Eastern California Museum

The Eastern California Museum features a diverse collection of artifacts that reflect and illuminate the unique history of Inyo County and Californiaís Eastern Sierra region, from Death Valley to Mammoth Lakes. The museumís collection of Native American basketry, numbering more than 400 pieces, represents one of the largest, collections of Owens Valley Paiute and Shoshone basketry in the nation. The museumís Manzanar collection from the World War II Relocation Camp in the Owens Valley contains artifacts and photos that present camp life on a personal level. Extensive photos of the early days in the Eastern Sierra high county are also a popular part of the museumís collection, as are photos and history files documenting the City of Los Angelesí purchase of the valleyís water and land, construction of the Los Angeles Aqueduct and the relationship between L.A. and the Owens Valley. Climbers and hikers enjoy the Museumís exhibit on Norman Clyde, one of the Sierraís pioneering climbers, who is credited with more than 100 first ascents of Sierra Nevada peaks in the 1920s and ë30s. The museum bookstore contains fiction from groundbreaking Victorian author and former Independence resident Mary Austin, and history titles related to the Owens Valley, the complex history of water in the Owens Valley, California and the West, Native American life, archeology, geology, native plants, Death Valley, the High Sierra, mining and mining camps.. The serene Mary DeDecker Native Plant Garden highlights the plants that make their home in the Eastern Sierra.