Photo courtesy of NWCM - Laurie and Jerry Bowman have been with the Northwest Carriage Museum for 18 years. The collection and museum growth is due to their hard work and dedication.
The Northwest Carriage Museum is celebrating its 20th year anniversary this Saturday. The museum is located in downtown Raymond at 314 Alder St.
"We are showing off all our carriages and artifacts celebrating our 20th year," said Museum Ambassador Stephanie Bye. [September 3] that is our actual opening date. We opened 20 years ago."
On Saturday, September 3, there will be discounted admission where everyone gets in for $5 (members are free). Looking forward to the museum's giveaways, a free raffle for museum swag, $10 museum hats, and slideshow going over the highlights of the past 20 years. The museum is open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The museum is also offering cake and punch to snack on.
Over the last 20 years the museum has grown in leaps and bounds. "Records show the museum opened with about 50 members," commented Executive Director Laurie Bowman. "I'm thrilled we've grown the membership to 470! Our SYCS program has been extremely successful, and it is wonderful to be partnering with local businesses! We are up to 29 participating businesses!"
"In the initial years of the museum, it was started with 21 vehicles that were part of a donation by Gary Dennis," explained Museum Curator Jerry Bowman. "Randy and Amy Dennis started a non-profit and opened the museum in 2002. It was on a small scale at that point, I don't think they anticipated the tourist attraction that it has now become. That 21 original carriages has now reached 62 on display in the museum and 63 and 64 are here in my shop being worked on."
"We, the museum, have grown exponentially, not only with the horse drawn vehicles from the 19th century, but also with thousands of period artifacts from that time," Jerry continued. "Some of our artifacts are just incredible. Most of that stuff has been donated to us because we are non-profit."
"People are just enthusiastic when they come in," Jerry said. "We have so much fun on tours. I feel we have built this momentum and I think we will continue to grow."
"I am amazed and beyond grateful for the growth of the Museum," Laurie said. "The foundation laid in 2002, gave us every opportunity to grow the collection, bring visitors to our beautiful area all while keeping history alive. The generosity of the community and visitors does my heart my good, we know we wouldn't be successful without the support! Jerry and I are fortunate to love where we live and be involved with something we enjoy immensely! I'm not sure it gets any better!"
"It's phenomenal to have the museum here, Laurie and I retired from Southern California 20 years ago now," said Jerry. "We found our paradise and we love it here and we are very involved with the community in many, many different ways."