The museum is located at 9921 Highway 281 (Soda Bay Road) between Kelseyville and Lower Lake.
The new Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum will function as a historical and agricultural visitor center that will encompass the Ely Stage Stop building, as well as several reconstructed old barns, displays of farm equipment, agricultural demonstrations, and interpretive and living history exhibits, including a blacksmith shop.
The two-story structure will provide a permanent home for the Lake County Historical Society, as well as a starting point for a self-guided historical tour of Lake County.
“We’re excited to see this new museum open to the public,” said Lake County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox. “It will be an incredible resource for both residents and visitors to learn about and appreciate Lake County’s agricultural heritage.”
The grand opening will provide an opportunity for the public to see the progress to date and learn about the plans for continued development of the museum’s exhibits.
“We’re looking forward to the completion of the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum,” said Phil Smoley, president of the Lake County Historical Society. “Not only is it a significant historical site, it will become an important destination that will attract people to Lake County and help stimulate the local economy.”
The Ely Stage Stop building dates to the late 1850s and is considered by some to be the oldest “stick-built” building in Lake County.
On July 29, 2007, the historic Ely Stage Stop structure was relocated from its original location at 7909 Highway 29 on land owned by Beckstoffer Vineyards, across Highway 29, to its new location on Soda Bay Road, approximately one mile north of Kit’s Corner.
Although its age and condition made the relocation a challenge, the building’s varied history as a stage stop, hotel, and even a post office adds historical character to the new museum. The new site also features dramatic views of Mount Konocti and overlooks the former S-Bar-S Ranch.
This project was made possible through the generous donation of the Andrew Beckstoffer family who donated the historic building and the five-acre parcel just a few miles from the building’s original site for the establishment of the museum.
In addition to the Beckstoffer family donation of the historic building and land, the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum has received several other generous contributions including a donation of $100,000 from the Kettenhofen Family Foundation, a charitable foundation established and funded by the estates of Ernest and Polly Kettenhofen who owned the S-Bar-S Ranch from approximately 1960 to 2000.
With arrangements set forth in a proposed Memorandum of Understanding between the County and the Lake County Historical Society, the County agreed to be responsible for the physical relocation and the necessary improvements to the structure and the Historical Society agreed to be responsible for the acquisition of the barns and farm equipment to be exhibited as well as the day-to-day operation of the museum.
The Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum will be owned by the county and will be staffed by members of the Lake County Historical Society.
Donations of artifacts and old barns are still being sought as are photos depicting the original building in its early years and throughout its many transformations and uses.
Anyone interested in contributing time or resources to the project may contact Greg Dills, chairman of the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum Project for the Lake County Historical Society, at 707-263-4180, Extension 12.
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