First and foremost, the Sumpter Municipal Museum and its collections belong to the Citizens of Sumpter, Oregon.
The Sumpter Museum is housed in one of Sumpter's Historic buildings, most recently known as "The Sumpter Supply". Built in 1899, the structure first served the community as a Mercantile up until the fire of 1917, which nearly decimated the City. Untouched by the fire, the building in later years served as a Tavern, Grocery Store, Liquor Store, Gas Station & Auto Repair Shop (just to name a few uses it has seen throughout the years). The building sat empty for about six years and was in dire need of much repair work. Negotiations with the absentee owner led to the property being donated to the City of Sumpter to serve as a Museum in perpetuity. This donation included additional adjacent property, some of which the City of Sumpter was permitted to sell. The profits from the sale were applied to the remodel/restoration of the Museum's historic building. Currently over 60% of the building has been upgraded to meet all building codes.
Museum Management: The Sumpter Valley Museum Association (SVMA) is a dedicated group of people sharing a common vision. We call it: "Valley Vision!" Our group is taking an active part in the fate of Oregon's Sumpter Valley and the preservation of its colorful and significant history. We have exhibited many important artifacts relating to the history of Sumpter.
The SVMA is a Non-Profit Educational Corporation. We received our tax-exempt status from the IRS in March of 2000. We operate under a set of By-Laws governed by a five member Board of Trustees.
The SVMA is charged with managing the operation and development of the Sumpter Municipal Museum, for the City of Sumpter, under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). This partnership between the SVMA and the City Of Sumpter was reviewed and approved by the Sumpter City Council.
Grants: The SVMA has been applying for Grants for several projects since the year 2000. In 2001, Meyer Memorial Trust granted the SVMA $12,000 for Capital Improvements to be made to the Museum facility. In 2002, the Leo Adler Community Fund granted $6,500, and in 2003, an additional generous grant of $4,650 was given by the Adler Foundation to establish and curate an Archive of Historic Photographs of early Sumpter, Oregon. In the fall of 2004, the Leo Adler Community Fund granted $5,000 to be used for additional capital improvements needed to complete the interior remodeling/restoration work of the Museum. In December 2006, the Adler Foundation gave the Museum a grant for $7,500 to complete the restoration of the existing flooring.
Vision: The vision of the SVMA is far-reaching and creative. The tasks are large, complex, and costly, but most of all, they require hard work. People make things happen. We need your help, expertise, and memberships to keep the SVMA moving forward.
We need volunteers to host the Museum from May through September. Meet people from all over the world that visit the Sumpter Municipal Museum.
You can help! Become a Sumpter Valley Museum Association member! Visit the Membership page of this site.
Thanks to the generosity of the Baker County Library and the Oregon Trail Regional Museum, several high quality photographic collections, significant to Sumpter history, are the basis of our Photographic Archive. New collections are surfacing and through grants and donations, the Museum is continuing and expanding their photographic archival process.
The Museum's Mission is to curate our collections and interpret Sumpter, Oregon as a City, and the reasons for its existence: Gold Mining, Logging and Ranching!
