Community Event: TRHC Annual Open House, Exhibition & Cheesemaking Panel
Date: Sunday, November 1, 2026
Time: 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Panel Discussion at 2:00 PM)
Location: Tomales Regional History Center | 26701 Highway 1, Tomales, CA 94971
Cost: Free & open to the public
Contact: Cate Trujillo, Project Administrator | cate@tomaleshistory.com
Join Us for Our Annual Gathering & Open House!
The Tomales Regional History Center proudly invites neighbors, friends, and history lovers to our Annual Gathering on Sunday, November 1st, from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. This special afternoon celebrates West Marin heritage, brings our community together, and includes the annual election of the Board of Directors.
Special Traveling Exhibition: Telling Stories of Mexican California
This year’s Open House marks the opening of the traveling exhibition Telling Stories of Mexican California: Real Life & Myth Making. Organized by the California Historical Society (featuring the CHS Collection at Stanford) and toured through Exhibit Envoy, the display explores how early narratives shaped California's Mexican era (1822–1846) and popular understandings of state history. Read more about the exhibit here.
Bringing the Story Home to West Marin
Complementing the traveling exhibit, custom local panels curated by the History Center bring this story home to coastal Marin and southern Sonoma. The companion displays highlight:
Coast Miwok Heritage (Tamal-ko): Enduring Indigenous stewardship, community resilience, and historical continuity along Tomales Bay.
Regional Mexican Land Grants: Local rancho boundaries, including Rancho Bolsa de Tomales, Rancho Laguna de San Antonio, Rancho Estero de San Antonio, Rancho Tomales y Baulines, and Rancho Olómpali.
Rancho Families & Networks: The interconnected Californio and Indigenous families who shaped the region's 19th-century pastoral economy.
Featured Panel Discussion (2:00 PM)
"A Wedge of Cheese, a Sense of Place, a Chapter in History"
The highlight of the afternoon begins at 2:00 PM with a lively, featured conversation on how artisanal cheesemaking deeply reflects the natural resources, agricultural traditions, and rich history of the Northern California coastline.
Moderator: Carin Jacobs — Writer, curator, and columnist.
Panelists:
Vivien Straus — Founder of CheeseTrail.org, manager of Straus Home Ranch, and advocate for American cheesemakers who grew up on a Marshall dairy.
Nick Campbell — Head cheesemaker at Tomales Farm Creamery, bringing a passion for local dairying roots, gardening, and seed saving.
Karen Bianchi-Moreda & Joe Moreda — Representing generations of the historic Bianchi family farm at Valley Ford Cheese & Creamery (established 1918), renowned for crafting local artisanal cheeses like Estero Gold and Grazin’ Girl.
Event Schedule At-A-Glance
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Community Gathering, Exhibition Viewing & Board of Directors Elections
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM: Featured Panel Discussion: "A Wedge of Cheese, a Sense of Place, a Chapter in History"
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Exhibition Viewing, Refreshments & Community Conversation