Your Castro Valley Museum

Hopefully you’ve heard about the Castro Valley Pop-Up Museum by now. So let me get on my soapbox and tell you a little bit more about this whole Pop-Up Museum thing.

David Ashton of CV Legends already told you a little bit about the planning process, and Diane Curry of the Hayward Area Historical Society has told you a little bit about the history side of things. So what’s left for me to talk about? I guess an impassioned plea to the people!

I was a history major in college and worked in museums for several years, so I’m used to hearing a LOT of “History? Museums? That stuff is boring!” I do agree that it’s hard to see how history of far-flung places (Timbuktu is where now?) is relevant to life in our small town. I also agree that sometimes museums can seem stuffy (I can’t take photos with my phone?!). BUT, I promise, local history is different.

There’s all these juicy tidbits about small town characters. Plus, who hasn’t occasionally wondered what the Boulevard looked like before its current state? And if you grew up here you probably heard stories about .

Really, the Pop-Up Museum is for everyone. If you’ve ever lived in Castro Valley, driven by, shopped here, gone to school here, heck, even if your only connection with this town is that you knew someone from here, this museum is for you. If you have no connection to Castro Valley at all, come and learn a little bit about us.

Fun side note: Pop-ups have been done before, but usually as a restaurant or art gallery. This is the first time I’ve been able to find a pop-up HISTORY museum, so Castro Valley is even getting some buzz in the museum world! Help us celebrate bringing the museum to you by spreading the word virally via social media (a little traditional media coverage doesn’t hurt, either).

David, Diane, and myself will be at the pop-up pretty much all day, and I can promise you that we are total history nerds. We love to talk about history, and I think we’re pretty good at keeping it interesting. All three of us are CVHS grads and live in town.

So if you’ve got memories or photos to share, stop by. If you’ve got questions about our little town, stop by. If you want to show your family or friends what THE Castro Valley sign looked like, stop by. It’s FREE, it’s open all day, and it’s in the middle of town. Can’t get much better than that. Hope to see you there!

Castro Valley Pop-Up Museum

• 3324 Village Drive, Castro Valley (former location of Jordan’s Books)
• 11am-6pm
• FREE admission
• History lecture around 12:30pm
• CV Legends roundtable discussion around 3pm
• Photos, activities and more: ongoing all day