By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Staff Writer
The Mountain History Museum is hosting a birthday party on Sunday, July 28, at the museum, for Smokey Bear as he turns 80 years old this year.
Smokey invites all his fans and friends to come to the museum this Sunday and to bring their cameras and cellphones with them for selfies with him. He loves to have photos taken with his friends. Smokey will be at the museum from noon to 3 p.m., wandering around inside the museum and greeting his friends.
Inside the museum is the main display filled with Smokey’s forest friends. This is as close to a bear, deer, fox, raccoon and other animals as anyone could safely be able to get. The museum has many local forest animals and birds on display, so a close-up look is possible for everyone. On the exterior are the Goodwin’s Market bear sculptures, which were carved after the 2003 Old Fire out of trees burned during the fire and were installed on the exterior of the market for almost two decades before they were donated by the Goodwin family to the museum, restored by volunteers and now on display on the exterior of the museum. All the objects in the museum were donated and they are always seeking additional items to display of the mountain’s past.
Volunteers from the Rim of the World Historical Society volunteer to operate the museum; during the party they will be serving cake, cupcakes, cookies, ice cream and lemonade outside on the patio. “However, if it is too hot outside, the party will be moved inside and the food will be served from the General Store,” said ROWHS President Terry Ebert, “like we did for the ice cream social we had to celebrate Independence Day on July 5.”
Inside the museum in the back room there will be Smokey Bear arts and crafts for the kids and others who want to do them. All of this is free, including entry to the museum, the party and the crafts and photos with Smokey, and even free parking. Extra parking will be available at Mary Putnam Henck Intermediate School (MPH), which is just around the corner from the museum on Rhine Road. Some families have been known to drop-off the majority of the family at the museum and have one member park the car at MPH.
In the theater room at the museum, a PowerPoint presentation shows movies made in the mountains and forest over the past 100 years; there is also a map to the old-time movie stars homes in the Lake Arrowhead area.
Many local communities have their individual histories showcased, including a video on Twin Peaks and an expanded display on Crestline this year. The 130-year history of Little Bear Lake (aka Lake Arrowhead) and the 100-plus-year story of Lake Arrowhead Village are on prominent display.
The museum at 27176 Peninsula Drive at Rhine Road in Lake Arrowhead will be open on Fridays, from noon to 4 p.m. with Russ Keller as the featured historian of the day, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekly through October, weather permitting. Every day, special docents can share special stories of the various displays of the museum with the guests and offer unique insights. The museum has air conditioning, heating and free parking in lots on both sides of the building, and it is always free.
They also offer special group tours for organizations, school reunions, Scouts and school groups. See their new website at http://www.mtnmuseum.org for details or call them for additional information at (909) 744-8625 during museum hours or leave a message on the answering machine.
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