The main entrance to The MOR, on Center Street.
1 North Center Street is the new address for the Museum of Redlands (the MOR).The museum is being built around the shell of the former Redlands Daily Facts building located at the corner of Center Street and Brookside Avenue. Because the Facts’ main entrance was located on Brookside, the address was 700 E. Brookside Avenue. The main entrance to the MOR will face Center Street, prompting the change of address and thereby connecting the museum to the earliest history of the town.
Redlands’ founders, Edward G. Judson and Frank R. Brown, originally envisioned Center Street to be the main north/south thoroughfare of their new town of Redlands. The intersection of Center Street and Cypress Avenue was supposed to be the city center. However, the hill was a challenge for horse-drawn vehicles and the business center of the new city grew around the lower elevations of State Street and Orange Street.
Expected to open in 2024 or 2025 (construction is still underway), the MOR will house the extensive collection of local memorabilia, art and artifacts currently being collected by the Heritage Room at the A.K. Smiley Public Library. It will showcase the Hometown Heroes who have enriched our history and tell the stories of the people who have made Redlands the unique city it has become. The MOR follows the tradition of citizen gifts to the city such as the Library, the Lincoln Shrine and the Redlands Bowl Procellis. It is being mostly built with private donations. Once completed, the building will be gifted to the city and run under the administration of the library.
You can help complete the MOR by purchasing a Personalized Paver located in the Pavilion area. Click the Give tab above for information. To donate items of historic significance, contact the Heritage Room at 909-798-7632.
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