Chestnut Square would not exist without volunteers.

When it comes to volunteering, passion is at the heart of our volunteers. Since 1973, when a group of women decided to create the foundation of what is now Chestnut Square Historic Village, volunteerism has been the cornerstone of who we are. The most valuable skills you can bring to any volunteer effort are compassion, dedication, a willingness to learn new skills, and a positive attitude. If you have a specific skill that you would like to share with us, please let us know.

Here at Chestnut Square we foster a neighborly atmosphere which is only enhanced by the many volunteers who give so graciously of their time and talents. Our mission: celebrate community; preserve history; inspire the future is reflected every day in the volunteer work at Chestnut Square.

Adopt A Building

As a volunteer you are assigned to one of our historic buildings to clean, make minor repairs, store and organize supplies and create exhibits! Projects range from assisting or decorating buildings for special events to researching the history of a building and the artifacts within it. This is a great way to help preserve our history!

Adopt a Spot!

Do you like to garden? Would you like to join us weekly or monthly to keep our landscapes and gardens that surround our historic buildings beautiful and appealing? Come join us, bring a friend, adopt your own special section to garden. Help us keep our plants healthy and lovely all year round for all visitors to enjoy. Form teams, start a committee, find sponsors, create tours, post a sign indicating who cares for that area,  or educate visitors on our native plants and their historical significance.

Cataloging Artifacts

We are looking for dedicated volunteers to accession antiques throughout our historic village which dates from 1854 to 1918. If you love exploring and discovering items from the past, accessioning is for you! Curation volunteers assign numbers to artifacts, photograph items to be used for research, and determine the origin of  items. Many volunteers are able to research items from home, allowing greater flexibility for those that are not able to volunteer on site.  For those who are either proficient in data entry or are interested in learning more about how to use our software designed to manage the inventory of our artifacts, a designated laptop is available for volunteers to use.

Docents-Tour Guides

Do you love history? Do you wish to keep it alive? Do you like storytelling? Come join us and tell about the oldest house in McKinney, share the history of Collin County and McKinney through our weekly and scheduled guided tours. Take the trolley through our historic downtown McKinney district and share the stories of old. Perhaps you like to reenact and would like to dress in one of our many period reproduction costumes to represent how people lived in Collin County from 1850-1920. We offer training in all these areas and would be proud to have you on our team.

General Maintenance

Regular maintenance of our grounds include removing branches,  weeding, raking and sweeping. General cleaning of the interior of the buildings usually involves dusting, mopping and sweeping sidewalks. Other maintenance includes repairing doors and taking out trash. There is plenty to do for individuals or groups who are looking to volunteer on a weekly, monthly or yearly basis.  No experience necessary.

General Cleaning

Light cleaning such as emptying trash cans, polishing silver and restocking supplies can be done on a weekly basis.  These opportunities exist within our historic homes, The Bevel House and The Visitor’s Center. This is an opportunity that can work anytime between 9am to 3pm during the week Tuesday through Friday or Saturdays 11am to 1pm.

Photographers

We are looking for photographers who will take digital pictures of many of our special events; including volunteers, guests, special interests and more. Pictures help promote our living history programs, local farmers market, yearly special events and tours, to name a few.   It will also serve as a medium to what is happening at Chestnut Square Historic Village currently. Come capture part of the beauty and the history of your local community.

Servers

Do you like to set up and serve for parties? We have guests that come for teas and tours at Chestnut Square where we serve lunches in one of our historic homes. The teas are held using china and glassware. If you like to serve, work with people, keep food and drinks going and have a personable attitude, come join us. We are looking for volunteers that can be on their feet for a couple of hours, set up, prepare plates, serve food and clean dishes. Some dress code required.

Special Events

We host a number of special events for the community throughout the year. You can learn more about them from our Events page.

Ready to volunteer at Chestnut Square?