The Bethlehem Shipyard Museum brings its rich industrial history to the San Francisco History Days on March 5th and 6th, 2016. It joins many diverse Bay Area historical and cultural organizations at the annual event. The event will be at The Old Mint, 88 Fifth St., from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 5th and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, March 6. Admission is free.
During this event, the City of San Francisco Mayor’s Office opens the Old Mint to the public for a community open house. Used only occasionally for special private events, “The Granite Lady” will come alive with stories of the City’s unique past as over 75 organizations offer pop-up museums throughout the building and vaults. Join community historians, archivists, genealogists, archaeologists, researchers, educators, re-enactors, authors of history, filmmakers, and other history enthusiasts for this weekend showcase.
Highlights of the weekend include presentations by local historians such as uncovering the mystery of the origin of your house with tips on researching its past; how to understand Victorian architecture; peeks into collections of rare and newly digitized photos and film footage; the role of community archives; and tips for organizing your personal archives. Transit aficionados can learn more about historic power houses and car barns as well as about historic ships used during the height of the maritime era. Experts discuss treasures such as the Rincon Annex and Coit Tower murals, the Golden Gate International Exposition, as well as the visual histories of San Francisco’s neighborhoods.
A special feature of the 2016 San Francisco History Days will be Education Day, a day exclusively for students on Friday, March 4. Interested educators can reserve a two-hour look at the Old Mint and meet a dozen History Days exhibitors for their school groups. Reservations must be made no later than two weeks in advance (by February 19th).
Mini-theaters will be set up in the ground floor vaults of the Old Mint over the weekend and will feature four views on various aspects of San Francisco’s past through moving pictures. Dozens of authors will be on hand to discuss and sell their books. Special meet-up tables for social media history geeks, as well as for alumni of San Francisco high schools, will be part of the weekend. Guided tours of the building will be offered. Past history events in the same building have drawn up to 5,000 visitors.
Called together by the Mayor’s Office, a committee comprised of historians from local nonprofit organizations has stepped up to coordinate the San Francisco History Days at the Old Mint in 2016, and the committee is working with the current tenants of the Old Mint and event underwriter, NonPlusUltra, Inc. to bring the event together.
For information on reserving a space for your class of students on Friday, March 4 for Education Day, please contact Patty Pforte at educationday@sfhistorydays.org
For general information on the event or to see a list of participating organizations, visit sfhistorydays.org