Anthea Hartig, the new executive director of the California Historical Society

Dr. Anthea M. Hartig, most recently the director of the Western Regional Office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, has been appointed as the executive director of the California Historical Society (CHS).  Hartig is one of the nation’s leaders in public history and historic preservation (just a few months ago she was named, “California Preservationist of the Year”), making this a big gain for CHS and a major loss for the National Trust.

“We have truly found the right chief executive for the 21st Century,” CHS Board President Thomas R. Owens offered, “Anthea’s deep and varied experience as an historian and non-profit leader is the perfect fit for making this venerable organization relevant and successful.”

“As a third-generation Californian, I am honored to lead the 140-year old California Historical Society and to steward one of the richest and deepest collections on California’s diverse heritage,” said Dr. Hartig. Noting the challenges all cultural and heritage organization face today, Hartig adds, “I understand and embrace these difficult times as engaging opportunities to honor all of the Golden State’s heritage, whether it is 10 or 10,000 years old.”

Dr. Hartig’s interest in the relevance of California’s stories and places has come to define her professional and advocational life. She served as a municipal preservation planner for over a decade, and owned a cultural resources consulting firm. She has served on many local, statewide and national history-related non-profit foundations’ boards of directors, including the California Preservation Foundation and the California Council for the Promotion of History, and has published in both academic and professional journals. Under Governor Gray Davis, she served as Chairperson of the State Historical Resources Commission.  She also taught history and cultural studies at La Sierra University in Riverside and graduate courses in historic preservation at the University of California, Riverside from where she holds a Ph.D.

About The California Historical Society

The California Historical Society (CHS) fosters scholarship and promotes history education in California through multi-modal and engaging ways that stimulate public exploration of history’s role in our everyday lives.  CHS is a non-profit, membership organization founded in 1871.

The California Historical Society’s library, collection and gallery are housed in a unique historic building, located at 678 Mission Street, in San Francisco’s vibrant Yerba Buena Gardens area. The gallery features rotating exhibits celebrating California’s rich history and is open to the public from 12 noon to 4:30 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday; Admission is $3/general; $1/students & seniors. The library is open Wednesday through Friday; 12 noon to 5:00 p.m. For more information please call 415-357-1848 or visit http://www.calhist.org/