University. Very few districts or areas can claim that as a fact."

Hoak said he was most proud of the direction the visual part of the historical society has gone, in addition to the variety of artifacts. "No other area is displaying what we have," he said. "If you want to see a particular thing, you have to come here."

He bases those opinions on his adventures. "I have knowledge from having visited many museums, not only in the United States but around the world when I took a sabbatical from teaching and traveled the globe for three months in 1968," he said. "I know what I see and what I like. And the way things are arranged here is a result of my education and experience."

Hoak remains active with other community institutions. He is on the board of council of St. Paul's Lutheran Church and a member of the exclusive Echo Valley Art Group and the Louise Arnold Tanger Arboretum. Hoak previously served on the board of the Wolf Museum of Music & Art.

"I have a deep history in what these groups stand for, and it gives me an opportunity to bring my thoughts to reality," he said.

Hoak is also known for his welded metal sculptures and is listed as a metal artist in the Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Conestoga Area Historical Society vice president Jim Kauffman said the museum wanted someone with an art background to design the displays, and Hoak has been a fixture ever since. "We kind of think it's his (museum)," said Kauffman. "He treats it like it's a family."

Kauffman noted that the curator frequently spends his own money to help ensure the exhibits meet his standard. "He's done a great job," said Kauffman.