The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON-What does it mean to be the new Boldman House Museum manager in a museum that is closed through May 1 because of the concerns around the novel coronavirus?

Amy Rosenberg is now conducting virtual live tours of the museum on Facebook, every Saturday at 2 p.m.

"I'll be exploring different areas of the house and the collection every week," Rosenberg said. "There's so much to see, I'm sure I have months of content."

Rosenberg has been a museum volunteer for the past couple of years and is currently presenting the children's program Story Train on Facebook until the coronavirus shutdown is over.

Story Train, which uses stories, songs and rhymes to explore cultural and historical themes, takes place on Thursdays at 10 a.m. She said volunteer Shakira Bye is presenting Story Train on the Instagram account on Mondays at 10 a.m.

"So, 'like' us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, for lots of virtual content until we can open again," she said.

She said while the museum is closed, volunteer garden coordinator Susie Rogers continues preparing the garden beds for spring.

"The garden is always open, and it's fun to walk through in the spring and watch new things popping up, and blooming all the time," Rosenberg said.

She said the garden is a teaching garden, which means everything is labeled with its common and Latin name.

"I like house museums because they are dedicated to an underrepresented area of history – family life and the everyday lives of women," Rosenberg said. "The Boldman is such an amazing example of that, having been the home to unmarried women for so much of its life."

She said the museum is a unique house museum with an extensive collection with so much to see and explore. Turning the house into a museum took a monumental effort and keeping it takes such an enormous amount of love and dedication.

"Being a steward of that kind of project is just such an honor and inspiration. It's a dream to be part of something so dear to so many, and I feel deeply fortunate to be chosen," she said.

Rosenberg said she is looking forward to digging into research and creating thoughtful, engaging exhibits that people will enjoy and learn from. She is hoping to eke out a little more exhibit space than is currently used and hopes to put together some rotating exhibits to draw people back, after their initial visit.

Rosenberg is originally from Pendleton, Ore., and has lived in Oregon for a fair portion of her life. She has a master's degree in Library and Information Science, skills which transition easily into museums, she said.

Rosenberg was a past Museum Manager for the Umatilla County Historical Society's Heritage Station Museum, in Pendleton, before moving to Dayton in 2011. She is married to Dale Slack, the County Prosecuting Attorney, and they have a four-year-old daughter, Matilda.

She also serves on the Blue Mountain Station Co-op board and on the Friends of the Pool/Community Center committee.

The Boldman House Museum is located at 410 North First Street in Dayton. Rosenberg can be reached by phone at: (509) 382-1548 or by email at: boldmanhousemuseum@gmail.com, for information about museum programs or tours. For faster responses contact Rosenberg through direct message on any of the social media pages.