Brown Bag Lunch Talk: "Arcadia Chamber of Commerce: 75 Years Shaping and Promoting Arcadia"

Speakers Kevin Zimmerman (President of the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce) and Beth Costanza (Executive Director of the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce)


Speaker Carol Libby (Historical Society Board Member)

Summertime Celebration

Families participated in activities celebrating life during the 1950s. One of these activities included making their own Mr. Potato Head the old-fashioned way, using real potatoes!

Brown Bag Lunch Talk: "The Cultural Landscape of Rancho Santa Anita" by Mitchell Bishop

Mitchell Bishop, Historic Curator of the Los Angeles County Arboretum

"Arcadia Through The Ages", Annual Arcadia High School Honor History Exhibit

Oliver Beckwith, AHS honors history teacher giving speech to his students and guests who were interviewed.

Alan Chow, IT for the City of Arcadia

Arcadia Juried Photography Contest and Exhibition

From left to right: John Zhuang Ting Fang (Judge), Lloyd K. Fujiwara (Judge), Carolyn Garner-Reagan (Director of Library and Museum Services), Iris Chen (Young Adult Volunteer & Co-Curator), Dana Dunn (Curator)

Brown Bag Lunch Talk: "Arcadia Life in the 1920s", by Roberta Ramsell

Kathy Kredel Nursery School

Hopping Into Spring Festival

"Honorable Mention: Mayors of Arcadia" exhibit

"History Lives Here" exhibit

Brown Bag Lunch Talk: "Arcadia Street Names and Their Origins", by Carol Libby (4/16/2009)

Brown Bag Lunch Talk: "Building a Sense of Community in a Changing Community", by Gary Kovacic (3/19/2009)

Inventor for a Day Family Fun Day (2/21/2009)

Night at the Musuem (2/20/2009)

The Museum collaborated with the Community Center's "Kid's Night Out" program. Approximately 70 children had the opportunity to visit the Museum and participate in a scavenger hunt.

The Artwork of Walter McNall Exhibit

Get Your Kicks on Route 66 Exhibit

Showing through March 28, 2009!

Tongva Exhbit Opening

Tongva: Our Voice, Our History, Our People

Emerged in cultural history and remarkable ceremonial traditions, the Tongva Tribe gave the Museum and the visitors an insight on the history of the Tongva Tribe, following a stellar performance. There were even tables set up full of things you could purchase—from handmade Dream Catchers to handmade Tongva instruments. Those in attendance heard wonderful stories that filled our hearts with warmth. The Ruth and Charles Gilb Arcadia Historical Museum is proud to display such a wonderful exhibition of the Tongva Tribe. With every single seat filled with visitors, the opening was clearly a triumph!

Old Fashioned Fun & Games !

Our latest Family Fun Day turned out to be a succcess! With ice cream and old - fashioned games, the local children separated from their beloved television and video games and explored some of the old-fashioned games, ranging from Jacks to Simon Says. They got to make ice cream simply by using two ziploc bags, ice, and some simple ingredients! With a quick 5 minute shake -- TA-DA! -- home made ice cream, or shall I say museum made ice cream at your fingertips. After a tedious, but rewarding shaking "workout", the children were led to a table full of various toppings in which they used their imagination to create their one of a kind ice cream.

Museum Blog maintained by Emily Khuu, young adult volunteer

Fearless Fire Fighters!

On July 12, 2008, the Arcadia Historical Museum welcomed some local Arcadia firefighters and their little red engines – or shall I say BIG fire engines to enlighten the public about some amazing firefighter facts. They even brought a paramedic and explained the purpose of the tools and how they were used. Some of the firefighters have to carry a whopping 140 pounds of equipment when they are fighting fires, and it only takes them about a minute to put it on. The kids and adults were able to explore some of the gear both visually and hands-on. The firemen even brought an antique fire truck that is steam powered. The kids got to make some crafts which included firefighter buttons, a firefighter dog and much more. We sure are grateful to have such wonderful firefighters serving our community—acting as both mentors and heroes.

(above) 1926 Antique Fire Engine - still operating

(above) Kids posing with the Antique Fire engine

One of our volunteers getting hands-on and tied up in one of the
many knots the firefighters have to learn

Annual Egg Decorating

What a blast!

On Saturday, the Museum held its 3rd Annual Egg Decorating Event. We painted, we glued, and we ran out of eggs!