SPOTLIGHT TOUR: THE NATIONAL STEINBECK CENTER in SALINAS, CALIFORNIA©

 

Located just a couple of blocks from Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck's birth home in Salinas, California, the National Steinbeck Center (NSC) is an interactive "museum of his books" which is totally engaging as well as educationally and historically significant.  It is always on my "must do" list whenever I visit the Central Coast of California, specifically the Carmel Valley.

John Steinbeck was what we refer to today as a political activist for social, environmental and political change.  He and documentary photographer Dorothea Lange chronicled in words and pictures the plight of "the common man" during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s.  Their published articles raised awareness across the entire country and of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which led to the creation of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) relief program in 1935 that put almost 9-million Americans to work during its 7+ years of existence.

Steinbeck Birth Home in Salinas
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National Steinbeck Center, Exterior
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The Steinbeck Center Foundation was established in 1983.  The National Steinbeck Center itself was completed and opened to the public on June 27, 1998, and ever since has been enhancing awareness of Steinbeck's works and ideas, as well as of the written word. For more than twenty years, the NSC has fostered dialogues on issues relating to social justice, the environment, biological sciences, the "common good", ethical action and diversity, and racial diversity.

The Center houses the largest collection of Steinbeck archives in the United States -- over 45,000 historical and family documents, manuscripts, interviews, photographs, films and artifacts pertaining to Steinbeck's life, as well as to the history of Salinas and the Salinas Valley.  It is the focal point for activities which encourage learning about literature, human nature, agriculture, and the fine arts.

A number of educational and multi-media programs are provided regularly for the public, in particular, students and teachers.  The NSC conducts approximately 50 events each year, including the Annual Steinbeck Festival, Steinbeck's Birthday Celebration, and the Steinbeck Young Authors Program. The year I attended Steinbeck's Birthday Celebration, a special Brunch was served in his birth home, pictured above, followed by a tour of the home conducted by docents who had known him and his family.

The National Steinbeck Exhibition Hall is designed as a journey through John Steinbeck's "Valley of the World".  The Exhibit is organized geographically so that visitors can visit locations where Steinbeck lived, traveled to and wrote about.

Interior, Exhibition Hall
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The different stops along the "journey" include displays which bring his novels and short stories to life through theatrical sets, allowing visitors to step into the scene or time period. Throughout the experience, visitors can watch clips from motion pictures made of his books, listen to sound clips, participate in hands-on activities, and view original artifacts that cover the life and writings of Steinbeck.

Interior, Exhibition Hall
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Doc's Lab Exhibit in National Steinbeck Center
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Included are Doc's Lab (Cannery Row), the Trask car (East of Eden), the Joad house (Grapes of Wrath), and Steinbeck's gypsy wagon in which he traveled with his dog, Charley.  There is also a video of his acceptance speech from when he won the Nobel Prize for literature.

Travels with Charley Exhibit
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Nobel Prize Exhibit
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The overall experience gives visitors the opportunity to connect their own life experiences to the universal themes of Steinbeck's major works, the Salinas Valley of California, and to understand Steinbeck's message that "words matter".

The National Steinbeck Center has announced its re-opening date of May 6, 2021, following temporary closure in 2020 due to COVID-19. 

(Primary Source:  National Steinbeck Center)

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