By Special to the Town Crier
The Los Altos History Museum will celebrate History Month the third weekend in October with a special car and crafts exhibit.
The events are part of a larger effort by the 27 museums that make up the Heritage Council of Santa Clara County to revive public interest in local history.
The car exhibit, organized by Collections and Exhibits Manager Allyn Feldman and local car aficionado Bob Mabe, will feature one luxury car and one typical car for each decade since the city of Los Altos’ incorporation in the 1950s. Feldman said she expects some vintage automobiles, like a 1930s Ford station wagon and the first firetruck used in the county.
The free craft displays may whet appetites for the annual California Country Americana Antique Show, scheduled for the same weekend at Hillview Community Center, 97 Hillview Ave.
The craftsmen demonstrations scheduled include two woodcarvers, a painter specializing in New England-style scenes, hooked rug making and a canvas worker preparing figures for Halloween.
The History Museum’s 50th anniversary exhibit will continue to be on display inside the museum. The exposition is a collective portrait of Los Altos at various stages of its history, from its incorporation as the 11th city of Santa Clara County, Dec. 1, 1952, to present-day issues such as the remodeling of local schools.
Visitors who get their program guide stamped at four different participating museums will have an opportunity to win memberships to all 27 county museums or even a ride in an antique aircraft, which Los Altos History Museum Director Madelyn Crawford guarantees is perfectly safe.
“This will hopefully stimulate the public to go a little bit afield of where they would usually go,” Crawford said.
The Heritage Council chose October as “History Month: Discover the Past” to coincide with National Arts and Humanities Month, organized by the National Cultural Alliance.
“We are trying to give people the sense that our museums are something they have to check out now, not later,” Crawford said. “We are saying ‘Come soon, come now, come often.’”
Caltrain and VTA also sponsor History Month.
The Los Altos History Museum is located at 51 S. San Antonio Road, behind the main library. For more information, call 948-9427.
