WILLITS, 10/24/23 — A new exhibit opens at the Mendocino County Museum in Willits on October 28, featuring the historical perspectives of pioneer women. The exhibit, “Her side of the story: Tales of California Pioneer Women,” is a traveling one, but the show will also include objects and stories from local women, including selections from the collections of the Kelly House, the Grace Hudson Museum and Sun House, the Anderson Valley Historical Society, and the Mendocino County Museum collection.
The show’s opening reception will take place on Sunday November 12, from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. and include a forum of local historians and curators. The exhibit will be showing at the museum from October 28 through December 23, 203; the Mendocino County Museum is located at 400 E. Commercial Street in Willits.
Here’s the announcement from the museum:
HER SIDE OF THE STORY
Touring Exhibit Highlighting California Pioneer Women Opens at Mendocino County Museum October 28
Illuminating the hardships, joys, and lives of female pioneers in California, Her Side of the Story: Tales of California Pioneer Women will show at the Mendocino County Museum from October 28, to December 23, 2023. The traveling exhibit features 30 first-person accounts collected from women who traveled by land or sea to settle throughout California prior to January 1, 1854.
In 1900 during the preparations for California’s Golden Jubilee, a simple newspaper letter asked why “no provision had been made for the pioneer mothers” and was the catalyst for the creation of The Association of Pioneer Women of California. Eight hundred handwritten stories of women who ventured to California were collected, adding a new layer to the history books. Yet, even with this feat, thousands more voices and stories were lost to time. In conjunction with online resources, Her Side of the Story delves into both the saved and lost stories of pioneer women.
The exhibit will be enhanced with the addition of women’s stories from across Mendocino County with special contributions from the Kelly House, the Grace Hudson Museum and Sun House, the Anderson Valley Historical Society, and the Mendocino County Museum collection.
A special program and reception will be held on Sunday November 12, from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. This program will include readings from Mendocino County archives and a guest panel of curators and historians from partnering organizations.
For more information, please visit www.mendocinocounty.org/museum or contact the Mendocino County Museum at [email protected] or 707-234-6365.
Exhibition Support
Her Side of the Story: Tales of California Pioneer Women was developed by the Society of California Pioneers and travels through Exhibit Envoy.
About Exhibit Envoy
Exhibit Envoy provides traveling exhibitions and professional services to museums throughout California. For more information, visit www.exhibitenvoy.org.
