ABOUT THE MUSEUM
WHERE PETERSBURG'S STORIES LIVE
Established in 1967, the Clausen Memorial Museum has spent more than five decades preserving and sharing the layered histories of Petersburg and Southeast Alaska — from the Tlingit people who have called this place home since time immemorial, to the Norwegian fishermen who saw in LeConte Glacier's ice a way to keep fish fresh long enough to build a town around them, to a fishing town still pulling silver from the same clear blue water — shaped by the tides, the ice, the nets, and the bloodlines that have kept this place alive for generations.
OUR PURPOSE
Celebrating Our Diverse Stories - Past, Present and Future.
OUR MISSION
The Clausen Museum is dedicated to preserving the diverse stories of Petersburg through exhibits, public programs and special events.
OUR HISTORY
The Clausen Museum began not with a building, but with a community determined to remember. In 1962, Elsie Clausen and members of the local Pioneers of Alaska opened an informal museum in the Petersburg City Council chambers — planting the seed of what would grow into a lasting institution.
By 1967, with funding from the Alaska Centennial Fund and the labor of volunteers, a proper museum building was complete. The Clausen Memorial Museum opened on May 11, 1967, and has been telling Petersburg's stories ever since.
1962
1962 Elsie Clausen and the Pioneers of Alaska establish the Petersburg Museum Society in City Council chambers.
1964
Elsie and Carroll Clausen begin fundraising and organizing volunteers to build a proper museum.
1967
Alaska Centennial Fund provides funding. Clausen Memorial Museum opens May 11, 1967.
TODAY
3,075 artifacts, 9,608 photographs, 754 archival collections. Still community-run, still nonprofit.
PURE ARCHIVAL HISTORY
The Full Story - From the Tlingit petroglyphs at Sandy Beach to the cannery era to the community that built this museum — seven chapters of Petersburg's complete history.
THE COLLECTION
The museum's holdings span the full arc of human life in this region — from ancient Tlingit tools and art to fishing industry records, logging equipment, domestic artifacts, and a growing body of regional contemporary artwork.
3,075
ARTIFACTS
9,608
PHOTOS & NEGATIVES
754
ARCHIVES
PHOTOGRAPHY ARCHIVE
9,608 photographs and negatives documenting the people, places, and industries of Petersburg and Southeast Alaska.
FISHING & CANNERY HISTORY
Equipment, records, and artifacts from Petersburg's storied fishing industry, including the 126½-pound World Record King Salmon.
TLINGIT ARTIFACTS & ART
Traditional canoes, halibut hooks, woven hats and baskets, ancient stone tools, and art representing the Tlingit people's deep connection to this place.
LOGGING & FOX FARMING
Tools, records, and artifacts documenting Petersburg's historical logging industry and fox farm operations.
CONTEMPORARY REGIONAL ART
An ever-expanding collection of regional artworks acquired in partnership with the Rasmuson Foundation Art Acquisition Fund.
NATURAL RESOURCES
Extensive rock collections, animal paintings, mounts and skulls, fossils, including sea, land & air life specimens featured in the Discovery Center
Museum Staff
SARAH PEDERSON
Museum Director
ANNE LEE
Museum Curator
Board of Trustees
ELIZABETH WALSH
President
KATHY POOL
Vice President
GINGER EVENS
Secretary
MARY ROKEY
Treasurer
HEIDI LEE
Director at Large
MARILEE ENGE
Director at Large
GLORIANNE WOLLEN
Director at Large
OPEN SEAT
Director at Large
OPEN SEAT
Director at Large
Partners & Affiliations
RASMUSON FOUNDATION ART ACQUISITION FUND
In partnership with the Rasmuson Foundation, the museum maintains an ever-expanding collection of regional and contemporary artworks.
PETERSBURG ARTS COUNCIL
Co-hosts the monthly Open Mic Night series — bringing musicians, poets, storytellers, and dramatists together every last Friday of the month.
LOCAL SCHOOLS & ORGANIZATIONS
The museum is committed to increasing public service through partnerships with local schools and community organizations, fostering education and understanding of our complex human story.
Be Part of the Story
The Clausen Museum is a community institution — built by neighbors, sustained by members, and dedicated to everyone who calls Petersburg home or passes through its harbor.