Huntington Beach, California, in Search for New City Historian

Steeped in rich history and local beach tradition, the City of Huntington Beach, California is looking for a volunteer City Historian. Because Huntington Beach is over 100 years old, the role of the City Historian is very important. If you love to write, do research and enjoy history, than you might be the right person to fill this position.

The City of Huntington Beach is searching a for new City Historian for a four-year term to office who will be in charge of research, preserving the city's history, manage and catalog photographic files, preparing articles for the media regarding Huntington Beach history and present historical lectures.

The City Historian will be working in the City's vault which is located at Huntington Beach City Hall at the City Clerk's office, which is a friendly, inviting work environment. The City is hoping to find someone who has a passion for Huntington Beach's golden past and a dedication to volunteer service. The right person for the job will have been a Huntington Beach resident for at least five years and some experience in the a variety of fields including research, technology, history, writing and public speaking.

Joan Flynn, Huntington Beach City Clerk said, "Each candidate will bring their own flair and expertise to the interview. Some will be researchers who have the technical skills to document everything on the computer and find information. Others will be teachers who will want to go out into the community and to schools and talk about HB's past, while some will be writers who will want to write articles for newspapers and magazines. We look forward to meeting this diverse group of Huntington Beach residents."

Huntington Beach was founded in 1901 by two men, Phillip A. Stanton and Colonel H.S. Finley, who bought 1,500 acres for $100,000 and developed the land into what we now know as the Downtown Main Street area and they named the small town "Pacific City". 18 months after it was founded, the land and town was bought out by a group of investors, including Henry E. Huntington, who renamed it Huntington Beach. The small town discovered oil in the 1920's and together with the beach front property; Huntington Beach became a large city almost over night.

Qualifications for this prestigious position include the ability to utilize general office equipment including copiers, fax machines and computer, good grammar and spelling skills and effective communication and customer service skills. A working knowledge of the city and its history is a plus. If you are interested in applying for this position, you can go to the City of Huntington Beach's website and download the application and essay questions or contact senior deputy city clerk Linda Suraci at (714) 536-5210. The application deadline is August 6^th, 2007 at 5:00 p.m.

City of Huntington Beach website: http://www.ci.huntington-beach.ca.us/
City Historian Information: http://www.ci.huntington-beach.ca.us/ElectedOfficials/CityClerk/City_Historian/