From 1983 until 1997, Mary Mashcal assembled an extensive collection of memorabilia and aritifacts, filling virtually every room of her Golden Hill home with historic documents, banners, posters, and books. Mary and others also reached out into the community, offering lectures on women’s history to school children, professional and social organizations, and community groups.
In 1995, at the urging of family and friends, Mary opened her home to the public and held exhibitions of her vast collection. The enthusiasm over Mary’s collection, generated by the Open House, and the need in San Diego for a museum dedicated solely to women and their stories brought forth the Women’s History Reclamation Project.
In 1997, the WHRP moved from Mary’s home into the nearby ART UNION Building and opened to the public on a regular basis. In December of 2003 the WHRP changed its name to the Women’s History Museum and Educational Center or WHM, and in 2011, the organization changed their name for one final time to the Women’s Museum of California (WMC) with the tag line “preserving the past … inspiring the future”. We are now located at the NTC at Liberty Station in Point Loma.
WMC is a co-founder and sponsor of the San Diego County Women’s Hall of Fame, and a collaborator with dozens of women’s and girl’s organizations and agencies throughout the region.
Join us as Diane Peabody, Executive Director of the Womens Museum of CA, (WMC), shares how the organization’s highly-acclaimed work has evolved it into full-fledged women’s history museum and valuable community educational resource. And, with the help of many volunteers and a dedicated staff, the WMC provides a variety of changing exhibits and displays on women’s history, sponsors workshop and lecture series, develops and implements educational and cultural events, including art shows, an annual film festival, live performances and presentations; maintains a library, archive & collections; and provides speakers for the community through its Speakers’ Bureau.
ABOUT DIANA PEABODY STRAW
After serving on the Museum Board for a year, Diane was the Museum’s Director of Development. Her experience includes fundraising, event planning, marketing, campaigning, and volunteer management.
