INDIAN MUSEUM A HOUSE OF HISTORY; TOUCHING A PIECE OF THE PAST.

Byline: Charles F. Bostwick Daily News Staff Writer

Antelope Valley Indian Museum is a popular destination for school groups on weekdays and families on weekends.

Situated on rocky Paiute Butte - whose boulders in fact form part of the walls and floor - the Swiss chalet-style building was constructed in 1928 by artist H. Arden Edwards as a home for himself, his wife and teen-age son.

Edwards started the collection of American Indian artifacts and it was added to by Grace Oliver, who in 1939 purchased the building and collections when Edwards moved back to the Los Angeles area. Oliver in 1979 donated the property and the collections to the state.

The museum is now operated by the state parks department.

``She deeded it for an educational facility for the children of California,'' said docent Meg Bookout. ``That's why one of our objectives is to do school tours and have hands-on activities for children.''

Spread through two levels of the house, the museum displays more than 4,000 artifacts from an eclectic collection that includes California, Great Basin and Southwest peoples.

One upstairs room is the California Hall, holding stone and bone arrowheads, tools, jewelry and other objects used by the Chumash, Tataviam, Kawaiisu, Serrano and other peoples.

One of the cottages that adjoin the main museum building contains a ``touch table,'' at which youngsters can try American Indian skills like grinding corn with a stone mortar and pestle and starting fire using a bow drill.

American Indian guest artists display their work on the second weekend of every month. Silversmith Michael Rogers will show his artwork and jewelry Saturday and Sunday.

On May 17, the museum will celebrate Archaeology Week with a ``dig'' in which youngsters can sift through a sandbox for stone flakes and other objects, and a archeological seminar aimed at teachers.

The museum is open weekends to the public September through June only, closing for the hot summer months. The last open weekend this spring is June 14 and 15. The museum will reopen Sept. 20 and 21 with its ninth annual American Indian celebration.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Admission is $2 for adults, $1 for children ages 6 to 12 and free for children under age 6.

The museum has a Web page at (http://www.avim.av.org.)

For further information, call at [phone].

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5 Photos

Photo: (1--ran in SAC and AV editions only--color) Third-graders from Pearblossom Elementary School touring the Antelope Valley Indian Museum handle a rug made from 17 rabbits.

(2--color in SAC and AV only) At left, Linda West, right, leads a tour of the museum's California Hall display. (3--ran in SAC and AV only--color in AV only) Tatianna Snyder, left, and Sharlana Torrey, both 8, look at an obsidian tool at the Indian Museum, top.

(4--ran in SAC only) Docent Meg Bookout points out flora to third-graders on a nature trail near the Antelope Valley Indian Museum in Lake Los Angeles.

(5--ran in SIMI and CONEJO editions only) Third-graders from Pearblossom Elementary School tour the Antelope Valley Indian Museum in Lake Los Angeles.

Jeff Goldwater/Daily News