“Passport to the Past" is a program that was first introduced during the 2005 Covered Bridge Festival.  The idea of "Passport to the Past" was formed when Carol Liechty, Nancy Trask, Brenda Hollingsworth and Debbie Zacharias had a casual conversation about the different activities going on for kids during the festival.  We needed a way to organize them into one activity that kids and their parents could easily follow and be aware of the different things going on.  "Passport to the Past" was born when the festival theme was "Hollywood in the Heartland" honoring the 10th anniversary of the filming of "Bridges of Madison County".  It was in cooperation between the Winterset Public Library, the Winterset Schools, the Chamber of Commerce and the Madison County Historical Society.  The highlight in 2005 was the Eulenspiegel Puppet Theater performances and workshops.  Performances were held at the Winterset Middle School and workshops held at the Winterset Public Library.  

The Madison County Historical Society hosted the HISTORY COMES TO LIFE tent on the square which was a physical presence on the square for the museum to promote activities being held at the complex.  This was also the "Passport to the Past" headquarters where kids could pick up their passport.  Activities in the tent were storytellers, a puppet theater for kids to perform at and a bean bag toss game.  The Art Center was also on our passport with Art activities for kids.  This was a great experience working with other organizations to promote cultural arts and children's activities in the community.

The 2006 theme for Covered Bridge Festival was "Planting Traditions" honoring agriculture in Madison County.  This was an eventful planning time due to the interest of other organizations that have shown interest in being involved with "Passport to the Past" activities.  We had 8 activities for kids to participate in around the square and at the museum all related to agriculture in Madison County.  

The original thought of HISTORY COMES TO LIFE was to get people out to the complex to enjoy what we have to offer.  The Chamber offered us tent space on the square to have a presence where the crowd was.  It was located on the courthouse lawn - west side.  
 

The activity has grown into a larger undertaking each year and it needed to have an organization to operate under.  The Madison County Historical Society became the official sponsor in 2006 and will spearhead it each year.