This organization began in response to circumstances which have confronted small towns for the past twenty years. The major problems are a decline in the downtown retail areas which has contributed to the neglect and decline of historic structures, along with a decline in economic base. Concurrently, we see a revival in our society of interest in going back to basic values, and an increasing amount of leisure time in a generally prosperous society and a peaceful world. There has been a corresponding explosion in tourism in general, and historic preservation and museums are seen as viable economic opportunities. Related factors include dramatically increased interest in such fields as genealogy, the antiques trade, archaeology, craft fairs, and other events...all fueled by increases in our society s mobility.

So, small towns all across American responded by developing Main Street programs, which contributed to the development of historic preservation, tourism, the antiques and crafts trade, and the resulting need for more community attractions. This created an interest by the City of Pittsburg to assist and encourage the development of our museum program.

Our primary focus is on the actual history of our five-county area. From its first settlement in the 1850s until World War II, it was primarily an agricultural community. The merchant class, banks, schools, and railroads all were developed to serve the agricultural and rural community. Today s older generations are the last survivors of that era, and in our case, it has been the retired community which appreciated and supported the need to develop our museum.

Our primary goal is to teach future generations that food and fiber do not just come from plastic bottles at the supermarket or Wal-Mart; that our present society did not acquire the good life we lead by merely being born. Future generations should know that real people living real lives (under conditions now considered very primitive) provided us with the solid base upon which our freedom and our democracy rests. We want future generations to realize that by emulating those basic values of hard work, morality, church, school, and family, they can pass onto their own children and grandchildren those worthwhile characteristics we all desire.

So, how to do it? First, the old Cotton Belt Depot was in ruins, but a good place to start. While there had been sporadic attempts to acquire the Depot for museum purposes for some years, in 1989, a concerted effort, led by a retired former resident and backed by the City of Pittsburg acquired the Depot and organized the Pittsburg/Camp County Museum Association, Inc. Its stated purpose was to develop and operate the Northeast Texas Rural Heritage Museum. From the beginning, a living history farmstead adjacent to the Depot was to be part of the facility and its programs.

In addition to the usual historic preservation and education objectives, the project was described as economic development for the community, in order to insure support from local business and professional firms.

The rural heritage theme was agreed upon for two reasons: (1) that is the factual historic background of the area, and (2) it was felt artifacts related to farming and agriculture were readily and inexpensively available in the area.

The Northeast Texas Rural Heritage Center & Museum name was decided upon to further our goal of being a regional facility. The public is not always attracted to local history museums. It was felt that a more generic theme must be used. This has proven to be the case, and other small town museums are now changing their names to appeal to a wider market.

A large group of volunteers began rehabilitating the depot building in the fall of 1990. The museum opened in the fall of 1991, and was an immediate success. Entirely built and operated by volunteers, the Pittsburg/Camp County Museum Association today has over 500 members who contribute an average of some $55.00 per year to the operation of the museum.

Difficulties arose with the farmstead phase of the plan. The land adjacent to the Depot, contrary to earlier assumptions, was not made available to the museum, and all efforts for two years to acquire a suitable nearby site were in vain (primarily for lack of funds). Partly in frustration, a decision was made to add an Annex building behind the Depot, and this was begun in early 1993. It was to be constructed strictly with volunteer labor and donated materials, assisted by a small seed money grant from the Summerlee Foundation of Dallas. Shortly after this building was begun, a local benefactor suddenly offered a gift of some $55,000 to purchase a choice local one-acre site and begin development of the farmstead. You cannot say No, we re busy to an offer like that! The site was purchased, and the 100-year-old farmhouse and barn which had been slowly deteriorating on their original site, were moved to town and rebuilt.

Our interest in the Resource Sharing Project stems from our lack of sufficient professional staff to perform the many obligatory duties. Our present staff consists of one museum professional and one part-time office person. All other staff are volunteers, the same people who rebuilt the Depot, etc. We need a full-time staff of four even now! However, other people have helped us overcome these problems. We have received much counselling and advice from organizations and other small-town museum directors. That is resource sharing which has been critical to our success.

Our problems are typical...raising operating funds, motivating volunteers, and insuring a continuation of strong leaders in the Association. We also envision needs in exhibit design, programs, and expertise in the fields of curatorial and preservation techniques.

We will overcome these problems, so our future is bright in Pittsburg! Immediate plans include developing education programs; volunteer training, motivation , and reward; and stabilizing our staff positions to insure continuity in our operating policies. At the same time, we will refine our collection to improve its quality, and to renovate our exhibits to make them more meaningful and interesting to our public.

We are ambitious and firmly believe If you built it RIGHT, they will come!

The Association was chartered in 1989 as a non-profit corporation. The Association and the City joined forces to purchase the 1901 Cotton Belt Railway Depot from Southern Pacific, with title passing to the City of Pittsburg in early summer of 1990. Reconstruction of the building began immediately with an all-volunteer workforce.

The Northeast Texas Rural Heritage Museum opened on August 31, 1991, and has been open three days each week since that time. A planned Farmstead adjacent to the Depot was found not to be feasible, so the Farmstead (a part of the original plan) was delayed. Meanwhile, in early 1993, a decision was made to add an additional exhibit hall behind the Depot. This Depot Annex was begun in the spring of 1993. Also in the spring of 1993, a local benefactor offered a sizeable gift to purchase a site for the Farmstead, and this was accomplished by mid-summer. A 100-year-old farmhouse, barn, and other structures had been given to the museum earlier. They were moved to town in August 1993, and renovation of the farmhouse began immediately.

Meanwhile, the museum conducted business as usual at the Depot. Summer children's programs, Black History Month programs, and other activities were carried out. A professional staff person was employed in the summer of 1993, and documentation of the collection was begun on computer.

With two major building projects, both still dependent on volunteer labor and gifts of material, progress on the Depot Annex and the Farmstead was slow during the spring and summer of 1994. However, by late summer, the Annex was virtually complete. Both the Annex and the Farmstead has been opened to the public.

After completing these major building projects, the Association will concentrate on improving and expanding its educational offerings, exhibits, and interfacing with the community, the schools, and the nearby college.