"What in the Sam Hill?"

Hi Blog!

Sunday, June 4, 2017, was our first full day in Maryhill, Washington. Our campground sits on the banks of the Columbia River which divides Oregon and Washington. We have a couple days here to explore before heading further north. We set out early to learn a little bit about the area.

As we climbed out of the river valley, we were treated to expansive views of the Columbia River and Mt. Hood.

Back in 1907, businessman Samuel Hill purchased 5,300 acres of land along the Columbia River with the dream of establishing a Quaker farming community. He formed the Maryhill Land Company, named after his daughter, and set about building a town. In 1914, work began on a hilltop mansion that was to be Hill’s home. But the remote location of Maryhill and the lack of irrigation proved insurmountable obstacles and the land company failed. The mansion is now home to the Maryhill Museum of Art. We planned to visit the museum, but first we wanted to see Stonehenge!

The Stonehenge Memorial lies at the original Maryhill town site. Erected as the nation’s first WWI memorial and dedicated in 1918 to the servicemen of Klickitat County, Washington, who died in the service of their country during the Great War, Sam Hill’s Stonehenge Memorial is a monument to heroism and peace. Guided by leading authorities on archaeology, astronomy, and engineering, Hill combined their knowledge to duplicate, as nearly as possible, the original size and design of the ancient Neolithic ruin in England.

Experts then erroneously believed that the original Stonehenge was constructed as a place of human sacrifice. Concluding there was a parallel between the loss of life in WWI and the sacrifices at ancient Stonehenge, Hill set out to build a replica on the cliffs of the Columbia River as a reminder of those sacrifices and the “incredible folly” of the war. The original idea was to use local stone; however, when the rock proved unsatisfactory, Hill decided to use reinforced concrete. (The rough, hand-hewn looking texture was created by lining the wooden forms with crumpled tin.)

The empty museum was dedicated in 1926 by Sam Hill’s friend, Queen Marie of Romania (the granddaughter of Britain’s Queen Victoria). In 1937, Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, the wife of San Francisco sugar magnate Adolf Spreckels and a friend of Hill’s, took up the task of finishing the museum. She was elected to the newly-formed board of trustees and donated artwork from her personal collection. Under her guidance, the museum was opened to the public on Sam Hill’s birthday, May 13, 1940.

As we entered the museum, we noticed the Quantum Man. On our way out, we got up close and personal. Check out this video and watch him disappear!

We started our tour by watching a PBS special on Sam Hill. He was one of the most colorful and influential figures in the Northwest in the early 1900s. Hill was a successful businessman, world traveler, builder of monuments and early advocate of paved roads. This exhibit included personal artifacts, items acquired during his travels, and photos and mementos related to his favorite cause, the Good Roads Movement. As we began going through the exhibit rooms, Jabberwalking caught our attention.

The museum has a collection of sculpture and drawings made by the great French master Auguste Rodin, considered the father of modern sculpture. The gallery features 87 works by Rodin, including bronzes, terracottas, plaster studies and watercolor sketches. The collection includes such well-known works as The Thinker, The Hand of God, The Age of Bronze and the life-size plaster of Eve from his masterwork, The Gates of Hell. We were so enthralled, we forgot to take photos. But we did get a photo of one of the storage rooms!

The Maryhill Art Museum is home to the Théâtre de la Mode (Theatre of Fashion), a touring exhibit (1945-1946) of fashion mannequins, approximately 1/3 the size of human scale, crafted by top Paris fashion designers. It was created to raise funds for war survivors and to help revive the French fashion industry in the aftermath of World War II. The original Théâtre de la Mode exhibit toured Europe and then the United States, and is now part of the Museum's permanent collection.

The minature sets feature 1946 evening and day wear by some of the top Parisian designers, including the House of  Worth, Ana de Pombo, Lucien Lelong, Nina Ricci, Lanvin, Rochas and Balmain. We also got a chance to try on some of the latest French fashions!

A 1957 exhibit curated by the museum’s director, Clifford Dolph, led to the creation of a permanent exhibit of chess sets. Today there are about 100 sets of these sculptures in miniature, representing the many countries, cultures and periods in which chess has been played.

The Maryhill Art Museum has something for everyone. There are European and American paintings, objects from the palaces of the Queen of Romania and Orthodox icons. The American Indian collection represents nearly every native tribal tradition and style in North America, with works of art from prehistoric through contemporary.

Taking in all this culture builds up a powerful thirst. Good thing Maryhill also has a winery.

We spent the rest of the afternoon drinking wine and contemplating "What in the Sam Hill?" all while listening to a trio known as The Side Project.  Cheers!