McHenry Museum

06/01/2026

How many chances arise to celebrate a centennial birthday? How many more chances are there to learn the story of a World War II veteran? This month the McHenry Museum & Historical Society sat down with William “Bill” Rose Jr. to document his life. Bill donated the Pharmacy display to the McHenry Museum and served Modesto as the pharmacist at Central Drugs on the corner of Tenth and “I” for almost 40 years! Please enjoy the story of the Century of the Central Druggist:

https://www.mchenrymuseum.org/newsletter

05/12/2026

A memorial to honor Odessa P. Johnson will be held on Saturday, May 30, 2026 at Modesto Junior College’s East Campus (the main campus), 435 College Ave in Modesto.

A reception will be held at 1:00 p.m that day in the art gallery and a Celebration of Life service will begin at 2:30 p.m. in the auditorium.

The public is invited to attend.

05/06/2026

You can still get tickets for the Historic House Tour this Saturday!

https://checkout.square.site/merchant/80VQE6RDNTD12/checkout/PWEDXUNCMYFES2BC56CQ6D5Y?utm_id=97758_v0_s00_e0_tv2_a1demo0jr180af&fbclid=IwdGRjcARoUntleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEenlKiXk8uNlCKHDQYSPSmyM5Sa0azRNTRHT9ZZSynRuyTJifcwlPN8C03IbA_aem_5zXuVjDgVeEKLz3nvoZb5Q

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05/01/2026

Next Saturday, May 9th, the McHenry Museum & Historical Society will be hosting a fundraiser, a historic walking tour of three homes near Graceada Park. All of us may pass these homes and admire the architecture or pass them without a thought. Each of these homes has a story behind it, it is the story of its original inhabitants, this month we highlight the history behind three of these homes. We hope you will join us for the tour. (Link to tickets in the comments).
To read about their stories, please click the link below:
www.mchenrymuseum.org/newsletter

04/23/2026

It is with great sadness that we share the death of Odessa P Johnson.

Odessa was born on April 26, 1939, in Greenville, South Carolina, during the time of segregation in the southern United States. After receiving her master’s degree from Columbia University, she traveled by train and arrived to Modesto at our local historic rail station in 1962.

She was hired as Modesto High School’s first African American teacher, teaching in business and typing. She was the only African American on staff when she was hired by Modesto Junior College in 1970, where she was as a counselor. In 1984, she worked to found the Modesto Institute for Continued Learning (MICL) so that area adults had the opportunity to continue learning through a higher education format.

In 1991, she was elected to the Modesto City Schools board of education and in 1999 was appointed as a University of California regent, where she advocated for a medical school to be included at UC Merced.

Odessa shared her story with the McHenry Museum & Historical Society in 2024 and is featured as an extraordinary woman in our 2025 publication, ‘StaniStory: Change and Continuity in Stanislaus County,’ by Keith Highiet and David Seymour.

Our thoughts are with her daughter, Sylvia, and family. The products of Odessa’s tireless efforts in education continue to profoundly impact our community today.

04/09/2026

*YOU’RE INVITED!*

Fifty years ago, on May 9, 1976, the McHenry Museum & Historical Society hosted a reunion of the pioneer Maze Family. On May 9, 2026, we are doing it again!

This time we are hosting the reunion and exhibit of family memorabilia in the original home of the family at 318 Magnolia Ave, the home of Joie Maze Bunker.

We invite all local residents to our triple historic home tour, featuring the Maze home (the Maze’s were one of the founding families of Modesto), and homes of the Tillson family (of the historic Modesto Lumber Company) and the Harris Family (of the historic Plato’s Men’s Store).

Tours begin every half hour starting from 10:00 am - 12:30 pm on Saturday May 9, 2026! All proceeds benefit future projects of the historical society.

https://checkout.square.site/merchant/80VQE6RDNTD12/checkout/PWEDXUNCMYFES2BC56CQ6D5Y

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04/01/2026

Last month, the people of Stanislaus County learned of the death of June Galas, the last owner of Modesto’s famous Sundial Lodge. The McHenry Museum & Historical Society decided to revisit the history of Modesto’s most missed business. The Galas family assisted in providing stories and photographs to tell the story of an iconic restaurant and lodge, where the Galas family did not have mere customers, but new members of their family each time they opened their doors for the forty-two years the Sundial operated. 2026 is the seventieth anniversary of the Sundial. With June’s death, an era has ended, but the memories continue, as it would be rare to find someone who lived in the area who did not dine at the Sundial:
www.mchenrymuseum.org/newsletter

03/24/2026

From KOVR - CBS 13 / Sacramento —

Nina Burns reports.

03/01/2026

What began as a history of Rogers Hall in our continuation of the story of the destruction of Downtown Modesto has evolved into a family story of two important pioneer families, Rogers and Maze. There would have been no Modesto without the Maze family land, and the story of the Rogers Memorial Fountain has been a historical legend since it was dismantled in 1953. In the past two months, the McHenry Museum & Historical Society has contacted the granddaughters of Joie Maze Bunker. Joie (pronounced “Joey”) was the half-sister of “Little Roy” Rogers, the boy memorialized on the fountain. She was born two years after his death and never met him. However, Joie saved his photographs and artifacts, as well as many other treasures. Since her death in 1976, they have remained hidden. Now, to celebrate Women’s History Month, we share what Joie preserved. This is not only her story, but those of generations of women in the Rogers and Maze families who gave back and left a lasting mark in Modesto:

www.mchenrymuseum.org/newsletter

02/11/2026

The McHenry Museum & Historical Society was honored to present copies of ‘StaniStory: Change and Continuity in Stanislaus County’ to the Modesto City Schools Board of Education at its February 2026 meeting in recognition of contributions made by MCS board members, teachers, and staff over the past three years in helping to complete this updated curriculum for local elementary students.

Fun fact: Former MCS school board member, Odessa Johnson, is featured among the extraordinary women in StaniStory (page 32)! https://tinyurl.com/StaniStory