The Arizona Historical Society designed the Arizona Centennial Museum to obliterate the mineral museum and its science education programs. They then proceeded to close and eliminate the mineral museum even though they failed to raise the funds for the centennial museum. Now, feeling the sting of adverse public opinion, they are making a less than credible attempt to redefine their failing project.
The AHS now claims the Arizona Centennial (AKA Experience) Museum is a “prominent resource” for mineral education. In fact, the experience museum does not and may not ever exist, and the AHS has terminated the education programs previously conducted by the mineral museum.
The AHS prominently features a link to Arizona Mineral Education on its website. As reported in the Sept. 8th post (Flying false colors) the AHS actually has no connection whatever to the outreach education program presented there.
The AHS also has no connection to the mineral photos. Those minerals are part of the Flagg Mineral Foundation collection. For fifty years, that high quality collection was housed in the mineral museum. The Foundation was previously named the Arizona Mineral and Mining Foundation and conducted a number of annual fundraising activities to support the mineral museum.
Following the AHS takeover of the mineral museum, the Foundation voted to sever all connections to the AHS. The vote was based on the unwillingness of the AHS to continue housing the mineral museum and education programs in a portion of the building as prescribed by Arizona statute. The Foundation changed its name, and removed its collection from the building. Part of the collection is now on display in Tucson (not at an AHS facility), but most of it is in storage.
The AHS however, is now trying to credit itself with mineral and education resources not actually associated with it in any way.
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