Southdown museum director leaving for Virginia

Southdown Plantation House/Terrebonne Museum Director Karen Hart, an avid historian, will say ‘good-bye’ to Cajun Country in a couple of weeks, to venture back to her roots in Virginia.

History has always been Hart’s first love. From a little child growing up near the district of Colonial Williamsburg to attending The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

The college is America’s second-oldest college in the nation. There, she doubled majored in English and history.

“My love for history led me to work in museum. I have an opportunity to take on more responsibilities as well as be more hands on with the library’s archive collection,” Hart said.

While still in college in the late 1990s, Hart interned at Sherwood Forest Plantation in Virginia, which is the home of the 10th U.S. President John Tyler from 1842 until his death in 1862.

Hart, 32, first came to Louisiana in 1998-99. She worked at the Shadows-on-the-Teche Museum in New Iberia. In 2000, she became the first Southdown Museum Director.

After eight years, Hart has decided to take a job in Lancaster, Virginia at the Mary Ball Washington Museum and Library to be closer to her family.

The museum is named after the 1st U.S. President George Washington’s mother. Hart will be its first director too. For 45 years, the Mary Ball Washington Museum and Library has served the families and communities of Lancaster County and Virginia’s Northern Neck.

“Lancaster is one of the earliest settled area in Virginia, and I like the people in Houma, the residents are passionate about their museum and they are excited about growing,” she said. “I want to teach them how to move forward. They have the drive and I have the experience and knowledge of running a museum, together we will work well.”

Hart said it was not an easy decision for her to leave a placed she’s called home for the past eight years. But, the 32-year-old believes that she is ready to take the next step in her career.

“I am going to miss the volunteers at Southdown more than anything. Without the staff of volunteers the organization would not exist and I wouldn’t have a job,” she said.

Tuesday through Saturday there are more than 60 volunteers coming in and out of the museum doors, Hart said.

The close-knit community of Houma was the security she needed being away from her family. “This community embraced me not as an outsider but as a born residents,” she said. “They didn’t treat me any different and I appreciate that the most.”

Over the past eight years, Hart believes that she has grown as a person and a leader.

“Holding this position has made me hone my leadership skills,” she said. “I am better organized and levelheaded. I had to learn that the bulk stopped with me.”

Throughout her tenure as director, Hart has established several activities like the Southdown Yard Sale, Community Day, which lasted for three or four years, and the Louisiana Philharmonic, a 100-piece orchestra from New Orleans.

“I came in to help put Southdown back in the public eye and keep activities going for tourists and residents,” she said. “I am proud of the many accomplishments we have achieved together, and I appreciate all the support and opportunities the city and historical society has offered me.”

Hart’s last day as Southdown Museum Director is April 17.

“You can be sure that Southdown and Houma will always be very special places to me because of the wonderful people I have met and the great experienced I have had,” she said. “I am thankful for the memories and I will take them with me. I am confident that the Houma residents will keep the museum in good hands.”

The board is in the process of advertising for a museum director.