Okanogan County Historical Society's Okanogan Museum will open for the season May 24 with several historical programs and a book signing.
     Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week through Labor Day weekend.
     On opening day the museum, in conjunction with the Okanogan County Historical Society, will sponsor four Powerpoint programs using historical photos and stories, according to a museum announcement.
     They will be presented at the Okanogan County PUD auditorium across the street from the museum on North Second Avenue. Admission is free, though donations will be accepted, according to the announcement.
     Programs include:
     - 9:30 a.m. - "WOW - Wonderful Okanogan Women," a program featuring pictures by Frank S. Matsura, a Japanese photographer who captured Okanogan County life and scenes on camera in the early 1900s.
     - 11 a.m. - "The Building of the Conconully Dam," also featuring Matsura photos. He was official photographer of the project.
     - 1:30 p.m. "The ABCs of Early Education in Okanogan County," the tales and travails of early schools using historical pictures and amusing anecdotes.
     - 3 p.m. "Cow County - Ranching in the Okanogan," a history and a way of life. It will be the premier showing of the program.
     Book signings are planned before and after the presentations for a new historical society publication,"Frank S. Matsura - A Scrapbook," researched and written by Georgene Davis Fitzgerald and designed by Marilyn Ries. The book will be available for purchase and signing.
     Two other publications that have been reprinted in a new format will be available, according to the announcement. "Mining in the Okanogan" and "Ranching in the Okanogan" are compilations of stories from the county's past.
     "We encourage local residents to visit the museum on opening day and to enjoy the Powerpoint programs at the PUD auditorium," the announcement continued.