title:
Upper Swan Valley Historical Society
creator:
Upper Swan Valley Historical Society
description:
The Upper Swan Valley Historical Society (USVHS), established in 1988, is dedicated to the discovery, collective preservation and interpretation of materials that will help establish and illustrate our local history. The museum opened its doors in 2013. The season is usually the summer weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Traditionally we were open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Our staffing is comprised of one or two volunteer docents during open hours. We try to have at least one of our nine Board members on duty each day we are open. We also provide private tours year round, by request. (swanvalleyhistoricalsociety.org) The museum campus is located between mile markers 41 and 42 on Hwy 83 north of Seeley Lake in Condon. There is a main building which was originally the home office of the Rustics Log Building Company. Over the course of the last 10 years, we have been able to obtain and place, as exhibit buildings, the original Swan River Tavern, the 100-year-old Whalen homestead cabin, a trapper cabin, a Forest Service tack cabin, and the Maki cabin (an original Finlander homestead structure), as well as an exact replica of a one-room schoolhouse. In the Spring of 2020, it became apparent that Covid-19 was creating challenges to the normal business of operating a facility to which the public has access. We sought direction from the Museums Association of Montana and from the Missoula County Health Department, as well as tracked general directives issued by the Federal Center for Disease Control. It was our purpose to operate, if possible, without putting staff or visitors in jeopardy. Because of the uncertainties of the situation, our first determination was that we would delay opening until the July 4th weekend, and then only on Friday and Saturday. By the time we opened, we had protocols and directives which we felt allowed us to open safely. We purchased protective and sanitizing equipment and supplies and wrote a protocol for our staff to follow. (USVHS Covid-19 Response Plan Notebook.pdf). It was difficult to staff the museum because many of our docents are senior citizens and were reluctant to expose themselves. Visitation counts were down, as expected.During the 2021 season, we opened July 4 weekend, available two days each weekend, and closed Labor Day weekend. Visitation was up moderately. We relaxed some of the protocols. For 2022, we have determined that we will open Memorial Day weekend and staff the museum two days each weekend, through the Labor Day weekend. We are further relaxing protocols, such as masking requirements. However, we are fully supplied in the event that it is necessary to reinstitute more restrictive measures.Submitted by Sharon Gressle Member, Board of Directors, USVHS April 27, 2022
publisher:
Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana
contributor:
Sharon Gressle
date Submitted:
2022-04-27
type:
Still Image; Text
identifier:
2022_121
language:
English
rights:
The donor transferred non-exclusive intellectual property rights to Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana.