One of the exhibits at the Milwaukie Museum. (Mac Larsen / Milwaukie Review)

For 50 years, the Milwaukie Museum has provided a window into the history of the community.

Nestled within the historic Wise family house along Adams Street, the Milwaukie Museum hosted a Saturday, June 7 birthday party to open its doors and celebrate its history.

Visitors, including Milwaukie Mayor Lisa Batey, examined the history of the house and a chronological timeline through the history of the community, from its official incorporation in 1903 to the centennial celebration in 2003.

The Milwaukie Museum was originally opened in 1975, after United Grocers donated the historic home of the Wise family to the Milwaukie Historical Society in 1973. The farmhouse, built 160 years ago by George Wise for his family, provides a unique look at Oregon life in the 1800s.

The Wise family home was moved, carefully and with the help of Sabin Schellenberg Professional Technical Center students, from its original home near the Dave’s Killer Bread building by Lake Road to where it sits now on Adams.

The 50th birthday celebration for the museum coincides with the 90th anniversary of the Milwaukie Historical Society, which held its first meeting on July 26, 1935.

“I always hope that somebody learns something about Milwaukie that they didn’t know before,” said historian Sarah Harris. “It doesn’t need to be about us (Milwaukie Museum) or the historical society, but if somebody goes, ‘Cool, I had no idea we had Crystal Lake Park and that there were alligators here.’ That’s great.”

Wait a second, did she say alligators? In Milwaukie? That’s correct — Crystal Lake Amusement Park and Zoo was home to several small alligators. Crystal Lake was built around a natural spring in the middle of Milwaukie in 1906, before closing in the 1930s.

“You learned a little bit more about where you live and that’s really cool,” said Sarah Harris. “As I dove into research for this project,  it just made me so appreciative for the community that Milwaukie is. I think it is a good a way to kind of look at American history, through a very local lens of, ‘How are people experiencing things?’”