This area had many owners and uses. Charles Alishoul was the first to file on this plot. The next owners were Florence & Louis Woldenburg. It was sold twice at sheriff’s sales, and was sold to the Harney Valley Brewing Company on April 23, 1905. The land again changed hands several more times. On January 19, 1940, the land was purchased by Cecil Bennett. On April 12, 1940, Mr. Bennett sold 18½ blocks to Mrs. Clara Cameron Hanley. Mrs. Hanley sold 8 blocks to Ray Weeks in 1941. When Mrs. Hanley died in 1954, she bequeathed the remaining 10 blocks to her sister, Mrs. Anna Cameron Cater.
Ann Cater was active in the founding of the Jacksonville Museum in Jacksonville, Oregon. Anna donated the land and agreed to donate $10,000 to the funding of a museum if the citizens of Burns could come up with a matching $10,000.
Harney Homes, Inc. constructed the museum which was dedicated on August 2, 1960. The guest of honor was Mrs. Cater who turned 89 the next day. A room at the library and an exhibit at the museum are dedicated to the memory of Bill and Clara Hanley.
