Happy Holidays!

The Museum will be closed on Tuesday, December 25 and Tuesday, January 1.

There's still time to come see the special exhibit of toys, which will be on display through January 5.

We wish you happiness and joy at this special time of the year.

7th Annual Holiday Ornament Making Workshop

This is the 7th time we've done this, and I sure think we did a great job! We had a total of about 530 visitors to this event. This Holiday Ornament Workshop is a wonderful Museum tradition. For the past two years, we've held the event in conjunction with the Snow Festival organized by the Arcadia Recreation and Community Services Department. We all had fun painting pinecones, making pipecleaner candy canes, and cutting paper snowflakes. A couple popular craft stations were the Winter Wonderland (ornament made with inverted plastic cups!) and the Christmas Walnut Mice (using walnut shells). A BIG thank-you to all our absolutely incredible volunteers! You've made the day beyond successful!

Friends of the Museum Holiday Tea and Boutique

Every year, the Friends of the Museum host a fundraising Holiday Tea and Boutique. Tasty treats with a hot cup of home-brewed cider welcomes visitors to join us for an afternoon of one-stop shopping.

A Good Old Tea Time with our Favorite Dolls!

Have you ever had pretend tea with your favorite bear or doll? At the Museum, we hosted a wonderful afternoon of REAL tea, scones, strawberries with Raggedy Ann. We had hostesses at each table talking about the history of Raggedy Ann and Andy. Guests enjoyed their tea, with their very own teacups brought from home. They also got to learn about tea manners and making cootie catchers, oh and cute Raggedy Ann and Andy crafts too! It was just a tea-rrific afternoon!

Historic Dolls Now on Exhibit

If you have fond memories of spending an afternoon with your favorite doll, you will enjoy visiting the Arcadia Historical Museum during its annual toy exhibit now through January 5, 2008. You may even see a favorite doll from your childhood!

For a preview of the exhibit, check out the great photos that appeared in today's Pasadena Star-News and San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

Remember - admission to the Museum is always free!

Update on Getting to the Museum on Saturday

This just in! More details about the Saturday, November 17th street closures to help you better plan for your trip to the Museum!!

Baldwin closed completely from 8:30 to approx. 1:00 p.m.
Huntington to Camino Real closed same times as above
Duarte from Golden West to El Monte same times as above
Campus closed completely from 6:00 a.m. to approx. 4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Huntington Drive will be diverted and there may be slow flow early in the morning.

Saturday at the Museum

Getting to the Museum may be a little challenging this weekend because it's time once again for the 54th Arcadia Festival of Bands, which starts at 8:30 a.m. Some streets will be closed but don't let that stop you from enjoying the final days of the exhibit "Back to School—First Avenue Celebrates 100 Years", which closes on Nov. 21, 2007 or seeing the newest exhibit "Discover the History of Dolls" on exhibit now through Jan. 5, 2008.

To help you navigate, here's a map of the street closures:

Celebrate First Avenue's 100th Birthday!

For 100 years, Arcadia’s children have walked the halls of First Avenue School. Now you can relive this history by coming to the Museum for its latest exhibit, which celebrates the 100th Birthday of this school. Featuring class pictures and a historical timeline, this exhibition showcases the story of this school and the impact it has had on the community.

Share your memories and your favorite nickname for the school with future Museum visitors by writing on our message board. This exhibit will be on display through November 21.

Make Your Own Peacock Feather Jewelry

Peacock Feather Earrings -- would you like to make a pair?

Make Your Own Peacock Feather Jewelry

Peacock Feather Earrings -- would you like to make a pair?

Ms. Street reading a peacock story, with our peacock puppet (sitting on the side) to children and parents.

Look what I've made!

Galore of jewelry you can make with peacock feathers!

Make Your Own Ice-cream

Kate and Jaye showing a simple craft to help the kids remember how the ice-cream was made, so that they can do the same at home!

Ezra, our Getty Intern showing how a hand-crank ice-cream maker works. In 2 hours, he churned about a gallon of ice-cream! He definitely worked out his muscles!

The purpose of vanilla ice-cream is... to have TOPPINGS! Here's our toppings station with Ruth!

Look! This is what you get after 30mins of rolling the ball! ICE-CREAM!

Did you know that you can make ice-cream by rolling one of these balls?

Make Your Own Soda Pop

Carbonation Station... This is where you get all the bubbles for your soda pop!

Flavor Station! Come and try!

Make Your Own Butter

"Washing" the Butter

"This sure brings back a lot of memories!"

Shaking up butter, for all ages!

Flurry of Activities

Writing with Quill Pens

The Museum just ended a busy summer of Make-Your-Own activities. The events were very well-received, and we had many repeat visitors! Thank you for your support!

We started with Make-Your-Own Ink, to butter, to soda pop, to ice-cream, to peacock feather jewelry, and lastly, candy!

We are tremendously grateful to our group of faithful and hardworking volunteers who cut, rolled, shook, cooked, and wove throughout the summer! You are awesome!

July Brown Bag Lunch Talk Features Sandy Snider

Come to the Museum on Thursday, July 19 from noon to 12:30 p.m. for the July Brown Bag Lunch Talk! This talk is specially designed for all who work near the Museum to come and enjoy a unique 20-minute talk about exciting moments in Arcadia’s history. Sandy Snider, author of Arcadia: Where Ranch and City Meet, will ask the question, “Whose Adobe is it Really?” Come learn about the history of the Hugo Reid Adobe and who really lived in this iconic building in Arcadia history.

Bring your own brown bag lunch or enjoy free pizza (first-come-first-serve). Reservations are not necessary, but space for the talk is limited to a first-come-first-serve basis.

From Pizza to Ice Cream

Coming up this week at the Museum are two events you won't want to miss!

Come to the Museum on Thursday, June 21 from noon to 12:30 p.m. for the first summer Brown Bag Lunch Talk! This talk is specially designed for all who work near the Museum to come and enjoy a unique 20-minute talk about exciting moments in Arcadia’s history. On June 21, Museum Docent Mickey Ball will talk about the “Romances of the San Gabriel Valley”. Bring your own brown bag lunch or enjoy free pizza (first-come-first-serve) on the Museum Patio. Reservations are not necessary, but space for the talk is limited to a first-come-first-serve basis.

Nothing is better than a cool scoop of ice cream on a hot summer day! Come to Museum for an old-fashioned ice cream social on Saturday, June 23 from noon to 2 p.m. and make your own homemade ice cream. This is a free, drop-in program for the entire family to enjoy; children should not be left unattended. No reservations are needed.

Learn How to Make Your Own Butter!

Did you know that a marble can help you make butter? Come to the Museum on Saturday, May 26, 2007 from Noon to 2 p.m. and learn how to use a marble and about other old fashioned butter making tools. Try your hand at a butter churn and see how long it takes to make your own sweet-cream butter. This is a free, drop-in program for the entire family to enjoy; children should not be left unattended. No reservations needed.

Art in Arcadia Exhibit Now Open

The Museum's newest exhibit, Art in Arcadia, will be on display through May 31st and features many beautiful renderings of Arcadia’s historic landmarks and picturesque landscape. Museumgoers will enjoy viewing various artists’ interpretations of Arcadia’s familiar sights. Historic photographs of the sites will also be on display.

Lunch at the Museum!

Do you work in or around Arcadia? Do something fun and different on your lunch hour by coming to the Museum on Thursdays, February 15 and March 15 from noon to 12:30 p.m. for the new Brown Bag Lunch Talks. These are specially designed for all who work near the Museum to enjoy a unique 20-minute tour of the special exhibition Morning Rhapsody. Bring your own brown bag lunch or enjoy free pizza (first-come-first-serve) on the Museum Patio. Come to one or both — each talk will be different! Reservations are not necessary, but space for the talk is limited to a first-come-first-serve basis. Need more info? Call the Museum at 574-5440.

Morning Rhapsody: A Photo Exhibition

Photographer, singer, writer, actor and composer, Karen Davis, captures behind-the-scenes moments at Santa Anita racetrack in the early mornings. Juan Reviriego, trainer, praises, “I have trained racehorses all over the world, and I have never before seen such a passionate tribute to thoroughbred and track as this original and astonishing treasure.”

Don't miss the opportunity to see this stunning collection of photographs, which will be on display from January 6 – March 28, 2007. For information about related events, check out page 17 of the City's Winter Recreation, Library, and Museum brochure.