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Thursday, June 21, 2007

Learn about your community’s history
   
Join the Clark County Historical Museum as history comes alive again with the second annual Clark County Historical Museum Walking Tours Program. In addition to the downtown tours that feature the Esther Short Neighborhood, the Hough Neighborhood, and in and around lower Main Street, this year’s tours also include two new tours that look at the buildings of famed Vancouver architect Day Hilborn and the Arnada Park neighborhood. Tours run June 2 – September 15, 2007. Pre-registration is encouraged; tours are limited to 15 people per tour. Saturday tours are $10/person; CCHS members $5. Thursday tours are $5/person; CCHS members $2. Comfortable walking shoes are advised.
   
During the 2007 season the bi-weekly Saturday tours began on June 2, 2007 at 10 am and run from 1.5 to 2 hours in length. The weekly Thursday lunch time tours began on June 7, 2007 at 12:10 PM returning to the museum by 12:50 PM. All tours originate from the museum. Tours are open to the public. The weekly Thursday tour is designed to cater to the working person who wants to get some exercise during the noon lunch hour. All tours are a great way to learn about Vancouver’s downtown landscape.
   
During the new bi-weekly Saturday Day Hilborn tours participants will tour inside and outside of the Clark County Courthouse and will learn what was excavated from the site of the Fort Motel. Participants who choose to take the Arnada Park neighborhood tour will learn the architectural details of the differing building styles from the early 1900’s to the 1950’s. The tour also focuses on some interesting bloopers that were imprinted into the neighborhood sidewalks.

ABOUT CLARK COUNTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM
   
The Clark County Historical Museum located in Vancouver’s 1909 Carnegie Library, 1511 Main St. Vancouver, WA 98660. Regular museum hours are: Tuesday – Saturday 11-4 PM. Admission rates apply. The museum is also open first Thursday evenings from 5-9 PM for Museum After Hours. A wheelchair accessible entrance to the museum is located on the east side of the museum building accessed from 16th street.

OFFICERS ROW HISTORIC WALKS
   
In conjunction with the Vancouver National Historic Reserve Trust, The Vancouver Heritage Ambassadors will be conducting Historic Walks along Officers Row in the Vancouver National Historic Reserve every Friday beginning June 1st and ending on August 31st. The Heritage Ambassadors are local re-enactors who will be dressed in period clothing and will take you on a walk of Officers Row, enlightening guests with stories of the Row and the history of the Historic Reserve.
   
The tour guide will be at the O.O. Howard House every Friday, with tours leaving the house at 6:30 pm and taking approximately one hour to complete. The cost is $10 per adult; children 11-16 are $5; and children 10 and younger are free of charge. No reservations are required. Please arrive a few minutes early. Cash and Checks are accepted. Groups of over 10 should call 360-992-1800 for reservations. The O.O. Howard House is located at the traffic circle on Ft. Vancouver Way & Evergreen Blvd. in the Vancouver National Historic Reserve. For more information, please call 360-992-1800.

ABOUT THE VANCOUVER NATIONAL HISTORIC RESERVE:
   
The partners of the Reserve teach visitors about the fur trade, early military life, natural history, and pioneers in aviation, all within the context of Vancouver’s role in regional and national development. The Vancouver National Historic Reserve is made up of many diverse sites which include the Fort Vancouver Visitors Center, Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, Vancouver Barracks, Pearson Air Museum and Officers Row, including the Grant House, the Marshall House and the O.O. Howard House, which provides office space for the Vancouver National Historic Reserve Trust.
   
Also considered part of the Reserve is the Water Resources Education Center, Waterfront Park, Kaiser Shipyard Tower Overlook, Old Apple Tree Park, a portion of Discovery Trail and the newest coming attraction, the Land Bridge which is part of the Confluence Project.
   
The Vancouver National Historic Reserve was formed in 1996 as a result of efforts from the One Place Across Time Campaign Cabinet (now known as the Vancouver National Historic Reserve Trust) in partnership with the City of Vancouver, the National Park Service, the State of Washington and the US Army. The establishment of the approximately 366 acres of publicly owned historic properties represents a place where cultures clashed and adapted, trade flourished, aviation evolved, industry prospered, military leaders were made, and a nation grew up.