by: Robin Turner, Vice President, Museum
LOTS OF HARD WORK & . . .
WOW!!! Have the past few months been busy!
The Historical Society was given two light-based tables (for tracing patterns or maps, or use just as counter space with drawers) by an individual that picked them up during the Getty Museum renovation.
Vice Mayor Alan Corlin found the tables on the internet and sent me the web page. I contacted the owner, Mr. Colin Long, who gave us the tables free of charge! The only problem was that the 8-foot and 16-foot long tables weighed a combined total of about a thousand pounds!
But with great thanks to CCHS member Corlin, Civil Service member Dan Gallagher, John Bertram and Richard Johnson, and with the sharp supervision skills of Council Member and Past CCHS President Steve Rose, we removed the tables from a second story storage facility and into a temporary storage area before our new digs were built. They are now moved into the new facility and we have our first new acquisition for the new digs!
As alluded to in the last sentence, we have moved all of our collections from the Bank of the West building into our new facility at Vets. We are in the process of moving (and checking for wear) the MGM costumes that the City has held for years. We hope to have the new place open for business and for visitors to walk through by the Fiesta La Ballona week.
Mr. Jerry Fulwood (Culver City’s new City Manager) and Mr. Bill LaPointe (Director of Recreation and Parks) did an outstanding job of getting us to where we are now. When you see these two individuals, and the City Council, of course, please thank them for their diligence and foresight in providing us a new home for our archives and collections. I especially want to thank Stan Abrams for his diligent work in the construction side of preparing us for our new digs.
Once we get all the boxes in order and get a computer set up, the Board will be trained in the proper techniques of archival care so we can start cataloging our collection. At that time, probably within the next two months, we will start opening our doors and have our wonderful and enthusiastic volunteers start working on our collections.
I will set out a sign-up sheet at the April General Meeting, so if you have a few hours or a day or two a week to help, please sign up and I will contact you. Our plans are to be open one day during the week and one day during the weekend for the volunteers so that a variety of our members can help during the time that suits them the best.
Thanks to the Board for all your help in making the new place a reality. Now the real fun begins…!