Bonus: 1993 Covered Wagon President's Message

This post is part of a series of editorials written by Bert Walsh during his tenure as president and past president of the Shasta Historical Society. Readers are advised that his humor is often irreverent and rarely politically correct. 

Click here for the table of contents for the entire collection of his editorials.

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The purposes of the Shasta Historical Society are to collect and preserve knowledge about the continuing history of Shasta county and, when appropriate, of adjoining areas; To maintain a depository of such historical material to serve as a research library for its members; And to spread the knowledge of local history for the education and enjoyment of the public.

Recently a local businessman had occasion to visit the Society's library. There he was greeted by the sight of five people in a cluttered, 16-foot square room, working elbow to elbow on different tasks in perfect concentration and harmony. He later told me that he was so stunned by this intense atmosphere that it took him several moments to collect his thoughts and state his reason for being there.

No doubt, at first glance, we appear to be a random collection of frenetic, self-absorbed elves all doing our own thing. But after watching for a while it becomes evident that it this more like quilting bee: we see a group of highly-motivated, able people, each working on one part of the design, and all contributing their ideas on what the final product should be.

Since the Society was established in 1930, we have stuck pretty close to the basic pattern in our mission statement. However, we have had to add and rearrange pieces as we evolved from a social group to a real community resource. Now as we stand back and look, we can see areas that need to be filled in. Access to our collection needs to be more user-friendly. Our programs could be improved. We should be more involved in our community. And the good news is that we have resources available to work on these areas.

What have we done since June, 1992 when the last Covered Wagon was issued?

• We obtained a grant to publish a book of photos from our collection in fall, 1993 (it's now in preparation);
• We funded a small college scholarship in memory of Miss Veronica Satorius;
• We added a third computer to our library to simplify access to our collection;
• In partnership with Trinitarianus Chapter, E Clampus Vitis, we sponsored an interpretive sign at the new Tower House bridge in the National Park Service Whiskeytown Recreational Area; and
• In early 1993, we hired our first employee, Wayne Rich, to work in our library at the Redding museum and hopefully add some continuity to our volunteer operation.

It is hard to predict what other opportunities will have shown up by the time you read this (it's being written in January because of press deadlines). The projects above didn't happen by themselves just because the Board of Directors approved them - worthwhile things get done only when capable people do them.

So if you subscribe to our mission statement, this is your invitation to phone, write or visit us at the museum. It's always nice to see a new face (or an old one) and to hear new ideas.

- Bert T. Walsh
President