When the heating system of the Heritage Museum in Astoria broke down last year, the attention of Clatsop County Historical Society’s executive director, McAndrew Burns, was already directed elsewhere.

The Heritage Museum was in the process of adding an elevator, made possible by donations from Ed Parker, a longtime Astoria resident and patron of the museum.

Burns thought, “We’re already in for this much, why not do a little bit more?” and began work on the new heating system, in addition to massive renovations to restore the entrance hall to its original appearance.

When Parker died, he left more than $1 million in a restricted endowment, in addition to $150,000 earmarked for the elevator project. Burns consulted with one of Parker’s friends to understand the reason behind the bequest.

Parker was concerned with access to the second floor, where there is a large exhibit room. “We had a lot of events up there, but Parker saw his friends couldn’t make it up the stairs,” Burns said.

Construction of the elevator ran into complications. Fundraising became an issue. The Oregon Community Foundation put another $15,000 into the project’s coffers, bumping the total up to $165,000 with Parker’s donation.

So the Historical Society set higher goals.

“We have identified approximately $1 million worth of improvements we would like to make, including the heating and the elevator,” Burns explained. Despite generous community contributions, the society is still raising money to make up the difference.

No plans for the original building existed, and engineers were required to work from plans that did not exactly conform to the building, leading to small changes in the work.

Many artifacts were found during the dig into the past, including a 1940s’ era ledger with small mementos of the time taped into the pages, a harmonica, and even a bone. (It was sent to the Clatsop County medical examiner who declared she was “pretty sure” it wasn’t human.)

Earlier this month, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held – to christen the newly inspected elevator and to introduce the public to the Edwin K. Parker Gallery, the renamed large gallery on the second floor. The gallery was dedicated instead of naming the elevator for Parker because, Burns explained, “How often do you ride the Ed Parker Elevator?”

More improvements are planned in the Parker Gallery, which houses the temporary “Goonies” movie memorabilia collection, made up of items mostly on loan, and the “Vice and Virtue” exhibit, which includes the bar from a pre-Prohibition Astoria dive called the Louvre.

Burns said planned renovations are designed to make it “really feel like you’re spending time in the Louvre.” Museum leaders want to make the exhibits more interactive by adding a replica roulette table and an actor behind the bar serving visitors on busy days. Other improvements include painting and refinishing in the entrance hallway to restore it to the original sage green and finished wood atmosphere, accomplished with the help of Tongue Point Job Corps Center students.

Installing an elevator shaft led to the reshuffling of exhibits on the first floor, including breaking the Native American exhibit into two parts, to illustrate before and after European contact.

Burns likes to say about the museum, “We’re in the business of telling stories.” The history of the building itself is a story. One-hundred years ago this Fourth of July, the building that now holds the Heritage Museum was dedicated as the new City Hall. In the basement, there was an office for the Police Chief, four isolation cells, two large holding cells for drunken reprobates and a heating system.

The Police Chief and his office have moved, the isolation cells have turned into a bathroom and mannequin storage, the only wet thing in the holding cells is an old sink, the metal-and wood behemoth of a heater is finally broken, and the building is now the museum. Most don’t see this history when they visit the building, but Burns hopes that won’t always be the case.

“This elevator changed the way we operate; it’s not just about moving people from one floor to another; it’s opened up spaces that have never been open before.”

For more on the museum’s upcoming anniversary celebrations, see Coast Weekend June 30.