Petersburg’s Clausen Memorial Museum has a new director. Maureen Floyd was hired in November and started work immediately.
Maureen Floyd said it’s a dream come true to be the director of the Clausen Memorial Museum.
“I always, you know, thought what a great job it would be to work in a museum,” she said. “I had a friend that was a curator for a small museum and I was so jealous of his job!”
Floyd studied archaeology and English at the University of Oregon, but after a brief stint doing fieldwork on a dig, life took her in a different direction. She helped her dad out with the family business after he took ill, and then eventually went into nursing.
She said she never lost her love of history. But after she moved to Petersburg about four years ago, she didn’t immediately visit the museum.
“I had not been in the museum, we had COVID and everything else,” she said.
“And then this summer for my birthday, my kids took me. And I just fell in love with it.”
Floyd began volunteering at the museum and then found out the position of museum director was open. But she was hesitant to apply. She wasn’t sure she was qualified. Her kids pushed her to do it anyway.
“I wasn’t going to try and they said you know, ‘Mom, this is your dream job. You need to go and do it,’” she said.
The Clausen Memorial Museum is a small nonprofit organization. It keeps limited hours and is funded mainly by admission fees and its small gift shop.
Grants have also helped fund projects and exhibits. Floyd said she plans to continue applying for grants.
“I’m a little nervous. I have never written a grant but I have probably six books I just purchased,” she said, laughing.
Floyd is the first to admit that she has a lot to learn. But she’s enthusiastic.
“There isn’t anything I’m not excited about. I’m a little overwhelmed, I will admit,” she said.
She has lots of ideas. She’s interested in events that bring younger folks to the museum, like an open mic night. She said she loves to collaborate on projects, and plans to reach out to the Petersburg Arts Council. She’d like to form some sort of partnership with Petersburg’s Norwegian dancers to bring more tourists through the museum. And she said she’s planning to get in touch with the local Alaska Natives to try to get them more involved in the museum.
And Floyd said she’s excited just to explore the archives.
“Oh my gosh, I could spend a day – or a week – in there. There are so many neat thing!” she said.
Floyd encourages community members to reach out and share their ideas as well. She can be found at the museum Monday through Friday from 1 p.m. until f5 p.m., and from noon until 5 p.m. on Saturdays.
The Clausen Memorial Museum has a new exhibit up December 1. Local artist Suzanne Fuqua’s mixed media art show Before, After, and In Between will be up through December 14th. The artist reception is December 1 from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. The museum is on Fram Street, between 2nd and 3rd Streets.
