Happenings at Clark County Historical Museum

Walking tours
CCHM’s walking tour program offers one-hour walks through the Downtown Vancouver area every Friday through August 31, 2013. Both single-tour tickets ($5 and $7) and season passes for seven tours ($30 and $44) are available this year at CCHS member and non-member rates. Reservations are highly recommended but drop-ins are welcome so long as they bring a check or exact change to the tour starting point. Drop by or call the museum at 360/993-5679 for reservations and more information or visit CCHM Walking Tours. This year’s walking tours are sponsored in part by the Clark County Historic Preservation Commission.
Exhibits
Labor: A Working History. Clock in at the Museum to learn about Clark County’s work and workers in this brand new exhibit by tracing their history against a backdrop of regional and national labor movement milestones through words, images, and artifacts.
The exhibit begins in the 1820’s with laborers for the Hudson’s Bay Company. As industry began to grow later in the 1800’s in Vancouver through large companies like the Star Brewery and service industry jobs increased as a result, workers banded together to protect their wages and rights. Continuing through the twentieth century, the exhibit highlights the effects of the world wars on workers’ unions and the internal struggles between organized labor groups such as the AFL and the CIO. Since the 1980’s and the rise of automation and inflation, labor unions have lost much of the power they once held, and the exhibit notes the plight of present-day workers along with the potential for a future without the protections of strong labor unions. This exhibit runs through December 31, 2014.
Vet Ink: Military-Inspired Tattoos features the images and stories—in their own words—of eleven Clark County veterans whose military service spans seven decades and includes the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. Kate Singh, of Aevum Images in downtown Vancouver, photographed our veterans, then Museum staff interviewed them to capture both their tattoos and the stories behind them. The exhibit includes traditional interpretive panels plus compelling video of the veterans’ tattoos, military photographs, and voices. The exhibit runs until September 28, 2013.
HATS! features women’s and men’s hats from the Museum’s collection. Included in the exhibit is a hat donated to Soroptimist International of Vancouver by Mamie Eisenhower that was used as a fundraiser for the Grant House Museum. Also on display are a bonnet that came west on the Oregon Trail and a top hat worn by one of Clarke County’s first state legislators as well as General Anderson’s dress hat. Exhibit runs through December 2013.
Upcoming Events

September 5 (Thursday at 7p.m.) – First Thursday Museum after Hours presents Dr. Daniel M. Ogden discussing the development of public power policy over the past century in his talk, How We Got the Big Dams and the Grid.
September 8 (Sunday 4-8 p.m.) –Class Cooking and Burnt Bridge Cellars present a Salmon Coulibiac Cooking Class as a fundraiser open to members of the Clark County Historical Society. Reservations, limited to 12 people, are $75, of which $50 goes directly to the Museum. Not yet a member?
September 28 (Saturday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.) – Harvest Fun Day 2013. Let us know if you are interested in volunteering for a morning or afternoon shift at this year’s event celebrating Clark County’s agricultural heritage. It will again be held at the 78th Street Heritage Farm.
October 5) (Saturday 9 a.m. -5 p.m.) – Pat Courtney Gold returns to teach Traditional Z-twine Basket Weaving. Prerequisite is some twining experience. Cost for this all-day class is $95 for CCHS members, $105 for non-members, non-refundable, and includes fiber supplies. The class is limited to 8 students and pre-registration is mandatory; at this time 2 slots are still available.