CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Jim Zimmer, the new Executive Director of the Customs House Museum and Cultural Center, was the guest speaker recently at the weekly meeting of The Kiwanis Club of Clarksville. Zimmer was named director in December of 2015.
Zimmer talked about his past work with planning and managing museums in other areas of the country. He also talked about spending much of his time speaking to various organizations like Kiwanis and meeting with the public and getting to know the community.
He also shared what he said was one of the most important aspects about museums like Customs House. “Museums are a public trust, that’s the reason we exist. We exist so we can carry out our mission and do our various activities for the benefit of the public, Zimmer said.
Zimmer said over 30,000 people visit the museum each year and at this time they have over 9,000 memberships. He also emphasized the mission of the museum which is to collect, preserve and interpret historical, artistic and scientific material.
There are a number of permanent exhibitions on display like the model trains and Becoming Clarksville. There are also many rotating exhibitions, some of which are put together by the museum staff and the museum also features traveling exhibits.
You’ll find Customs House Museum and Cultural Center at 200 South 2nd Street in Clarksville. They are open Tuesday-Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 1-5 p.m. and they are closed on Monday. To learn more about the museum visit www.customshousemuseum.org or call 931-648-5780.