We thought you might enjoy in a summary of past
Society activities and a look to the future.

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The Cramer girls, Elizabeth and Pauline, circa 1934
Members of Moya-RHS played a significant role earlier this year encouraging the Marin Art & Garden center Trustees to recognize the importance of adhering to Bylaws, ensuring members the right to vote, and financial oversight at the Center. The Moya Board continues its support of the MAGC Trustees.

Our First Friday Forenoon Speaker series continues and we are proud of the speakers attracted new audiences. Our book sales remain brisk, and along with the First Friday programs help offset the expenses of maintaining our Octagon House and Docent Program that keeps the Library open for the community. We also enjoyed the best exposure in years at the Ross Fourth of July Parade. The Moya-RHS also was instrumental in planning and execution of the recent Ross Bridge Dedication and Historic Plaque Presentation.

Our overall membership is down slightly at just under 100 members and our cash position has dropped somewhat from last year as our contributions to the Center for rental and insurance have increased. Our June Poolside Luncheon included a raffle, providing an extra boost    to this annual fundraiser.  We hope that more members will join us next year. 

Traditionally the Moya-RHS has maintained a relatively low profile.  However the disappearance of the Old Ross Schoolhouse reminded Trustees one of the core purposes of our organization is the protection and preservation of our community's historic improvements. The Moya-RHS led the way in providing the documentation that became relevant to the Town Council's admission that due process had not been followed. We have offered to assist the Town in developing a program to identify  and inventory buildings such as the Old School House and historic Coddington House at 73 Winship. The Town Council has asked for our input on the proposed plans to renovate the Old Stone House at Natalie Coffin Greene Park.

In the course of collecting the historical data on both the Schoolhouse and the Coddington residence, we discovered the Moya Library-RHS has a great deal of historical information that may be of importance in similar situations.  But we face the herculean task of inventorying, assessing and preserving all these records. If you would like to help in these efforts, please let us know.

Several years ago, the Moya-RHS actively supported the preservation of

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Portion of the Ross School Mural
Jose Moya del Pino's iconic mural at the entrance of the Ross Grammar School.  When the School reopened, we took detailed photographs of the mural and the students whom posed as models in the 1940s.  We have identified almost all of them and hope to sponsor a reunion with the community.  

The School mural prompted us to look for other Moya works and we have now photographed the mural he painted in the old Rossi Brothers Pharmacy in San Anselmo as well as the one he painted for his family at their residence on Laurel Grove Avenue in Ross. We are discovering other Moya paintings and portraits of pioneer and prominent Ross residents.  We are taking museum-quality photographs of them and hope to have an exhibition in the future. Please contact us if you have knowledge of other Moya's works or if you would be interested working on this project. 

Thanks to the generosity of many founding members of Moya Library, we are blessed with some rare and beautiful books on gardening and art.  Some are really treasures and make the Moya a very special and unique library. We recently have been presented with the possibility of becoming the repository of a significant library on old garden roses, representing the lifetime efforts of Miriam Wilkins, founder of the Heritage Roses Group. The collection contains some very old and valuable first editions spanning three centuries of rose lore and is of such depth and range that it has the potential of becoming a significant research and reference Center. We are in discussion with the Trustees of the Heritage Roses Group and Miriam Wilkins Estate. There is much ground to cover but it is a marvelous opportunity and we would welcome your help in bringing this collection to the Moya Library.

The Octagon House (circa 1864)  has been our home since 1968, and will celebrate its 150th birthday in 2014. Please join us in planning a celebration in honor of this milestone - one of the oldest buildings in the Town of Ross!

Moya Library-Ross Historical Society is embracing new fields of interest as well as continuing to focus on our core mission. We are enthusiastic about these exciting opportunities and invite you to join us in these efforts. 

We would love to hear your thoughts about the Moya-Ross Historical Society.
Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Box 437, Ross, CA 94957 - (415) 258-9595 - moya.rhs@gmail.com
The Octagon House (c.1864) - California Heritage Council Preservation Award