-The Barn Boys-
Nearly Four Decades of Friendship

"It just happened," explained Joe Hurst about the formation of The Barn Boys. "A group of us just liked messing around with boats."

It was 1959 when a group of local West Covina residents, including Joe Hurst, George Mautz, Earl Marron, Art Jett and Lloyd Berryman, were meeting at Coffee Dan's Restaurant for morning coffee. Sharing their passion for boats, one thing led to another. Joe had a workshop in the barn that was left from the farm days. That barn soon became the perfect meeting place for this group to talk about boats, tinker with boats, store their boats, and plan special boating trips to the Colorado River or to Mexico.


Sharing the Vision

Soon friends invited friends to the old barn, and today The Barn Boys are a group of 41 men who are committed to companionship, community ties and preserving the past -- complete with a working vegetable garden maintained and harvested by the members.

Joe especially paid tribute to the memory of long-time friend and Barn Boy member Pete Somfeld. In 1967, Pete began organizing, packing and storing much of the memorabilia that will be on display in the museum.

Since 1992, Joe and The Barn Boys talked of plans to preserve the many artifacts, firearms and collectible items from the past. All of these items give a glimpse into the City's past and of how the land was settled by the pioneers who arrived in the region. It was through their initial efforts that business sprang up throughout the area making West Covina the prosperous and progressive city that it is today.


Within the Hurst-Babson family collection, there are items of interest for everyone. From early 1900's utensils, clothing, furniture, childrens toys, books, and antique radios; to farm equipment, automobiles, tools, historic artifacts, rare knives, and antique firearms, it is a uniquely comprehensive collection.

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