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Seward House Museum welcomes new Executive Director Billye Chabot
Billye Chabot just finished her first month as Executive Director of Seward House, the National Historic Landmark dedicated to the life, values and work of William Henry Seward, President Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of State, and his family.
Prior to relocating to Auburn, Chabot served as the Executive Director of Blount Mansion in Knoxville, TN. Before that, Chabot was at Southern Illinois University where she served as assistant coordinator of education and special events at the University Museum. She holds a Masters of Public Administration from Southern Illinois University with a specialization in museum administration and has over twenty years experience in public service.
“We are thrilled to have Billye Chabot onboard to help Seward House continue to grow and become a nationally-recognized museum,” stated Daniel J. Fessenden, president of the museum’s board of trustees. “Billye is keenly aware of the ways in which museums work in our communities, promote civic engagement and celebrate our cultural heritage. She is a great addition to a region rich with historic and cultural assets.”
Q & A with Billye Chabot
Why did you seek this job?
B.C.: I am interested in working for important historic house museums, especially those that are National Historic Landmarks. After my initial conversations with the search committee, I was even more interested in the Seward House Museum (SHM). The Board was seeking to bring a new business model to the Museum, and I believe that house museums must embrace different strategies to reach out to their community in new and exciting ways in order to ensure long term viability. It seemed like a perfect match between my personal philosophy for house museums and the goals of the Board.
What are the Seward House Museum's strengths?
B.C.: Historic homes and sites are places where profound personal connections to history can be found. That is certainly true for the SHM, and it enjoys a place of distinction in the hearts and minds of the citizens of Auburn. The decorative collection rivals the collections found in the most significant American historic house museums. The manuscript collection, including many thousands of primary documents of the Seward family, is an important prism for understanding what life was like for the Seward family.
Widespread pubic recognition occurred for William H. Seward with the publication of Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Team of Rivals, and the recent visit of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
Finally, the staff and volunteers of SHM are truly passionate and dedicated to the mission and to communicating the story of the Seward family. There is a long history of commitment to excellence, accountability and high professional standards.
What are the areas that can be improved?
B.C.: One of the most important considerations will be how the SHM can best serve the community, how it relates to the community, and how it incorporates the community into its thinking. An entrepreneurial approach is critical to success, especially in this time of rapid cultural, technological, and economic change. Initially, I plan to focus on leadership and relationship building. This of course begins at the local level and then radiates out to include the region and more broadly to the entire nation. I will challenge some long-held assumptions about what a historic house museum does and can do.
Change is an opportunity to find new and perhaps better ways to fulfill our mission. I think we can realign the SHM so that that it better serves the community and becomes more prominent on the national stage. The story of the Seward family is important and relevant today, as we embrace the past so we can better understand ourselves and our future.
About Seward House Museum
Seward House Museum offers a unique glimpse into the exciting life and times of William H. Seward and his family. Seward played a crucial role in the most decisive issues of the nineteenth century: the Civil War, slavery, American expansion, international relations and more. A National Historic Landmark, the elegant Seward House has been restored to its original beauty. The intact collection of political and travel souvenirs, decorative arts and photographs span Seward’s nearly forty-year political career.
For more information please visit http://www.sewardhouse.org/.
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