Staff Reports
A new way to look at Jefferson’s history is in the works thanks to a contract the Jefferson Historical Society and Museum signed with Musework of Austin last week.
The new arrangement is intended to tell the story of Jefferson’s history in a colorful narrative called “Rising Fortunes” and will focus on the first floor displays.
“We have worked with this design firm for a number of years to come to the decisions and raise enough money that we feel confident in ‘breaking ground’ on the new design,” board president John Taylor said last month in the Museum’s newsletter. “We have great confidence in this design firm and have enjoyed working with them so far. We expect to see completion of this job in the summer of 2024. In the meantime, all our visitors are enjoying the elevator which was installed several years ago. It is truly a joy to see people who could not make it up the two flights of steps, just hop on the elevator and be at our beautiful Gallery of Art which has found a second use as a venue for our Quarterly Lectures and for our most recent and wildly popular presentation on Victorian funeral customs called ‘Sitting up with the Dead.’”
Taylor said the Museum has a hard-working and creative Board and a greats staff.
“Thank you so much for your continued support, enthusiasm and generosity in donating that has brought us to this happy place in our care and love for the Museum,” he said.
The newsletter was the first in a series of occasional publications to inform members and potential members of museum events and news.
“We hope to keep you informed as we begin what should be an exciting year,” Taylor said.
The annual meeting of the museum was held in the second-floor gallery.
Taylor gave a report of the financial condition of the museum which he said continues to be excellent.
An attendance report and a summary of some of the accomplishments of 2022 were noted.
While there were many, some of the significant ones included:
-The continuation of the free quarterly lecture series.
-Completed renovation and ADA upgrades for the first-floor restrooms.
-A record number of new and renewed memberships.
-The continuation of the popular Civil War Symposium for the 12th year.
-The receipt of significant grants for our first-floor renovation project titled ‘Rising Fortunes.’
The only board member whose term was expiring was Weldon Nash. He accepted re-nomination and was elected by unanimous vote.
“We have hired a grant-writing firm, Source-Funding LLC, to help with both the writing of grants and to plan a Capital Campaign to help fund both our operations as well as our renovations,” Taylor said.
At the February meeting, the election of officers was held as stated in our By-Laws.
Those officers were John Taylor, President; Pam Watts, Vice-President; Julianne Fischer, Secretary; and Christi Gaither, Treasurer. Past president Paul Morehead continues to serve on the Executive Board.
The R. D. Moses Model Train Layout continues to impress visitors in our replica building of an early 20th Century Train Depot.
The museum is open daily for tours, research and information on early Jefferson.