Monday, April 4, 2016
Correcting Marshall Trimble
As reported in prior posts, Marshall Trimble is spreading false and potentially libelous statements about the closure and status of the mineral museum. The April 4th post on www.cammaz.net presents a detailed rebuttal from the former curator of the mineral museum.
Mr. Trimble is being called out publicly for his false statements about the mineral museum. He is the AHS board president, a history teacher, and official state historian. He, of all people, should not be guilty of rewriting history.
Notes:
1. The March 24th and 25th posts on CAMMAZ also contradict Mr. Trimble. The were written by a prior curator and a key, dedicated mineral museum employee.
2. On CAMMAZ, the blog posts are on the right side of the homepage.
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I just read Dr. Rasmussen's excellent and FACTUAL response to the Trimble drivel broadcast on Channel 3. The Mining and Mineral Museum was special and served our science students and teachers well, at very little cost to the state. Trimble never told us how pathetic attednace is at their very expensive Tempe Museum, but discounts the 40,000 students per year as never happening. (AHS Tempe-about 3,000!)
ReplyDeleteDr. Rasmussen's detailed description of the MMM lets all know why, after 5 years, it is the subject of legislative action to correct a serious legal and educational issue.
Attendance is pathetic throughout all of the AHS Museums. The Riordion House in Flagstaff is holding its own. But the reason is the location and the quality and the volunteers who assist in running it.
ReplyDeleteEverything else id beyond pathetic. I challenge the AHS Board to post their attendance totals on this blog site. You know Dr. Woosley will not. Mr. Trimble, do it. If you have the guts. Show how much Dr. Woosley has failed in getting anybody into her museums.
Mr. Trimble if you don't have the guts then those figures are in the last State Audit.
The July 3, 2011 blog post (AHS attempting to hide failure?) addressed continually diminishing AHS attendance.
DeleteTrimble has shown himself to be nothing but an easily manipulated, weak and gullible historian when it comes to the AZ Historical Society. As the newly elected President of AHS, his ramblings and lack of factual information reflects badly on himself and AHS. Why are we just now hearing about ADOA closing the building when there was no word from them when the doors were slammed? At the time the mumbled reason for the hostile closure was from Ponder--they had to get ready for the new museum. You know, the one they had not raised any money for and could never even start! Woosley has never even tried to explain it publicly. Methinks they are puffing Trimble up knowing he will say whatever they want. The six new Board members have their work cut out for them--did Trimble, Ponder and Woosley discuss the tactic being used on Channel 3 with the Board? And we keep pouring millions of dollars each year into AHS for this kind of shoddy performance and continued defiance of their own statutes.
ReplyDeleteThe pictures of damage to the building were taken by a Channel 3 photographer when they were talking to AHS--not pictures of the MMM when the doors were slammed. This kind of lack of integrity is also what caused them to victimize 40,000 science students a year by defying their own statutes. To the best of MMM staff recollection, Marshall Trimble had not been a visitor and certainly would not know how scientifically excellent our museum was. However, he wants us to think that the two displays in an AHS history museum that has a dismal attendance record meet any possible state science standards. He simply makes no sense!!
ReplyDeleteThe Mineral Museum staff would have known if Mr. Trimble had been in the museum. His ego would have made him announce who he was.
ReplyDeleteDoes this Trimble guy even know he is being used? Give him an award from the AHS and stroke his ego and this is what you get.
ReplyDeleteMaybe if Mr. Trimble would not do a couple of Parade Marshal gigs he could find out what has been going on at the Arizona Historical Society and the Mineral Museum. Not listening to Ann Woosley would be a good start.
ReplyDeleteAHS is so messed up that the agency is unable to speak with a united voice or message. Because they cannot explain or justify their hostile closure of the MMM in violation of their own statutes, various people in the agency spout off and we now have all sorts of contradictory statements.
ReplyDeleteIt is clear that they wanted to destroy the MMM right from the beginning and are still fighting to keep it closed. This is sick! After 5 years they have so little to offer the 40,000 students and their teachers that taking them out of the budget rather than the successful AZGS, should have come from Ducey.
But to hear Trimble and Norton tell it, everything is wonderful up at the Marley in Tempe. Why they have a small mineral gallery rather than a mining and mineral museum (the one they get money for to have a curator, only it doesn't exist). And now they have a diorama of a mine--yes-the one that was in the MMM and they threw it out only to be rescued by the engineer
ReplyDeletewho built it. Somehow what was state property is now privately owned and is up at the Marley too. Meanwhile the AHS has abandoned all of the historic outdoor mining equipment the kids loved, and also the unique working mining display, and they keep students from the real hands-on equipment from use as they oppose the reopening of the MMM. Despite their hype, the attendance at the Marley is dismal and going down rather than up.
Even two displays in the middle of a largely ignored history museum hasn't helped. Our students and teachers deserve better than this, but they don't have lobbyists paid for by the state. They do have huge legislative support, but it only takes lobbyists to influence one or two legislators to derail a worthy project. Our government is so easily corrupted, even when kids and their education are the victims.
3,000 visitors a year for the Phoenix facility! That would also include all research library visitors, parties and rentals people walking in and the tourists and locals visiting. 3,000 for a facility that size!! All in a valley of over 4,000,000 people and many others visiting the Valley. Compare that number of visitors for any other history museum, science museum, art museum, zoo whatever and 3,000 is criminal.
DeleteWhat does the curator of the mineral museum at the Arizona Historical Society in Phoenix have to do all day? It is not a very big exhibit. Is there outreach of lectures and programs? If so, as a taxpayer I would love to know those figures. How many and to how many people. With only 3,000 visitors a year it does not seem worth having a curator for this.
DeleteThe curator position from the successful MMM was assigned to AHS along with the building rent.When AHS slammed the doors of the MMM in students faces, they moved the position to the Tempe AHS facility. The position had been empty as Dr. Rasmussen resigned earlier and AHS didn't fill it. Some months later they did hire a Phd. Geologist with no museum experience. Since there was no mineral museum to curate, the position became ever changing, but was used to oversee the state mineral collection.
DeleteThe first AHS Mineral "curator" ended up working for an insurabce call center and the newest one probably does not have much to do. 3,000 visitors a year in the museum, you would think they would die of boredom. And where is the "outreach" programs. Where do they go and how many kids/adults do they reach. maybe we should raise dome money to give the staff No-Doze pills to stay awake. How about forming a phone bank to call the AHS facility to wake them up.
DeleteMany taxpayers are wondering what ten or eleven STATE PAID employees are doing in a museum that does not have visitors. --- Pinochle?
DeleteEverybody call them to wake them up!
Delete