To The Members of the Aurora Historical Society

December 19th, 2011

Dear Members of The Aurora Historical Society;

You may have learned through the media recently that the Aurora Historical Society Board of Directors has proposed the transfer of ownership and care of The Aurora Collection to the Town of Aurora. Further, the Board has proposed the transfer of Hillary House National Historic Site to alternate ownership and has asked the Town for assistance in that regard, as well as greater operational support in the interim.

Over the past year, the AHS Board of Directors and the AHS staff have been working to re-establish a museum to exhibit The Aurora Collection at The Aurora Cultural Centre, formerly Church Street School, where the collection was exhibited prior to its renovation. The inherent challenges of acquiring the space and securing the financial support required to maintain and operate a museum have led to discussions with the Town of Aurora regarding their possible role in realizing that end.

The Board recognizes the importance of The Aurora Collection and Hillary House as significant heritage assets for Aurora. The keen interest of the Town of Aurora in bringing back a museum has afforded us the opportunity to explore scenarios that will ensure these two assets have a secure future and allow them to reach their full potential as living, teaching heritage collections.

Coming to an acceptable agreement will take due care and consideration. We expect an agreement regarding The Aurora Collection will take many months. We are confident that the artefacts are well-protected and secure in state-of-the-art, museum-grade facilities in the interim.

A change for Hillary House may take up to several years. It continues to require a significant and consistent infusion of funds and management to ensure its viability as a living, teaching artefact. The AHS, as a volunteer organization with limited staffing resources, feels that exploring partnership opportunities with other entities is in the best interest of the asset.

Please be assured the Board of Directors will take every step to ensure the current and future safety and proper use of both assets on behalf of the membership, the donors and the people of Aurora.

You may ask what the Aurora Historical Society will look like if such a transfer takes place. Our mission statement will not change from “preserve, interpret and promote heritage”. Throughout this process, our first concern will be the safety and security of the assets and thereafter, we hope to have an ongoing role in working with them as a volunteer organization to support both the collection and Hillary House, as well as explore the other historical interests of our members.

In the interim, we have strategically chosen to focus our efforts on Hillary House as it celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2012. We have an exciting variety of interactive and supportive events planned for the coming year and we hope we can count on your support.

Sincerely,

Board of Directors
Aurora Historical Society