This from the head of our local Heritage Society: Smithville has two museums, separate from the Library which we all know and love! I will talk about them separately.
1) Smithville Heritage Society Museum,602 Main Street, Smithville. This museum is run by the Smithville Heritage Society, which is a 501(c)3 organization. We receive no funds from the City of Smithville, Bastrop County, or any State entity. We have received grant funding from Texas Historical Commission on occasion. We have never asked the LIbrary or any governmental entity to take over our museum, at least that I've ever seen in Society minutes. This museum is also in a historical home, built in 1907, I believe, and donated in the 1970's directly to the Heritage Society by the owners. 2) Railroad Museum and Park, on First Street, shares a building with the Smithville Area Chamber of Commerce. This museum IS a City-supported entity. It is on land which the City was given in a long-term lease type of deal by Union Pacific Railroad some years ago. The RR Museum does not get huge funds from the City, but is a line item in the City budget. The City Council appoints an Advisory Board to the RR Museum, similar to the way they handle the Library. The Museum/Chamber office and Park were opened about 1991. 3) Lost Pines Artisan Alliance/Art League, at 301 Burleson St, Smithville. This is a historical home bequeathed to the City of Smithville some years ago. It is my understanding the City still "owns" the building, which is now the home of Lost Pines Artisan Alliance, and is used both as a gallery for the Artisans works, as well as a training/workshop facility and meeting place. I do not know any more about this facility, and am copying Jo Watts so that she can get you some answers to your questions. In short, Smithville Public Library is not involved in any of the museum operations in Smithville. I hope this information is helpful to you. Please let me know if you need further assistance. Carol Snyder Smithville Heritage Society Ph: 830-839-4080 Cell: 214-673-2223 Judith M. Bergeron Smithville Public Library 507 Main Street Smithville, TX 78957 TEL: 512/237-3282 ext. 2424 CELL: 512-848-5377 FAX: 512/237-4549 email: [email protected] website: www.smithvillepubliclibrary.org ________________________________ From: Laurie Mahaffey <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Tue, March 9, 2010 8:50:38 AM Subject: [ctls-l] FW: libraries & museums Does your city have a museum? Aside from La Grange (in which the museum, archives, and library are all in one building), who else out there has a museum that is run by a unit of local government (city, county, etc.)? If there is a non-government sponsored museum, who operates it? Do any city/county funds go to help support it? Has your library ever been asked to take over & staff or fund a museum? How about those in historical homes? Thanks. Laurie Laurie Mahaffey, Deputy Director Central Texas Library System, Inc. 1005 West 41st Street Austin, Texas 78756 www.ctls.net [email protected] 512-583-0704 x18 800-262-4431 x18 Are there any libraries in our system that have museums in their towns? If so, who oversees the museums? Are any of the libraries involved in museum operations? ________________________________
