Senior News November, 2001 Vol. 20. No.  11

 

Published by the Humboldt Senior Resource Center in Eureka, California. HSRC is a non-profit community-based organization offering services for senior citizens, multi-generational families and caregivers.

Greeting cards, sewing-Eighty years of art keeps revealing new forms

InfoVan: Information moves out into county

Emergency preparedness is a high priority

Del Norte Historical Society celebrates 50

World Senior Games

Electronic Highway- E-mail netiquette

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Del Norte Historical Society celebrates 50
by Sharon McKinney

Fifty years ago, a group came together to form the Del Norte County Historical Society. Their purpose was to discover, collect, display and preserve data and relics about the county.

The first members scoured homes and businesses for diaries, account books, letters and legal documents. They collected biographical data, business names and locations, lists of members of churches and fraternal organizations. They looked for anything that would give clues as to the events, manners, customs and habits of the early citizens-old photographs, scrapbooks, maps and directories.

Originally housed in the McNulty House, the society moved into its present location in the early 1960s. The building was the former Hall of Records and County Jail. Both facilities moved into new buildings and left the Historical Society with the big job of renewing the site for its current uses.

One of the society's outstanding achievements is the Bolen Annex, an addition built especially to house the lens from Point St. George Lighthouse.

They also have a donation of Tolowa and Yurok baskets, a complete selection of the local Indian craft of basketry for daily living.

Another attraction is above the entrance doors. It is a series of stained glass windows created from photographs of historical events in the county.

There is a collection of miniature trains showing all the various types of trains that ran in the county for industrial and travel purposes.

The museum also houses an extensive research library. Three volunteers work on Wednesdays year round to assist in research projects for a wide number of users. The 25 volunteers do all the cleaning, upkeep, research, maintenance and displaying at the museum and on the revolving displays at the county courthouse. They host the school groups and visitors who want to know more about Del Norte County history.

Goals include finding ways to add space for more displays and collections. Some possible choices may be to add a history room to the library and to create satellite locations. During the winter months, the museum is open only for research. Later in the year, they will be looking for new volunteers and the many visitors who come to see this 50-year-old dream come true.

Sharon McKinney lives in Crescent City. Her e-mail is sjmck@earthlink.net.