M.J. Gravina/Sun Post
MAKING HISTORY: Local historian and book author Evelyn Prouty has taken over as Director of the Manteca Historical Society, making her the non-profit's first paid employee.

MANTECA — For the first time in its 16-year history, the Manteca Historical Society has hired a paid employee. Local historian Evelyn Prouty took over as director of the non-profit on March 15.

In her new part-time position, Prouty will work to boost membership, increase the number of tours and inform folks about the importance of the Historical Society.

“A city has to have its history, it has to have some connection to the past to improve the future,” said Prouty, 61. “A lot of people want that connection, and this is the only place they can find it.”

Two special projects will keep Prouty busy over the next few months. She and a team of volunteers are currently recording histories of downtown buildings in preparation for the city’s 90th anniversary in May.

And she plans to gather local old-timers to document the histories of Manteca’s early families — something that must be done now, Prouty said, before the opportunity is gone forever.

“We’re going to lose people. We lose people all the time who have this oral history,” Prouty said. “That’s what we really need to capture.”

A resident of French Camp Road, Prouty has been the Historical Society’s Board President for the past six years; the role will now be filled by Leon Sucht.

Prouty wrote “Manteca, Selected Chapters from its History,” published in 1980, and is viewed by many as an expert on local history.

The Manteca Historical Society Museum, located at 600 W. Yosemite Ave., is open from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays and from 1 to 4 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays. Tours can also be scheduled during off-hours.