Welcome to Kelley House Museum!

About the Kelley House Museum

The mission of the Kelley House Museum is to collect, preserve and share the rich history of the Mendocino Coast. Founded in 1972, Kelley House Museum, Inc. maintains a beautiful house museum and gardens, as well as the Mendocino Coast’s only museum-quality storage facility and staffed research office. Our research archives represent over 150 years of Mendocino coastal history. Collections include historic photo collections, local genealogical data, research documents and publications. Over 3000 entries of maps, documents, books, photographs, oral histories and artifacts from our collection are searchable through our site.

The Kelley House Museum is an historic house museum in the heart of Mendocino, California, a picturesque town of 1,000 people. The home was built in 1861 by William Kelly (sp), one of Mendocino’s founding fathers, and now contains 19th Century furniture. The ocean-view home sits on an acre of gardens, with a pond and three resident geese. William had the pond built and stocked so that the neighborhood children could fish.

Did You Know?

We offer Walking Tours of the Mendocino National Historic Preservation District. Tours leave from the Kelley House Museum every Saturday and Sunday at 11 am, and last for 1 1/2 hours.

History Mystery

Wonacott's Studio Unknown Couple

Unknown Mendocino Coast Couple

Unknown Mendocino Coast couple taken at Wonacott’s Studio in Fort Bragg. Circa 1920 – 1930

 

Father Time and the Maiden Big River Logjam Racing on the Mendocino Headlands in the 1930s The J.M.Griffith in Mendocino Bay Kwan Tai Temple Loggers working a Tall Redwood Closeup of Loggers on a Redwood Point Cabrillo Lighthouse Wells Fargo Stage in Mendocino Logging Camp on Big River

Around the House
—Director’s Blog—

Celebrating the 4th

July 12th, 2012 by nancy

Join us on the Kelley House Museum lawn to enjoy the parade and dance to the music of The Mixed Nuts on Wednesday, July 4th. Delicious food, yummy ice cream and plenty of beer will be on hand.

Kelley House Lawn

July 4th on the Kelley House Lawn

July 4 cooksJuly 4th BBQ

Sunday Afternoon With…

April 2nd, 2013 by nancy

Sharing Music from the 70s
April 28, 3-5 pm

So much of what we enjoy today in the way of classical music events on the Coast, originated in the 1970s and 80s. Some of the people who started the movement are no longer around, but many remain vitally involved in the current musical scene, including Carolyn Steinbuck, Marcia Sloane, Tony Miksak, Barbara Faulkner, Beth Seaward, Bessy Krauss, and Pat Scott. They’ll give a glimpse of those early days by presenting snippets of music interspersed with lively stories, and illustrated by posters and photos. In the 70s, the Kelley House was used as a venue for small concerts during this period, making it a wonderfully appropriate setting for this special afternoon.

Our Sunday Afternoon With…series runs April through October on the 4th Sunday of the month from 3-5 pm. Cost is $7 pp for members; $10 non-members.

Shipping Vessels and Their Captains

April 2nd, 2013 by nancy

Our new rotating exhibit features the history of the shipping vessels that visited the Mendocino Coast, which transported passengers and cargo all around the world. Displays include a variety of ship types from doghole schooners to multi-masted sailing vessels to steamers demonstrating the progression of shipping technology. Biographies on the captains who sailed these vessels will provide insight into these seafaring individuals. Photographs and artifacts from the archives will round out the exhibit, outlining the history of our vibrant coastal shipping industry.

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