The Arizona Historical Society Museum, in its beautiful desert setting at the edge of Papago Park.
Dear Friends of AHS,
We are in crisis and need your help now! Governor Brewer released her budget. The Governor’s budget completely eliminates funding for the Arizona Historical Society by phasing out state appropriated dollars over the next five years. If her proposal is approved, the Arizona Historical Society will cease to exist. Please contact her immediately on behalf of the Arizona Historical Society to express your opposition to this provision in her budget.
The following message should be conveyed in the strongest possible terms by phone, email, or letter:
Dear Governor Brewer:
I/We respectfully request that you do not pursue your five year plan to phase out all state appropriated funding for the Arizona Historical Society. To do so will result in the elimination of the Arizona Historical Society that was established by an Act of the First Territorial Legislature in 1864. Instead, we ask that you support the Legislature’s proposal for the Arizona Historical Society’s budget, which reduces funding at more manageable levels and will enable the agency to continue.
I/We call for your support of our state’s oldest historical agency and its mission that engages, illuminates, educates, and inspires our communities in the rich history that shaped our state and contributes to the quality of life for all Arizonans.
Please eliminate this proposal from further consideration.
Governor Brewer’s contact information:
The Honorable Jan Brewer Telephone 602-542-4331
Governor of Arizona Toll Free 1-800-253-0883
1700 West Washington Fax 602-542-1381
Phoenix, AZ 85007
To submit a comment to Governor Brewer online, visit her website at: http://azgovernor.gov/Contact.asp.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Anne I. Woosley, Ph. D.
Executive Director
To submit a letter download, print, sign and send.
The Tucson library and archives contains thousands of unpublished manuscripts, memoirs, diaries, company records, organizational papers, correspondence, biographical files, surveys, and government reports, as well as more than 50,000 books documenting the history of Arizona. (click photo to search on-line)
Special thanks to Kaia Landon of the Mesa Historical Museum for tweeting about this to spread the word!
Comments
I am truly sorry to hear this news. In Oregon our state historical society is facing similar challenges. The Governor's budget included continued state funding but the budget from Ways & Means zeroed them out this year. One major line of argument in favor of funding is that the Oregon Historical Society was chartered by the state government and the legislation mandates certain actions. Unfunded mandates are a problem bedeviling state and local governments. A support group for the Oregon Historical Society on Facebook could provide ideas perhaps. Would that that there were a regional consortium of state historical organizations developing a common lobbying strategy.
Unfortunately, the AHS budget was restored and even supplemented. They are now using the money to destroy the historic and top rated Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum. They plan to replace it with an Arizona Centennial Museum that no longer has and chance of being open for Arizona centennial. They have not even been able to finalize the theme for the new museum. Complete details are available on Mineral Museum Madness at http://minmumad.blogspot.com
Dear Dick, Thank you for the update. Sounds like there are a lot of tough politics in Arizona. Thanks for keeping the westmuse up-to-date.
Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum
The AHS gained control of the mineral museum in 2010 and locked the doors in 2011 even though they received state funding to operate it every year since.
In 2015, the state legislature passed SB1200 with an overwhelming bipartisan majority to restore the mineral museum by transferring its assets to a state agency willing to reopen and operate it. Unfortunately, AHS lobbyists managed to get the new Arizona Governor to veto the bill.
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