Imagine trying to find space to store years and years of Bainbridge Island history.

For the Bainbridge Island Historical Society, making room for 13,000 museum artifacts and materials has always been a challenge. In particular, the museum’s annex building crowded fast with its many books and two-dimensional paper collections.

The annex is also where the research library, staff office space and a rotating exhibit gallery are housed.

“One of the things we’re working on is making our library more user-friendly,” said Rick Chandler, museum curator. “We’re continuing to get new things all the time.”

Now, thanks to some local grants, the museum is in the final stages of a $120,000 four-month-long renovation project to make the annex more efficient space-wise. The upgrades will allow the public and staffers to have better and more comfortable interactions.

Dingy lighting, old carpet and rickety storage space have all been replaced by bright LED lights, wood flooring and sturdy cabinets. A new bathroom and kitchenette were also added to the annex for visitors and volunteers. Chairs and desks ergonomically designed for those who come in for research and studying fit better into the center of the room now.

“There’s more room for traffic and student groups and meetings,” Chandler said.

Grants from the Bainbridge Island Rotary Club and the Fletcher Bay Foundation, along with museum funds, made the renovations possible, Chandler said.

Chandler noted that the public using the annex will notice the increased space and organization first thing upon walking into the research room.

“It looked more exhibit-y, and it had kind of a disheveled and unkempt look,” he said of the prior design. “It was a challenge.”

Those who utilize the museum’s research facilities will also discover the nearly 800 volumes are much more orderly, Chandler said.

Volunteers Bob Royce, Betty Weise and Lisa Pena got to work in organizing the massive amount of materials once the cabinets and bookshelves were installed. The trio implemented a new shelf organization and book-labeling system to help visitors find information with ease.

“They have a lot of files that we’re trying to organize so people can get at them better,” said Royce, a former librarian, of the photographs and newspaper clippings known as two-dimensional collections. “They couldn’t find anything before. Now it’s all organized by topic and author.”

It’s the hope of Royce and other volunteers that visitors can more easily locate materials that date as far back as the early 1900s. Items necessary for research may be scanned, if needed. There’s also a computerized backup of all the research library files as well, Royce said.

While last year the museum received nearly 15,000 visitors, executive director Hank Helm isn’t sure that the renovations will bring more in, but he hopes a better impression is made on the ones who do come in.

“I think it’s terrific,” Helm said of the renovations. “It certainly will help with the experience they (visitors) have when visiting with staff members.”

Even though there’s always more that can be done, the staffers and volunteers are happy with the way the renovations came out.

“It’s looking pretty good, I think,” Royce said. “I think the renovations are good. I think the only thing they need are a couple million dollars for expansion. It’s a very interesting place, and I’m glad it’s there.”

Want to see the upgrades?

Visit the Bainbridge Island Historical Museum at 215 Ericksen Avenue NE daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors and students. Families may visit for $10, and children under 10 visit for free.