About Us

Vashon Heritage Museum

Vashon Maury Island Heritage Association was organized in 1976, and is the non-profit organization that operates the Museum. Originally a Lutheran Church, our Museum building(s) were purchased in 1998 after many years of fundraising, through grants and a generous donation from Robert Gordon. The Museum's intention is to showcase our Island's rich cultural, historical, and natural history.

The evolution of the Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association is rich with its own history. A prior historic association organized by early pioneers who settled on the Island in 1890s, and at that time it was named "The Pioneer Association". Years later the Islanders established, "Vashon Pioneer and Historical Society", which was organized at Ellisport in 1923 and later named "Vashon-Maury Pioneer Society" to be inclusive of all the island lands.

Descendants of these original visionaries are still deeply connected to the Museum, and continue to be key volunteers helping the preservation and archiving of the Island's heritage.

The Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization run by an Board of Executive Officers and Trustees and numerous volunteers.

Our Living History

Engage:  By providing exciting and innovative displays, the Vashon Heritage Museum stirs curiosity and engages its visitors with expertly curated exhibits supported by knowledgeable docents.

Educate:  With access to the wealth of knowledge collected through the VMIHA, the Museum educates its visitors by providing an accurate reflection of our community’s history and its place in the Pacific Northwest.

Inspire:  The Vashon Heritage Museum inspires visitors by celebrating our shared heritage, connecting the past and present, and demonstrating how history influences our future.

Preserving Our Heritage

• Community History: In collecting and compiling documents and artifacts that reflect the unique heritage of Vashon-Maury Islands, the VMIHA maintains a continually evolving, expertly curated, and accurate repository of our community’s history.
• Preserving The Past : The VMIHA highlights the universality of the human experience, by preserving and conserving Vashon-Maury Island’s diverse cultural, social, and natural history, from first peoples to present day.
• Accessible To All: By providing a rich Museum experience and maintaining well-functioning facilities the VMIHA ensures Vashon-Maury Island’s stories and collections are available to all, both in-person and online.

Interim Director
Cameron Cooper has lifelong ties to the Puget Sound and fondly remembers the sand between her toes while clamming on Colvos Passage as a child. She joined the Vashon Heritage Museum March of 2022 and is stepping in as Interim Director while the board conducts a search for a new Executive Director.

She has a background in non-profit fundraising, public relations, and sales. She has a lifelong passion of connecting people to the causes they care about and as is enthusiastic about supporting the Museum and Board and volunteers in their shared mission to engage, educate, and inspire our Island Community. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, writing, and cheering for Island school sports teams and the Vashon Island Rowing Club.

Cameron can be reached at cameroncooper@vashonheritage.org.

Director of Special Projects
Elsa Croonquist, a 20+ year resident of Vashon, has moved into the role of Director of Special Projects and will be overseeing the reopening of the Museum's new Main Galleries.

Over the past 30 years, she has held director positions with major Seattle area organizations in real estate development, entrepreneurial energy start-ups, higher education administration and foundation development, and most recently consulting on privately developed grant programs. Her focus has been in market and program development and helping organizations to successfully manage transition through change while building organizational capacity.

Elsa can be reached at elsacroonquist@vashonheritage.org

Bruce Haulman, President

Sue Hardy, Vice President

Cyrus Anderson, Treasurer

Alexandra Seaman, Secretary

Tom Langland
Laurie Tucker
Mike Sudduth
Glenn Gray
Sharon Briskman
Bob Katica
Chris Austin
Kim Kambak
Sue Winn

We are always looking for volunteers:

Admin Committee

Collections Committee

Education Committee

Exhibits Committee

Programs Commmittee

Tech Committee

Please contact us if you are interested in serving on one of these committees.