Washtucna Historical Museum

07/28/2026

The Mullan Road Sign on Benge-Washtucna Road rides again, thanks to John Rankin/Flying Arts Ranch and the Bar U Ranch! (ADDENDUM to the thanksgiving: Jeff Ashenbrenner , who graciously volunteered to do the roof.)

07/25/2026

The time honored tradition of self expression through yearbook cover!

Surely someone out there has a 1980 yearbook we can add to our collection? Kind of a big year for the area... :)

07/07/2026

From the Washington State Historical Society: While July 4, 1776, may be the day the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, July 8 was the day that the document was first read to the public in Philadelphia.

To commemorate this anniversary is an initiative from the Hawai'i America250 Commission called Sharing the Spirit of America.

On July 8, 2026, people in all 50 states, the five U.S. territories, the District of Columbia, plus Austria, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France (at the grave of the Marquis de Lafayette), Guatemala, Italy, Korea, Mexico, Midway Island, Morocco, New Zealand, Panama, Sweden, Thailand and Wake Island will simultaneously read the Declaration of Independence aloud.

Washington's time will be 3 p.m. (PT) and while many groups around the state will participate, our "official" reading will be in Kennewick with 16-year-old Tanner Headley reading the document at city hall. We are grateful to the Kennewick Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution for helping organize this event.

If you would like to watch this event, it will be livestreamed on Facebook Live (). You do not need a Facebook account to watch. The recording will also be posted on our Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Anyone can participate! You can find the full text of the Declaration of Independence at the following link:

Note: The following text is a transcription of the Stone Engraving of the parchment Declaration of Independence (the document on display in the Rotunda at the National Archives Museum). The spelling and punctuation reflect the original.

07/05/2026

Mr. Bassett enjoyed seeing some new faces stop by the museum during Washtucna's annual Independence Day celebration.

Hope everyone had a safe celebration!

06/27/2026

Another great work day this afternoon, the brushes and rollers are getting a workout! 🖌️

Mr. Bassett prepares to join the festivities.

06/20/2026

Mr. Bassett stands by a mural on the move in the museum. Our board has been putting in some productive hours each Friday afternoon trying to re-organize our museum for you.

Pardon our mess while we work through the process!

04/13/2026

Thank you Rick for taking time to share our story!

WASHTUCNA - The century-old former hardware building in Washtucna has received preservation status, but so far very few dollars to fix it up. Washtucna's Bassett Hardware Building has been named as one of the Most Endangered Places by the Washington Trust for Historic Places, The building was privat...

04/08/2026

Huge thank you to Columbia Basin Herald for taking time to hear about our Bassett Hardware Building, which does indeed turn 125 this year!

Can you help us preserve it? What do you think we should use it for?

03/31/2026

Many thanks to Feliks of Cascade of History for the time this morning. You can hear an interview about the Bassett Building on an upcoming episode!

CASCADE OF HISTORY is the only LIVE radio show presenting news and stories about people doing cool things with and for history in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia. We talk about people,