After a decade of work, local museum will open to the public

By Kevin Hanson

By Kevin Hanson

The Courier-Herald

A glimpse into the region's past will be unveiled Oct. 9, when the Enumclaw Plateau Historical Society debuts its long-awaited museum.

The society has been around for 10 years, stockpiling treasures from Enumclaw past and transforming a big, white building at 1837 Marion St. into a museum. All the organizing has been tackled by volunteers, some of the specialized work had to be farmed out to experts and progress was often limited to the amount of grant money received.

Now, however, Enumclaw has its own museum, meaning history buffs aren't limited to museums in Buckley and Black Diamond for their history fix. The museum will be open from 1 to 4 p.m. every Thursday and Sunday and will be staffed by members of the historical society.

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The museum building itself is a piece of Enumclaw history, dating back to 1909. It was originally built by the Masonic Lodge, but spent many years as an Episcopal Church. The church sold the property in 1995 to the historical society and it has since been placed on the Washington Heritage Register of Historic Places.

During the past decade, the society has added a heavy-duty beam spanning the length of the building, bringing things up to code. Among other upgrades, the original wood floor has been refinished, walls have been painted and windows have been treated with a film that filters out rays harmful to museum pieces.

Display cases have been donated and purchased and how house an interesting array of Enumclaw Plateau memorabilia. Cases carry themes, such as early settlers to the area, schools, agriculture, the timber industry and the business scene. There's a pump organ that was purchased for $90 in the early 1900s and shipped from Pennsylvania to Enumclaw. And guests can peruse resources that detail local births, deaths, school functions and other important matters.

Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com.