Lassen Historical Museum holds 160 years of history
The Lassen Historical Museum is a gem of Lassen County; the museum holds history of the Honey Lake Valley from the last 160 years.
The museum provides visitors with a full view of the history of Lassen County, beginning with artifacts from Peter Lassen and Isaac Roop and going up through the ages.
Isaac Roop’s great granddaughter, Zellamae Miles loves the history of Lassen County and is often at the museum to talk with the visitors.
There are a large variety of artifacts displayed in the museum including a wedding dress, cameras, pictures and even a wooden leg.
All of the artifacts have a brief explanation as to what it is and its place in the history of the area. Throughout the museum there are many interesting facts, such as Mark Twain wrote about Isaac Roop in his book “Roughing It.”
Currently on display is a collection of local Native American artifacts that are on loan to the museum. The collection includes various tools, bead artifacts, and a multitude of different types of woven baskets.
Some of the oldest artifacts include a rifle that was owned by Isaac Roop that was made in 1825 and that he acquired in 1850 and a Philadelphia Derringer that was owned by Susan Roop. The Derringer is a popular artifact because it is the same type of gun that John Wilkes Booth used to shoot President Lincoln.
Because of the large collection of historical items that have been collected over the years there are too many artifacts to display them all at one time. This allows for the museum to regularly rotate out their exhibits so that visitors can come multiple times and still see entirely different exhibits.
The Lassen Historical Museum is open in the winter from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and Saturday and always has a knowledgeable volunteer there to guide visitors and answer any questions.
