a) Our Mission
The mission of the organization is to collect, preserve, educate and promote the history of the Greater Maple Valley area. And to provide for everyone a greater understanding of the role people have played in that history.
b) How do we do that
The Maple Valley Historical Society provides a means for people to do
research their heritage, and to showcase the history of the area through maintaining
three (3) museums with displays of the past. The Society has a paid membership of over 300
people and organizations. The Maple
Valley Historical Society is an Incorporated Organization within the State of Washington and is
classified as a 501-C(3) organization by the Internal Revenue Service of the
Federal Government. The organization is an all-volunteer organization formed
over 35 years ago.
The three (3) museums are 1) located within the King County
Landmarked original Maple
Valley
School and 2) and 3) are located on property
owned by the City of Maple Valley. The
original museum in the original Maple
Valley High
School houses the main photo collection of the
Society as well as the primary offices of the Society. There are also displays set up in this museum
that depict the early lives of the residents of the Greater Maple Valley area,
as well as a room almost solely dedicated to the history of Tahoma School
District. The other two museums are
located next to the Maple
Valley Community
Center in the heart of the City of Maple Valley
and are the Gibbon-Mezzavilla General Store and the Fire Engine museum. The Gibbon-Mezzavilla General Store is the
restored original store in the Greater Maple Valley area that was frequented by
the early residents. The Fire Engine
museum houses the restored 1926 Howard Cooper fire engine which was the
original Fire Engine used by Fire District 43 Volunteers. In addition to the Howard Cooper, there are
displays depicting the early years of the Fire District.
c) Our Accomplishments
The Society provides a History Treasure Box curriculum
for the Tahoma School District third graders. The curriculum provides for guided class
tours of all of our museums for the students, teachers and chaperones. Since the program’s inception, we have had
more than 1200 students participate in this program. In addition, the Society conducted a lecture
on the History of Maple Valley for 180 6th Grade students at Cedar River Middle School in 2007. This will become an annual program.
The Society’s volunteers also provide free public
programs five (5) times each year. The
programs are held at various facilities around the Greater Maple Valley area to
allow for handicap accessibility and to generate the most interest by the
groups that the programs are geared too.
In particular, the programs are geared to the History of Maple Valley,
History of Hobart, annual Tahoma Alumni Picnic and
participate in and open the museums during Maple Valley Days each June. Every 3
months, the Society publishes the Bugle which
provides the membership with information about the goings on within the society
and historical facts about the Greater Maple Valley area.
d) Our Community
The Historical Society serves the population of the
“Greater Maple Valley Area” which has been roughly defined as the boundary of
the Tahoma School District. This area encompases the City of Maple Valley
(with a population of over 25,000) and unincorporated King
County to include the Hobart, Ravensdale and
rural areas in between. The Society has
developed a great working relationship with the City of Maple Valley. Since the City’s incorporation in 1997, the
City of Maple Valley has strived to keep the area’s Historical roots in perspective while still
growing and changing. The City’s vision
statement specifically states that “maintaining historic connections with the
area’s rural past” is necessary. To that
end, the City has provided financial support for the ongoing utility costs and
insurance for the Gibbon-Mezzavilla General Store and the Fire Engine museum
that reside on their property. The
museums are open the first Saturday of each month from 10:00am to 2:00pm or by
appointment.