Gregg County Historical Museum

Gregg County Historical Museum The Everett Building At One Hundred 1910-2010

The Everett Building at One Hundred The Everett Building dates from 1910, built originally for the Citizens National Bank. After extensive restoration and the installation of exhibits, the Gregg County Historical Museum opened in the structure in 1984. The Everett Building has the distinction of being in the National Register of Historic Places and also is a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.

The Everett BuildingRecorded Texas Historic Landmark BUILT IN 1910 TO HOUSE THE CITIZENS NATIONAL BANK, THIS STRUCTURE IS THE ONLY EXAMPLE OF CLASSICAL REVIVAL COMMERCIAL ARCHITECTURE IN LONGVIEW. DESIGNED BY NOTED ARCHITECT AND EDUCATOR SAMUEL J. BLOCKER, THE EVERETT BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED BY GLADEWATER AND LONGVIEW BUSINESSMAN AND CIVIC LEADER LAFAYETTE JOHNSON EVERETT. OUTSTANDING FEATURES OF THE BUILDING INCLUDE ITS ROUNDED BAY AND RECESSED MAIN ENTRANCE. THROUGH THE YEARS, THE EVERETT BUILDING HAS HOUSED NUMEROUS BANKS AND PROFESSIONAL OFFICES AND IS PART OF THE HERITAGE OF LONGVIEW'S BUSINESS COMMUNITY. RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 1983

The Everett BuildingNational Register of Historic Places The 1910 two-story with raised basement structure is constructed of brick load-bearing walls and detailed with wood and stone ornamentation. Fronting fifty feet on Fredonia and one hundred feet on Bank Street, the major focal emphasis is at the south corner with a rounded bay and recessed main entrance at the first level. A secondary commercial space fronts on the Fredonia side with a display area and stair entrance to the second story.

Gregg County Historical MuseumCelebrating An Anniversary Planning • Committees • Goals: Event or Opportunity? • Allocation of Resources: Capital Investment or Exhibits? • Venue: Where? An Opportunity to Enhance the GCHM • Create New Spaces • New Initiatives • Outreach

Gregg County Historical MuseumThe Museum needs new space, but where … • Temporary exhibit hall? • Downstairs? • Main floor? • Upstairs? • Rented space? It is only a question of money…

Gregg County Historical Museum How does the Museum • Rework and enhance present exhibits? • Reach out to new audiences? • Recruit new volunteers? • Go digital?

Gregg County Historical MuseumInexpensive Ways to Improve Displays • Add: • more text and improve captions • more images - expand the present exhibit • comparative images: “THEN & NOW” • links and references to additional information • documentary evidence - different visuals • letters • blueprints • materials from the vertical files • Sanborn map images, block by block • timelines: buildings dates and national events

How does the Museum enhance its present offerings?Add multiple pictures of the same place … But, what if the exhibits that are already crowded …

Reclaim Existing Space How does the Museum do this without destroying existing exhibits? • Rethink what is meant by an “exhibit” • Create traveling exhibits • In public schools • offices • waiting rooms • Create digital satellite exhibits of current exhibits • In offices • banks • public waiting areas • kiosks • Tailor make exhibits for special groups • industries • professions • tourist facilities • communities Move existing exhibits into new digital quarters …

How does the Museum enhance its present offerings?Move exhibits to new places …

Gregg County Historical MuseumHow does the Museum go digital? Steps: • Take good digital pictures of everything in your present collection; this is important for archival reasons, too • Collect all new acquisitions in digital form, too • Enhance elements already on the web • Transfer existing displays to the web • Just start thinking digitally Here are some quick examples…

Gregg County Historical MuseumTrain people to work with the Museum’s Pastperfect database–from home– using WORD forms.

Gregg County Historical MuseumAn existing exhibit placed on the web …

Gregg County Historical Museum Existing exhibits animated with music… Tour of Longview This movie must be accessed from the index webpage.

Gregg County Historical Museum Gregg County Tour Historical City Tours on the Web This movie must be accessed from the index webpage.

Gregg County Historical MuseumHistoric Homes Exhibit This movie must be accessed from the index file.

Gregg County Historical MuseumQuestions for Volunteers • How many of you have digital still cameras? • How many have video cameras? • How many have WORD on your computers? • How many have computers with DVD drives? • How many have scanners? If you answer “yes” to any of these, you are ready to help in this move to digital.

Gregg County Historical MuseumUse Workshops to Train New People • On Oral History • Enhancing the present collection: digitization • Mining in the present collection through indexing • Expanding audio interviews on specific topics • Collecting more than an oral record: photographs, documents • On Research Techniques • Using online sources • Working with databases • Use of Graphic and Media Software • Collecting and using digital images • Movie and DVD construction • Constructing Web pages

How do you recruit new volunteers? • Target new people in town; invite them to participate • Construct new databases of e-mail addresses • Circulate a digital newsletter • Initiate new projects to interest former volunteers • Offer new skills which everyone can use, anywhere • Acquire new collections with public solicitations • • photographs • documents • memories

Gregg County Historical MuseumHow does the Museum start a new research program? • Start at Home • On Fredonia Street, the home area around the Museum • Create interest in doing research • for improving exhibitions • creating an improve web presence • editing • Put together the history of the neighborhood • use Sanborn maps • collect pictures • digital inventory of blocks • newspapers • Construct a timeline of buildings, events, dates • Explore possibilities for additional historical markers for the area • Collect oral histories based on a good set of questions Here are some examples …

The Everett BuildingSanborn Fire Maps of Longview The 1906 Sanborn Fire Map shows the property at the corner of Fredonia and the unnamed alley (Bank Street) occupied by a grocery store, bakery or confectionery shop, and tailor shop. Next door there was a restaurant and a meat market.

The Everett BuildingSanborn Fire Maps of Longview The 1911 Sanborn Fire Map shows the property after the construction of the Everett Building for the Citizens National Bank. Bank Street is still unnamed on the map.

The Everett BuildingSanborn Fire Maps of Longview The 1916 Sanborn Fire Map shows the cleaning and pressing shop in the basement of the Everett Building. The drug store in the north part of the building is clearly marked as is the overhang of the building.

The Everett BuildingSanborn Fire Maps of Longview In the 1923 map, the Masonic Temple is shown on the second floor of the building in the middle of the block. The uses of the Bank building has not changed.

The Everett BuildingSanborn Fire Maps of Longview By 1946, all of the more familiar buildings in the whole block are in place. At the east end, you can see Pegues Motor Company and the Arlene Theater (movie house). The Everett Building remains the same on this map.

Gregg County Historical MuseumCelebrating the Everett Building at 100 YearsGetting Our Message Out to a New Generation

Gregg County Historical Museum