The Jefferson County Historical Society recently purchased the historic Methodist Church in Madras to house a future county museum.

The church, built in 1908, had most recently been owned by the Faith-Based Network. The purchase closed in late May.

“We are so excited to be the owners of the church building and to be starting the process of establishing a museum there,” said Lottie Holcomb, president of the JCHS.

The iconic church on Eighth and D streets in Madras currently houses two churches that rent space. The JCHS plans to continue renting the spaces while moving forward on plans to update the structure externally and internally, then organize and operate a county museum. The society will maintain the historical look of the steepled, white church.

“We are thrilled to finally have a place to call home — a milestone that has been years in the making. Countless board members, past and present, have worked tirelessly to bring us to this exciting moment, and their dedication has made it all possible,” said Lottie Holcomb, president of the JCHS.

Jefferson County has been without a county museum since the JCHS operated a small museum in the upper floors of the old courthouse on Sixth and D streets. When that building was deemed unsafe 13 years ago, the museum was shut down. The society’s museum items have been stored in a private facility for years, and the JCHS has rented a downtown Madras office for visibility and meeting space for several years.

The society received assistance from Jefferson County Board of Commissioners on the building purchase.

Jefferson County government granted the JCHS $100,000 toward the purchase of the church, which with the parking lot covers the quarter block on the north side of D Street between Eighth and Ninth streets. The JCHS added $50,000 of its own funds toward the purchase at closing, and is responsible for an additional $150,000 by May of 2027. The total purchase price was $300,000.

While this is a big first step, there is still a lot to be done. In researching what other similar sized county governments in Oregon contribute to their local museums, the society initially requested a $200,000 contribution from the county. Also, for many years, Jefferson County budgeted $30,000 to the historical society toward supporting a museum but is currently contributing $10,000 annually. It was hoped the full $30,000 could now be freed up to assist with activities needed to move forward. The county expenditure for this year remains at $10,000. The county has offered the services of its grant writer to assist the historical society in pursuing additional resources from agencies, foundations and philanthropies who see the value in preserving the past and looking to the future.

“Our vision is to establish an excellent museum in Madras for Jefferson County, and nearly all the counties in our region and near our population that have county museums have major financial and/or facility involvement from their county governments,” said Holcomb. “Jefferson County was willing to help us with the purchase but wasn’t ready to make a bigger commitment at this time. We very much hope they will in the future as we believe it’s vital to our success.”

“We had planned for that $30,000 as we projected out our budget, so that was a real disappointment. There was certainly some good news/bad news on the financial front for the historical society in April,” said Holcomb.

Focused on fundraising

With the building in ownership, the JCHS is focused on obtaining grants and raising funds for remodeling, structural improvements, exhibit preparation and operations planning. There is no firm timetable when a museum will open to the public.

JCHS officials indicated they will ardently pursue grants — local, state and national grants. It is far easier to receive grants if you own a building and have specific improvements to seek grants for. So, getting the building was the first step.

The building was professionally inspected before the purchase, and while there are issues with the 117-year-old structure, the inspection produced nothing that deterred the JCHS from moving forward. There are, however, updates that need to be done. Plans are to improve the exterior and interior, and to update much of the electrical system.

“The structure does have incredibly good bones and its layout presents a great floorplan as a launchpad for a museum. Walking in through the front door, under the iconic bell tower, is an open, high-ceiling church nave. On the north half of the upper floor are offices separated by a hallway, with the restrooms in the northeast corner,” said Tom Manning, chairman of the JCHS museum committee. “We would eventually like to transition the internal offices into exhibit space, include a youth area, retaining the northernmost offices for management or society use.”

The basement in the church has a full kitchen which has long-term potential as a community, research or event space.

At this early stage, the historical society plans to maintain the current renters at the site to help offset costs while it works to raise funds and put together exhibit and operation plans.

“As we embark on the journey of shaping this museum into a true gem for Jefferson County, we recognize the hard work still ahead of us. But we couldn’t have chosen a more fitting place to begin — one of the oldest buildings in our area, steeped in the history we seek to preserve and share,” said Holcomb. “This space will not only honor our county’s rich past but also provide a gathering place for our community, where stories can be told, memories shared, and history brought to life. We invite everyone to join us in this endeavor, as together we create a museum that will inspire generations to come.”

The historical society’s museum committee — made up of Manning, Becky Roberts, Jim Carroll, Jennie Smith and Tony Ahern, along with society President Holcomb — headed up the society’s efforts and representation in buying the historic building. The entire society board voted unanimously to endorse the purchase.