Our little corner of San Joaquin County is 157 years old today!! On August 25, 1869 just a little over a year from when the Central Pacific Railroad started laying tracks south of Sacramento, Lodi was born.

We are more than pleased to report that the paint removal process on the exterior of the Lodi Historical Museum has begun!! Months ago, we had almost given up on exposing the original brick behind almost 100 years of white paint, which was put on the building sometime in the 1930’s. Project manager Scott Hamilton and his brother Robert, with equipment on generous loan from Bill Deemer, spend a few grueling days blasting paint off the exterior, revealing a lovely view of what the museum will look like in the near future as we get closer to wrapping up construction.

Yesterday, the Lodi Historical Society had the honor of accepting a $25,000 grant from the Lodi Community Foundation. 🥰 These funds will directly support the continued preservation of Lodi’s original City Hall & Firehouse and its transformation into the first Lodi Historical Museum. We are completely overwhelmed and overjoyed by the support this project has received from the Lodi community. A special thanks to Louis & Vanessa from the Lodi Community Foundation for bringing down the big check and being such wonderful champions for our community. ❤️Thank you for inspiring us to continue our mission to preserve & protect our shared history!

This last month of building progress required some creative thinking after our donated concrete fell through. Local contractor AM Stephens stepped in with a discount and a great solution that helped us save approximately $12,000 in estimated concrete costs. Experts Johnny Edwards and Greg “Junior” Soares from AM Stephens recommended pouring new concrete only in the center section of the room, making it even with the existing slabs instead of raising the entire floor. The firefighters returned to remove about 10 tons of fill in the center section and the floors were ready to be poured. Looking at the building with a complete first floor has been an important milestone to visualizing the future Lodi Historical Museum.