About the Museum
About
In 1883, our Museum opened its doors among the first wave of natural history museums in America. Naturalists of this era began a national tradition of hands-on science education and natural preservation. Over the past 140 years, the museum has grown from the seeds of these ideas into the award-winning institution it is today.
Mission
Our Mission is to inspire discovery, wonder, and stewardship of our cultural and natural world.
Vision
We support conservation, scientific literacy, co-curation, and deep learning towards a resilient community and sustainable future.
Values
In collaboration and partnership across Monterey County’s diverse communities, we are inclusive and welcome broad perspectives, we advocate for respect and appreciation of the natural world and each other.
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded lands of the Rumsen Ohlone, Esselen, and Salinan Peoples who have stewarded this region since time immemorial. Each Indigenous community’s relationship with the land is uniquely shaped by generations of knowledge, respect, and reciprocity with nature. We acknowledge the benefits we have as a result of ongoing colonization in this region and recognize that inequality, oppression and injustice are still present today. We are committed to maintaining good relations and representing cultures and stories in reciprocity with Indigenous partners. We will continue to educate ourselves and the community to promote dialogue and action. Please join us in extending our respect and gratitude to the ancestors, elders, and relatives of the Rumsen Ohlone, Esselen, and Salinan Peoples.
Museum Staff
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![Dr. Rachel M. Miller]()
Dr. Rachel M. Miller
Executive Director
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Lisa Max
Deputy Director
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![Dr. Liese Murphree]()
Dr. Liese Murphree
Director of Education & Outreach
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![Susan Wolfe]()
Susan Wolfe
Director of Development & Engagement
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![Nate King]()
Nate King
Senior Manager of Collections & Research
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![Noelle Fletcher]()
Noelle Fletcher
Marketing & Events Manager
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![Denise Gomes]()
Denise Gomes
Administrative Coordinator
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![Rosie Gutierrez]()
Rosie Gutierrez
Guest Services & Museum Store Specialist
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![Natalie Johnston]()
Natalie Johnston
Interpretive Programs Manager
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![Jeanette Johnston]()
Jeanette Johnston
Field Science Manager
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![Maya Sosa]()
Maya Sosa
Exhibitions Coordinator
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David Valenzuela
Outreach Coordinator
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![Laura Vivanco-Morales]()
Laura Vivanco-Morales
Education Programs Coordinator
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![Vern Yadon]()
Vern Yadon
Former Director & Curator Emeritus
Board of Directors
John B. O'Sullivan, President
Olivia Duarte, Vice President
Sean Powell, Treasurer
Walan Chang, Secretary
Directors:
Ben Bence, Alexis Bunten, Alessandro Bush, Karen Cuenco, Richard Dole, Olivia Duarte, Jazmine Mejia-Muñoz, Allen Robinson, Megan Sulsberger, Ken Wysocki
Tama Olver, Board Emeritus
Pressroom
News, updates, and media about our exhibits and programs..
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July 25, 2025 | Monterey County Offers Nature Enthusiasts Treasure by Land, Sea, and Sky
July 21, 2025 | Local Teachers Get a Science Boost from CSUMB Program
June 26, 2025 | Sofia Gonzalez
May 9, 2025 | Walk of Remembrance Returns: Honoring the Legacy of Monterey’s Chinese Fishing Village
April 18, 2025 | The New “Great Dying” Deserves Our Attention and Action
April 4, 2025 |Pacific Grove Walk of Remembrance Honors Chinese Fishing Pioneers
March 12, 2025 |11 Best Downtowns in California
March 7, 2025 |Pacific Grove Butterflies See Sharp Decrease in Population Size
February 10, 2025 |Monarch Butterflies in California Near Record Low
January 10, 2025 | The Joys (and Dangers) of Mushroom Picking
December 12, 2024 | Monarchs’ Decline in Pacific Grove Spurs Call for Endangered Species Protection
December 11, 2024 | Monarch Butterflies Officially Recommended for Listing as Threatened Under Endangered Species Act
December 11, 2024 | Monarch Butterflies Dangerously Close to the Endangered Species List
December 10, 2024 | Monarch Butterfly Proposed to be listed as Threatened
December 6, 2024 |Monarch Butterfly Numbers Low in Pacific Grove and Across the State
November 21, 2024 |Pacific Grove Museum Helps in Orca Conservation Study
November 19, 2024 | The Story of Pacific Grove’s Chinese Fishing Village is Told in a Compelling New Film
November 14, 2024 | PG’s Chinese Fishing Village Story is Powerfully Told by it’s Descendants in New Interactive Film
May 24, 2024 | Community Efforts Preserve, Memorialize Chinese History of the Monterey Bay Area
May 4, 2024 | Pacific Grove’s new museum director hopes to have more programs about heritage and cultures.
May 11, 2024 | Walk of Remembrance returns for 11th year on May 11th
Apr. 25, 2024 | The new director of the Museum of Natural History has done a lot of everything related to the job.
Apr. 4 | California museum to host new exhibit for AAPI Heritage Month
Feb. 12, 2024 | New PG Museum director chosen for strong community engagement background
Jan. 5, 2024 | ASC Executive Director Dr. Rachel Miller announces resignation, to lead California museum
Jan. 4, 2024 | Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas' executive director Rachel M. Miller leaving
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Dec. 21, 2023 | The P.G. Museum of Natural History inspires discovery all over, including its own backyard.
Jan. 24, 2023 | Monarch conservation efforts get $10M boost
Nov. 13, 2022 | A gathering of monarchs in Pacific Grove
San Francisco Chronicle Special Section
May 17, 2022 | Pacific Grove City Council votes unanimously to apologize for burning of Chinese fishing village in 1906.
May 13, 2022 | Monterey County Weekly Calendar
May 12, 2022 | Pacific Grove to hold annual Walk of Remembrance
May 12, 2022 | Pacific Grove City Council votes unanimously to apologize for burning of Chinese fishing village in 1906. | News
May 11, 2022 | Illustrating Nature exhibit returns in-person to PG Museum of Natural History
May 5, 2022 | Hot Picks 05.12.22 | Arts & Culture
May 4, 2022 | The Art of Science 'Illustrating Nature' exhibit returns to PG after pandemic pause
Feb. 1, 2022 | How community science might be key in saving California’s monarch butterfly migration
Jan. 27, 2022 | Monarch butterflies take over the Monterey Peninsula
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Dec. 7, 2021 | Amazing': Monarch butterflies return in huge numbers to California after almost vanishing last year
Dec. 3, 2021 | California’s Western Monarch Butterflies Are Making a Comeback
Dec. 3, 2021 | It’s Friday. California is enjoying a “close to miraculous” rebound in its butterfly population.
New York Times - California Today
Nov. 28, 2021 | Pacific Grove: Monarch numbers continue to climb
Nov. 20, 2021 | Monarch butterflies find new sanctuary along Central California coast
Nov. 17, 2021 | Uncover the charms of ‘dreamlike’ Pacific Grove
Nov 11, 2021 | After seeing no butterflies in 2020, thousands descend on a NorCal sanctuary.
Oct. 30, 2021 | Good news for monarch butterflies
Oct. 22, 2021 | Western monarch butterflies have been vanishing. This week, a sanctuary saw thousands return.
Oct. 16, 2021 | Carmel PineCone, October-15 Edition
Oct. 14, 2021 | Monarch butterflies return to Pacific Grove
Oct. 11, 2021 | Mayor Proclamation Declaring the Second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples' Day In Esselen and Ohlone
Jul. 22, 2021 | SHIFTING TIDES: CONVERGENCE IN CLOTH
Jul. 16, 2021 | Art Roundup
Jul 1, 2021 | Changes of Monterey
Apr. 3, 2021 | Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History names new executive director.
Mar. 3, 2021 | READERS CHOICE 2020
Monterey Herald - powered by PageTurnPro.com
Feb. 23, 2021 | Six ways Californians can help save the iconic monarch butterfly
Jan. 22, 2021 | Butterfly population 'plummeting toward extinction' in California
Jan. 8, 2021 | A Winter Without Monarchs In Pacific Grove - Butterfly Town, U.S.A
Dec. 18, 2020 | Feds delay seeking legal protection for monarchs
Dec. 17, 2020 | Monarchs get in line behind other species deemed at higher risk of extinction.
Dec. 15, 2020 | Feds to delay seeking legal protection for monarch butterfly
Dec. 12, 2020 | Western monarch population plummets again in latest count; feds expected to announce decision on endangered status next week.
Dec. 7, 2020 | PG Museum puts science center stage.
Oct. 6, 2020 | original content
PG Museum News < link to blog post
Jul. 9, 2020 | Museums Find Silver Lining During COVID-19 Shutdown
Jun. 19, 2020 | Pacific Grove Natural History Museum set to reopen at end of June
Apr. 18, 2020 | Sheltered in place, public looks for new input from local museums, Monterey Bay Aquarium
Mar. 31, 2020 | Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History provides digital learning for at-home kids
Feb. 25, 2020 | Expert will share the fascinating life of the monarch butterfly in San Clemente
Jan. 23, 2020 | An art show fits the science at Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History.
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Oct. 20, 2019 | Family Fun in the Monterey Bay Area
Aug. 12, 2019 | Pacific Grove museum set for big changes
Mar. 21, 2019 | Countdown to Magic Carpet Time, in Pacific Grove
Jan. 18, 2019 | California monarch butterfly numbers way down.
June 4, 2018 | PG museum to play key role in grizzly research project
Sept. 17, 2017 | Monarch butterflies winging way to Pacific Grove this fall
Fewer than 5% of American Museums have earned accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM).
We are proud to have earned re-accreditation
for over 40 continuous years.
What is Natural History?
Our Museum is part of the rebirth of Natural History. Get inspired by the leading naturalists in America.
The original Chautauqua Museum in Pacific Grove was initiated at the second meetings of the Chautauqua Assembly in 1881, and the actual Museum was founded in 1883. The Museum was created to house collections of nature’s wonders and to make them available for study. In 1900 the Chautauqua Museum disbanded to form a more permanent organization as the Pacific Grove Museum Association. The Pacific Improvement Company donated the Museum’s current lot to the Association, and the Museum subsequently moved into a large building on its current site.
The Association maintained the Museum until 1916 when it was transferred to the City of Pacific Grove through a Charter election. The Museum remains city owned and is operated by a non-profit 501.c.3, The Museum Foundation of Pacific Grove, which was lead by Bob Snyder and a transition team that set the stage for a very successful public/private partnership. The Museum has been accredited by the American Association of Museums since 1972, the first such institution in Monterey County to do so.
Museum History
The Chautauqua (shuh-TAH-kwuh) Literary and Scientific Circle established its Pacific Coast branch in Pacific Grove in 1879. A two-week Chautauqua assembly was held here every summer, featuring lessons, exhibits, lectures, picnics, and concerts. Over the years several members felt the need to have a storeroom and exhibition site to house collections of nature’s wonders and to make them available for study. In 1883, a petition calling for a Museum building was signed by Professor H. B. Norton, Dr. J. H. Wyeth, Dr. C. L. Anderson, Miss Lucy M. Washburn, Miss Mary E. B. Norton, and Professor Josiah Keep. The petition was sent to F. S. Douty, secretary of the Pacific Improvement Company, and a small wooden octagonal building soon became the Chautauqua Museum's first home.
The Original Chutauqua Museum in Pacific Grove
Museum Foundation
The Museum Foundation of Pacific Grove was created in 2009 and is supported by donors and the community to advance the Museum’s mission to inspire discovery, wonder, and stewardship of our natural world. Through its history, the Museum has benefited from the leadership of a series of committed men and women, including a dedicated board of directors.
The Museum’s fourth Executive Director is Dr. Rachel M. Miller, who had a successful tenure as the Executive Director of the Arts & Science Center (ASC) of Southeast Arkansas, where she led a period of historic growth and renewal of its buildings, programs, and mission. Miller calls herself a connector instead of a director. Her work trajectory has always included community engagement, whether it’s been through creating programs for cultural sites or teaching literature and writing in a college classroom or community workshop.
From 2021-2023, the Museum was led by Carla Bitter. Carla had a 20 year career in museums and public science education and led the installation of two exhibits: Nature Exchange and Wonder.
From 2015 to 2020, Jeanette Kihs led the Museum, transforming it from a static destination to a place of great service to the community. Jeanette led the Museum through a difficult season in which it came under unwarranted public scrutiny, even when she herself was unfairly targeted. She raised significant funding for new exhibits and facilities improvements, participated in development of an ambitious strategic plan, delivered every aspiration in the plan, and grew the Museum’s reach to over 50,000 people, bringing the natural history of the Central Coast to schools across the county.
“The Museum’s work is very impactful. Its contributions to our community have been important during these challenging times - providing cultural enrichment and education, community engagement and learning opportunities. The Museum inspires everyone – to visit, to learn, and to share resources.” – Christine Dawson, Senior VP of Philanthropic Services and Laurel Lee-Alexander, VP of Community Impact (Community Foundation for Monterey County).
Stewardship
The Museum is fortunate to have partners who believe in our mission and want to support the good work we do. Beyond our generous donors and our membership base, we are grateful for grants from the following organizations over the last five years.
Major Funding Partners
With Special Thanks to the City of Pacific Grove and the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund.
Impact Reports
Strategic Plan
2024-2029
Executive Summary
This five-year Strategic Plan charts the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History’s path forward by moving our educational programs, exhibits, and events toward a mission that strengthens our emphasis on cultural history and community building as an integral part of our core focus of caring for our natural world. Along with our mission is a new vision statement that embraces the future of our Museum as an inclusive, interactive space both inside and outside of our physical walls where we support conservation, scientific literacy, co-curation, and deep learning.
The plan centers on five forward-looking goals:
Prioritize reaccreditation and management of our collection & facility
Create an interpretive master plan for meaningful engagement of diverse audiences
Amplify community science, cultural history, and educational outreach programs
Elevate organizational capacity & staff development
Strengthen financial stability & board development
Audited Financials
If you’re interested in learning more about the Museum’s financials you can review our IRS 990 Forms. If you’d like to receive full disclosures contact Susan Wolfe at Wolfe@PGMuseum.org.