Located at the base of Mount Shasta in Northern California, the Mount Shasta Sisson Museum preserves the region’s history through hands-on exhibits and a building with its own past.
The museum is housed in a former fish hatchery built between 1905 and 1910. Community members saved the structure from demolition in 1979, recognizing its value in a region with few remaining historic buildings.
“We have very few historical buildings left, and they wanted to keep that one,” said Jean Nels, the museum’s executive director.
Today, the museum operates largely with volunteers, many of them retired teachers. Nels, who spent 34 years as an educator, said the exhibits are designed to be interactive.
“People learn by playing, learn by doing," she said. "It makes it more real if they can touch it and do it."
Instead of placing artifacts behind glass, the museum invites visitors to engage directly with exhibits, including a working flume that demonstrates how logs were transported and hands-on activities that reflect the region’s fishing history.
Murals throughout the museum depict key moments in the area’s history, including the 1917 fire and the arrival of the railroad. The exhibits aim to reflect the surrounding landscape, with features such as a recreated lava tube that visitors can crawl through.
Nels said early planners wanted to “bring in the beauty of the area,” shaping a space that blends geology, history and art. Displays also explain how Mount Shasta formed and how its volcanic activity is monitored today.
Among the museum’s notable artifacts is the top of an 1870s signal cone, once used in surveying to help establish property lines and map the California-Oregon border. The site was also associated with what has been described as the longest mirror flash ever measured, reaching 192 miles.
The structure fell during a lightning storm in 1903, but part of it remains on display. Nels said it reflects the ambition of early figures such as Justin Sisson, who recognized the mountain’s potential.
Learn more: Mt. Shasta Sisson Museum video series
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- Jean Nels, executive director, Mt. Shasta Sisson Museum
