Saturday will be the final chance for a while to see exhibits at the Clark County Historical Museum — and some of its treasures will go away for the foreseeable future.
A remodeling project that starts Monday will shut down the museum for at least two months; it will reopen some time in December, Executive Director Katie Anderson said.
The work will start with removal of current exhibits. They include the “Making Beauty” display of Indian beadwork. That exhibit will go back on display after the remodeling project.
“It will be here through the end of 2017,” Anderson said.
The “Woven History” display of Northwest Indian basketry also will be coming down, but it is not scheduled to return when the museum reopens. After a 12-year exhibit run, it is headed for storage, Anderson said.
Vancouver artist Hilarie Couture’s “Founding Mothers” collection of portraits of 47 notable Clark County women will move to the Slocum House; it will go on display on Oct. 7 as part of the First Friday art event.
The city of Vancouver, which owns the museum, is having 60-year-old floor tile on the main and lower floors removed. Upstairs, the original wood flooring will be refinished. The downstairs will be resurfaced with vinyl tile.
After work on the upstairs floors is finished, the wallpaper in the lobby will be removed to make way for a future mural project. Finally, the lobby and the northwest and southwest galleries will be painted.
This work will be the first of three phases in the project over the course of about two years, depending on funding. The second phase will include installing air conditioning. In the third phase, the front steps will be replaced.
While the museum is closed, its Haunted Walking Tours will continue as scheduled, starting at the Slocum House. Patrons will have limited and conditional access to the research library upon request. The First Thursday programs will go on hiatus until February.
Museum officials had expected the closure to start during the summer, but the scope of work was expanded, requiring a new timetable.
