Museums in Western Contra Costa County
Local museums can provide additional information on that curious totem while providing an entertaining and educational time for everyone in the family. And the mysteries you solve may just be your own.
The Richmond Museum is currently running an exhibit entitled, “This Is Your Life,” marking Richmond’s 100 years as a city. “It’s intended to be hitting the higlights of Richmond’s past,” explains Don Bastin, the Museum’s director. “There’s a general overview, from 1900 to the present, and we are able to show things normally not on view,” he adds.
More notably, the exhibit shows what has stayed the same. “Richmond has always been a diverse town – always,” Bastin says, highlighting one of the exhibit’s key themes.
The exhibit has proven very popular, and many attendees feel a sense of connection after they view the displays. “Many people had families who came here during World War II. They never really talked to their family members. But it’s that spark, that realization that, ‘I have a history, and my family has a history, and it’s related to the history of Richmond.'”
That personal touch is also evident at the Crockett Museum and Historical Society, at the intersection of Loring and Rolph Streets, in the former Southern Pacific station.
While curator Keith Olsen cites many reasons why visitors come and find the museum such a wonderful place to visit, most of the reasons have a strong personal connection behind them.
“People come along and say, ‘We want to see the fish,’ but . . .” he trails off, alluding to the other exhibits that soon take the place of the world-record sturgeon which hangs on the museum’s walls.
“It’s an eclectic collection,” Olsen explains. “There’s a lot of C & H memorabilia, because it’s always been a sugar refinery town.”
But long before many visitors were employed, they went to high school. And looking at old photos of themselves and their classmates is another draw to the museum. “People also come in because we have high school photos going back 70 years or more,” Olsen explains.
As Bastin notes, ” When history becomes personal, it becomes interesting.”
For more information on these and other local museums:
*The Richmond Museum of History is at 400 Nevin Avenue. Hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Closed Holidays. For more information, phone (510) 235-7387.
*The Point Richmond History Association Museum is located at
139 1/2 Washington Avenue. Call 510-235-1336 for hours and additional information.
*Crockett Museum is at the intersection of Rolph and Loring Streets, and is open Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Call 787-2178 for additional information.
*Both Alvarado Adobe and The Blume House are located at 13831 San Pablo Avenue, and are run by the San Pablo Historical Society. While the Alvarado Adobe is a replica of the home of the first native-born California governor, Juan Bautista Alvarado. The Blume House is a home dating from the early 1900s. Both are open every Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. For more information, call (510) 215-3204.
