Historic Preservation Week 2024: Awards, new historic public art

& history of Ashland’s Chinese community

 Join us for 2024 Historic Preservation Week events

on May 17, 18 and 19 — Mark your calendars!

Friday, May 17 at Mountain View Cemetery (8:30 am to 4:00 pm) Self-guided tours.

Saturday, May 18 at Railroad Park Gazebo (10:30 am to 11:45 am), Historic Preservation awards and Public Art recognitions; remarks by the Mayor; followed by a walking tour to see the five new historic sidewalk medallions.

Sunday, May 19 at Ashland Library Gresham Room (5:00 pm to 6:30 pm). Learn about Ashland’s Chinese community from the 1880s to the 1920s and the discrimination faced by the Chinese people in Oregon.

 Here is more detailed information about the events.

Friday, May 17 event at Mountain View Cemetery:

8:30 am to 4:00 pm: Self-guided tours of Ashland’s historic Mountain View Cemetery, located at the corner of Ashland Street and Normal Avenue.

Saturday, May 18 event at Railroad Park Gazebo:

10:30 am: Welcome by Historic Preservation committee Chair, Beverly Hovenkamp.

Remarks by Mayor Tonya Graham.

10:45 am: Presentation of the 2024 Historic Preservation awards.

11:00 am: Celebration of five new Railroad District historic sidewalk medallions, including remarks by Public Arts committee Chair Ken Engelund. Staff and volunteers who helped steward creation of the new artworks will be recognized. This completes Phase 1 of Marking Ashland Places, a long-term heritage tourism project.

11:30 am: Ribbon Cutting ceremony by the Chamber of Commerce.

11:45 am: Walking tour to visit the five historic medallions. The tour, with history stories about each site by Peter Finkle of WalkAshland, will cover less than one mile and last about one hour.

Sunday, May 19 event at the Ashland Library, in the Gresham Room:

5:00 pm: Chelsea Rose, Director of the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology, will speak on the topic “The Wah Chung and Company: How a small store helped Ashland’s early Chinese community outfox a racist immigration system.”

5:45 pm: Peter Finkle of WalkAshland will tell stories, both humorous and sad, about Ashland’s Chinese community in the early 1900s.

There will be some time for questions from the audience.

(This event is not sponsored or endorsed by the Library.)

Historic Preservation Week is proudly sponsored by the City of Ashland, Advisory Committees for Historic Preservation and Public Arts, Ashland Chamber of Commerce, SOU Laboratory of Anthropology and WalkAshland.