Keeping Oro Valley History Alive!
The Oro Valley Historical Society (OVHS) is a volunteer-driven, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded on April 25, 2005, by Jim Kriegh, Dick Eggerding, and Pat Spoerl.
The mission of the Oro Valley Historical Society is to preserve and share the history of the Greater Oro Valley area through research, education, and community programs.
Board of Directors and Committee Chairs
OVHS Mission Statement, Vision, and Strategic Plan
OVHS Bylaws
How to Visit Us or Contact Us
Three people met in the dining room in November 2004. They met in the same home where plans to establish the Town of Oro Valley had been formulated over 30 years earlier. The three were Jim Kriegh, whose home served as the gathering place, Dick Eggerding, and Pat Spoerl.
First OVHS Booth at the Oro Valley Arts in the Park with Pat Spoerl, Jim Kriegh, and Dick Eggerding, October 2005
The three had become acquainted as members of The Land Conservation Committee, an ad hoc citizens committee. Their vision for Oro Valley was: “A community enriched through the conservation of Oro Valley’s exceptional heritage and environmental resources that shape the Town’s character.” The committee was instrumental in persuading the Town of Oro Valley to include acquisition of the historic Steam Pump Ranch, the Honey Bee Village Archaeological Site, and open space properties in the 2004 Pima County Bond package. County voters approved the Bond.
Jim presented a plan to establish a local historical society. Jim was the Oro Valley Town Historian, a volunteer position he had held since 1991 after his wife, Marjorie, the first Town Historian, died. He was motivated to establish a historical society because the Town would be acquiring historic properties with Pima County Bond funds, and because his long-time friend, Henry G. (Hank) Zipf, had given him a large collection of family documents, photographs, and memorabilia. This collection had belonged to the George Pusch family who lived at Steam Pump Ranch from the 1870s until 1925. Henry Zipf’s mother, Gertrude, the eldest daughter of George and Mathilda Pusch, had carefully preserved this family collection until it passed to Henry. These rare records needed to be preserved and made available to those interested in history of the Cañada del Oro Valley.
The time was right. Jim, Dick and Pat began their new endeavor with enthusiasm and held their first board meeting. They developed a mission: “to promote research, preservation, education, and the dissemination of history related to the greater Oro Valley area.” They prepared Articles of Incorporation which were filed with the Arizona Corporation Commission and approved in April 2005 for a non-profit (501c3) organization. They prepared Society Bylaws and filed them with the State of Arizona in July 2005.
The Society received start-up funding from the Greater Oro Valley Endowment Fund. A brochure was prepared to solicit members. The first membership meeting was held in September at the Sunshine School on Oracle Road…and the rest is history!
Henry G. Zipf and Jim Kriegh at the Society’s first fund raising event held at White Stallion Ranch, May 2006
Written by Pat Spoerl, September 2025
