The Bigelow House Museum is now open all Sundays for tours at 1:00, 2:00 and 3:00 pm.
In honor of Women’s History Month, March tours will feature information about the significance of the house in women’s history—highlighting members of the Bigelow family as well as the connections of the house to women’s suffrage as a stop on the National Votes for Women Trail. Please join us.
February 20, 2025. 6 – 8 p.m.
Abigail Stuart House
1002 Washington St SE, Olympia, WA 98501
Free. Light refreshments will be provided.
Join us for an evening of civic dialogue about the Simmons Party historic monument, erected in 1916 near Tumwater Falls about a party of pioneers claiming to be the first American colony on the Puget Sound in 1845.
How does the monument shape our understanding of the past? Who and what has been left out of the history it portrays? How can we share a more accurate history? Your feedback and participation will help us develop tools to enrich our understanding of Washington State history.
The Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum hosts former WA Secretary of State Sam Reed and author John C. Hughes in this conversation about Reed’s three-terms as Washington’s Secretary of State. Reed will be joined by Hughes as author of the recently published biography titled “Mr. Mainstream: Sam Reed’s Half Century of Public Service and Civility.” Book copies will be available for purchase and signing. The event will be held at Traditions Fair Trade/Soul Cafe, 500 Fifth Avenue SW in downtown Olympia. Doors open at 6:30 and the program begins at 7:00. The program is open to the public with free admission, though a $5 donation is recommended. Beverage service will be available. For more information, go to: Olympiahistory.org or olyhistory@gmail.com.
The Olympia Historical Society and Bigelow House Museum is sponsoring the Holiday Tour of Historic Home on Sunday, December 8, 2024 from noon to 4:00 pm featuring six historic properties including the Bigelow House at 918 Glass Avenue NE.
The 2024 event highlights outstanding examples of residential architecture representing important eras in the city’s history. Dating to the 1860s, the Bigelow House will have special holiday décor and a musical performance. Five of the homes are in the South Capitol Neighborhood, a National Register Historic District.
Tour tickets are $35.00 per person and are available to purchase in advance at Drees at 524 Washington St. SE, Childhood’s End Gallery, 222 4th Avenue, W and Thompson’s Furniture at 5407 South Capitol Boulevard. Tickets will also be sold on the day of the tour at the Bigelow House, 918 Glass Avenue SE and at the Coach House, 211 21st Avenue SW. Sponsors of the event are: Drees, Olympia Federal Savings, Mary P. Dolciani Halloran Foundation, Paul and Shirley Battan, Olympia Arts + Heritage Alliance, Inspire Olympia, Grit City Weddings and Events, and Swalling Walk Architects.
Net proceeds of the tour benefit the preservation and interpretation of Olympia’s historic Bigelow House and programming throughout the year by the Olympia Historical Society.
For questions about the Home Tour event, email olyhistory@gmail.com. For more information about the Olympia Historical Society including membership form, go to www.olympiahistory.org.
Featuring five homes in the South Capitol Neighborhood Historic District.
Open house at the Bigelow House Museum
Be sure to save Thursday evening September 26th to hear Nicholas Vann give this fascinating talk on Chinese Exclusion and Resilience in the Built Environment. Former Washington Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer and Historic Architect, Nick will share his personal and professional journey in discovering and preserving the architectural expression of late 19th and 20th century Asian immigrants to the United States. Following Nick will be a panel discussion and comments by Huy Pham, Executive Director of Asian & Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation (APIAHiP; https://apiahip.org/) and Olympia City Council member Yen Huynh. This program will be presented in-person at 7:00 pm at the Traditions Cafe performance space at 304 5th Avenue SW in downtown Olympia. Doors open at 6:30 to enjoy a display and view the nearby Olympia Chinatown interpretive panel.
This program is hosted by the Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum together with the Olympia Arts & Heritage Alliance. Admission is open and free to the public; donations are welcome.
The Olympia Arts & Heritage Alliance (AHA) is creating a new exhibit with a professional curator called Faces of Olympia, to display in the 48 windows on the east façade of the 108 State Avenue building (old City Hall and Fire Station) in downtown Olympia. We are seeking photos and images of people to illustrate the city’s diverse history and culture. The exhibit is slated to open in late 2024.
>We are asking for submissions that show people from different eras (alive or deceased), communities, and walks of life that reflect Olympia history and culture over time. We want to make sure that images and stories are included from all Olympians to tell our whole story.
Images can be photos, drawings, or other media. AHA will need permission to use the images. Deadline for submissions is October 15, 2024. For more information and to view the submission form and requirements, go to olyaha.org or email info@olyaha.org.
The Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum (OHS & BHM) seeks to hire a part-time staff person to coordinate and manage implementation of the society’s expanded tour, education, and outreach activities being funded by the City’s Inspire Olympia grant program. The focus of this one-year part-time position is to manage and coordinate essential aspects of the BHM’s tour operation plus implementation of OHS & BHM’s goals for expanded education and outreach efforts in local history into 2025.
Job Description and Qualifications: If you are interested in applying, please review our Job Announcement, Job Description and Job Qualifications packet of information by clicking on this link: Job Application. Any questions can be directed to our email at: olyhistory@gmail.com. The deadline for submitting an application is Monday July 15, 2024.
The OHS & BHM gratefully acknowledges the Olympia Cultural Access Program (Inspire Olympia) and taxpayers to the City of Olympia for making this employment opportunity possible,
Download the clue sheet here to redeem for a special prize on the first and second Sundays of the month from 1 to 4 pm during open tour hours or enjoy the hunt anytime!
The Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum (OHS & BHM) hosted their 2024 Annual Membership Meeting on Saturday, January 27th at the Olympia Center.
At the top of the agenda was a program commemorating the 170th anniversary of the meeting of Washington’s First Territorial Legislature in February, 1854. OHS & BHM Board Members recited writings from that time period that recalled life in 1850s Olympia and the workings of that first legislative session.
A highlight of the meeting was presentation of the Society’s annual awards that honor significant achievements in sharing, preserving, and shaping Olympia history. It is an OHS & BHM tradition that the awards presentation be made by Gerry Alexander, the retiring Vice President of OHS & BHM and former Washington State Supreme Court Chief Justice.
To thank Gerry Alexander for his distinguished service to OHS & BHM and to establish a lasting legacy of his long association with the organization, the Society made a surprise announcement of naming its annual heritage award program in his honor. Therefore, from this time forward, the OHS & BHM annual awards are titled: The Gerry L. Alexander Award for Outstanding Achievement in Heritage.
The 2024 recipients of The Gerry L. Alexander Award for Outstanding Achievement in Heritage are:
In addition to the award recipients described above, Board Member Charlie Roe gave a Special Achievement award to Gerry Alexander to honor his long-time involvement with the Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum as well as local and statewide historic preservation efforts. Also, well known Historian, author, and former Director of the Washington State Historical Society, gave the audience an overview of Alexander’s contributions to, and role in Washington history. In his parting words, Alexander said his fondest wish is to see the establishment of a museum displaying Olympia heritage.
As well as his passion for history and historic preservation, Alexander is noted for his term as Washington State Supreme Court Justice and following as Supreme Court Chief Justice, serving in that position from 2001 until retiring in 2010.
The OHS & BHM also honored retiring Board Member Denise Halloran, departing Board Member Sue Lean, and Volunteer of the Year Craig Swalling, all for their generous support of the society’s mission and programming. Society members also elected two new board members: Vickie MacMillan and Jill Rosencrantz. Biographies for MacMillan and Rosencrantz as well as all board members can viewed at: https://olympiahistory.org/category/board-members/.
Our thanks go to the Washington Secretary of State’s State Archives Division for their support of the OHS & BHM Annual Meeting.
Come join us on Saturday, January 27, 2024 for the OHS & BHM Annual Meeting. The meeting begins at 1:00 pm. This year, our program commemorates the 170th anniversary of the first meeting of the Washington Territorial Legislature in 1854. A highlight of the meeting will be our program featuring historic accounts of life in the Steh Chass village and early Olympia. The meeting will be held at the Olympia Center located directly across the street from the site (currently the location of the Bread Peddler) of the Gold Bar Restaurant where the first territorial legislative session convened.
You will also want to stay for our annual heritage award program during which we will honor and celebrate significant persons, places, and events that have preserved our past and continue to shape Olympia’s future.
After the program and awards, we will hold our OHS & BHM business meeting where members will elect new board members, be briefed about our achievements in 2023, and get a glimpse of what’s ahead for the Society in 2024.
This year, the annual membership meeting will be at the Olympia Center, 222 Columbia St. NW in downtown Olympia from 1 to 3 pm. The meeting room is ADA compliant with a seating capacity of 75 persons. If you are unable to attend the meeting in-person, we are also offering a zoom meeting link for you to participate on-line. To register for the meeting on zoom, click on this registration link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/tZMld-ippjooHdNJC0ze23EPi…
Financial Information will be distributed at the meeting.
An election for new and returning board members will be held at the annual meeting. There are five positions standing for election. More information is here.
Per our bylaws, only those people who are current members may vote. If you have not already joined or renewed, please consider renewing here.
We look forward to seeing you on Saturday January 27th at the Olympia Center.
The Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum invites the community to a Holiday Open House at the Bigelow House Museum at 918 Glass Avenue NE in Olympia on Sunday, December 10, 2023 from 1 to 4 pm. $5.00 suggested donation.
Visitors will enjoy holiday decor, learn about this Olympia treasure as well as savoring a holiday treat. One of Olympia’s oldest residences, the house was built by 1860 and features authentic period decor and furnishings which tell the story of the long residence of the Bigelow Family in Olympia. Email olyhistory@gmail.com for more information.
The Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum will award a $2000 history grant along with a $500 teacher stipend in 2024, provided by funds from long-time Thurston County Teacher Roger Easton. Eligible applicants are K-12 teachers, student teachers, administrators, or classroom professionals in accredited schools in Thurston County.
The successful applicant will use grant funds for securing curriculum/classroom materials, training such as classes or conferences, developing curriculum materials or related purposes, or history programs or events. The projects or training must be related to Washington state history or the Northwest region. Extra consideration will be given to proposals which address the history of Thurston County. Projects should meet Washington State Standards for Social Studies.
Deadlines, application and other information are available here. Questions about the grant should be sent to olyhistory@gmail.com.
Join OHS & BHM Board Member Paul Parker for a tour of the Bigelow Neighorhood beginning at 11:00 am on Saturday, August 26, 2023 at the Bigelow House. The 45-minute tour involves significant walking.
The Bigelow House is also hosting an Equality Day Commemoration on August 26, 2023 beginning at 11:30 am at the Bigelow House. August 26, 1920 was the day that the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution for women’s voting rights was signed into law. Costumed suffragists will be present along with the opportunity to register to vote, courtesy of the League of Women Voters of Thurston County.
We also will be remembering the 60th anniversary of the milestone March on Washington, a highlight of which was Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
Visitors can also enjoy a brief “Suffrage Highlights Tour” inside the Bigelow House every 15 minutes from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm. Suggested donation is $5.00.
Join OHS & BHM Board Member Paul Parker for a tour of the Bigelow Neighborhood beginning at 11:00 am on Saturday, August 26, 2023 at the Bigelow House. The 45-minute tour involves significant walking.
Tour goers will return to the Bigelow House to enjoy a celebration of Equality Day—August 26, 1920 was the day that the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution for women’s voting rights was signed into law. Costumed suffragists will be present along with the opportunity to register to vote, courtesy of the League of Women Voters of Thurston County, to be followed by a brief Suffrage Highlights Tour inside the Bigelow House. Suggested donation is $5.00.
The updated and revitalized Bigelow House Museum will open for visitors starting June 4, 2023 on the first two Sundays of every month at 1, 2, and 3 pm. All tours will be limited to 10 people each and visitors under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Admission is $5.00 for adults; $4.00 for seniors and students and $2.00 for children under 18 with a maximum of $15.00 per family. Olympia Historical Society & Bigelow House Museum members have free admission. Visitors will see all of the upstairs and downstairs of the house as well as new displays and decor.
The Olympia Historical Society-Bigelow House Museum (OHS & BHM) invites all to enjoy a program by longtime KGY radio host and South Sound personality icon Dick Pust. He will present his program on Thursday evening, June 29th at 6:30 pm at the Harbor House on Percival Landing. Pust will share his memories, stories, and photographs, drawing from his recently published book AM 1240: Life at a Small Town Radio Station.
Seating at the Harbor House is limited to 25. Admission to the program is free but donations are encouraged to support the work of sharing and preserving local history by the OHS & BHM. For questions email us at olyhistory@gmail.com
