National radio host Glenn Beck giving eastern Idahoans a walk through American history with museum exhibit

DAYTON — Conservative radio host Glenn Beck and his crew are in eastern Idaho this weekend as part of a traveling museum exhibit.

“Blueprints of Liberty: The American Journey Experience” has been on tour throughout Utah in the last several weeks. The exhibit, which is a collection of “artifacts … from Christopher Columbus to the Space Race” will be on display at Harold B. Lee Elementary School in Dayton about seven miles west of Preston Friday and Saturday.

The exhibit is worth more than $75 million, and each item is from Beck’s private collection that he’s preserved and curated over the last 20 years. It was hauled in late Wednesday night on two tractor trailers.

RELATED | National radio host Glenn Beck bringing American history museum exhibit to eastern Idaho

EastIdahoNews.com spoke with Beck as he and his crew were setting up the museum Thursday afternoon. He showed us several items from pop culture, including the Batman mask that Christian Bale wore in the Dark Knight trilogy, the Holy Grail and diary from “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” and the Stay Puft Marhsmallow Man from “Ghostbusters.”

4 unusual facts obtained from Beck’s museum exhibit

• William Kemmler was the first person in history to be legally executed using the electric chair. It took place at Auburn Prison in New York on Aug. 6, 1890. The procedure was botched due to an electric feud between Nicola Tesla and Thomas Edison, who orchestrated the method of execution. As a result, what was intended to be a quick, humane death for Kemmler ended up being a prolonged and painful death.

• Eugene Jacque Bullard, pictured above, was the first African-American military pilot to fly in combat. He fought during World War I, according to Paul Viens with the Museum of the American GI in Texas. He was apparently raised by gypsies, and when he became a professional boxer years later, a gypsy dance helped him win the match. Bullard approached the promoter afterwards and said, “All blood runs red,” which became a popular catchphrase.

• The Farsi edition of “Mein Kampf” is the second most-purchased book in the world after the Bible, according to Viens. Farsi is the official language of Iran.

• James Bond creator Ian Fleming based the character of Q on Charles Fraser-Smith, a British intelligence officer during WWII who put bombs inside dead rats. Viens says the man would put them on top of piles of coal in hopes they’d be shoveled into boilers, where the heat would light the fuse and detonate it.

Beck had lots to say about many of the items, but when asked if he has a favorite, there were several that came to mind.

“George Washington’s compass is amazing because it has a rub print from holding it and thinking his whole life,” Beck said. “We have … the cuff of Abraham Lincoln, the Playbill from the night (he was assassinated), the key that opened Box No. 7 — the presidential box at Ford’s Theatre. We have so much from Abraham Lincoln and that’s really special.”

He’s also excited about the section on human eugenics dating back to Nazi Germany in World War II.

“We taught a lot of that stuff to them. We were deeply involved in that, and it’s starting to happen again,” Beck says. “We have documents from Germany that will blow your mind.”

One of the most fascinating historical figures to Beck is Winston Churchill because of his influence all over the world. The western perspective of Churchill paints a positive picture of the former British prime minister, Beck says, but in India, the perspective is drastically different and both are true.

It made Beck realize there is good and bad in every person, and he applies that same principle to American history.

“Are we a good country or a bad country? The answer … is yes. We’re both. We’ve done horrible things and we’ve done amazing, miraculous things. What’s our trajectory?” Beck asks.

One purpose of the museum, according to Beck, is to provide the good and bad of history so that past mistakes will not be repeated and America will continue on an upward trajectory.

‘IN MY PRAYERS, I HEARD CLAY POTS’

The inspiration for starting the museum dates back to 2008. Beck says he was delivering a monologue on his radio show about “our sacred American scriptures — the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.” The phrase “sacred American scriptures” made him think of the clay pots where the dead sea scrolls were once thought to be stored. They were later discovered in caves on the northwestern shores of the Dead Sea, according to the Israel Museum.

Beck says the image of the clay pot came to his mind as he was praying one day, and he interpreted it as a symbol for preserving history.

“My first thing was to get as much of America — we’re the second-largest library now of founding documents outside of the Library of Congress and the National Archives Museum. Then it just spread to preserve as much of our story as possible,” Beck explains.

Beck felt the clay pot represented our children and the idea of “planting the story deep within them.”

“This is the first time we’ve taken any of it (the museum) on the road. What you see here looks like the end of Indiana Jones a little bit,” describing boxes of artifacts in disarray as his crew were getting them ready for display.

‘WE LOVE IT HERE’

Beck, originally from Everett, Washington, has had a part-time residence in the Preston area for about 11 years. He and his wife, Tania, were looking for a place where they “could just be normal,” he says.

Beck’s friend, Chris Stewart — a Congressman for Utah’s Second Congressional District — grew up in the area, and told him about some land that was for sale, which Beck eventually bought because it reminded him of his childhood home. The Stewart family helps him run cattle on the property throughout the year.

“It’s in the middle of nowhere but that’s what we really like, and this community has been so gracious to my family,” says Beck. “So we want to help them build a library and an addition to the school (which the museum exhibit is raising funds for).”

And Beck is planning to loan one of his most cherished pieces, a Rembrandt Peale of George Washington, for long-term placement in the new library as a token of his gratitude. Beck will be at the Colonial Theater in downtown Idaho Falls for a separate event on July 25.

Beck shares these words Thomas Jefferson wrote in a letter on display in the collection that captures Beck’s thoughts about the importance of preserving America’s history.

“‘I see shrilled ringers ahead and a storm coming. I hope that Prudence and a love for reformation and freedom the world over will save us. We are the last great hope and the freedom of the world will be on our heads should we lose,'” Jefferson wrote, according to Beck. “He was right then, he’s right now. We have got to preserve our nation.”

“Blueprints of Liberty: The American Journey Experience” is happening from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The address is 4726 ID Highway 36. Tickets are available at the door.

WATCH OUR INTERVIEW WITH BECK IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.