(804) 493-8440

Our Staff

The Westmoreland County Museum employs a small staff. If you are interested in volunteering or setting up a non-paid internship with us, feel free to reach out to [email protected]. We have worked with interns on a variety of projects that not only benefit us, but provide experience in a museum and library setting helping students complete their educational goals. 

Brianna Morris

Brianna Morris

Executive Director

Brianna has been with the Westmoreland County Museum for over a decade.  She began on April Fools’ Day in 2013.  From the beginning, she designed and implemented promotional materials for events, brochures for publicity, and press releases for media circulation.  She created flyers, brochures, advertisements, and other publicity items for various museum fundraisers, including the annual holiday house tour, Artists’ Studio Tour, WCM Garden Tour, and the holiday church tour.

During her tenure, Brianna led tours of the museum for school trips, local and traveling visitors, journalists, and even a Congressman.

Beginning in 2014, Brianna started creating content and maintaining the museum’s website.  She designs and manages the monthly e-newsletter from the museum via MailChimp.  Brianna operates the museum’s social media presence across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest, TikTok and YouTube. She created YouTube videos for the museum’s YouTube account, including various fundraising efforts and local tourism projects.  She also serves as the social media representative for the Westmoreland County Tourism Facebook page (Visit Westmoreland).

Brianna launched the WCM’s internship program and mentored summer interns from 2014- 2022.  In 2014, Brianna created WCM’s Summer Kids Camp, and she organized and hosted the kids’ camp until 2018 before handing it off to another staffer.   Brianna designed and executed the curriculum for all the museum’s educational programs and trained others to help facilitate.  She also manages and supervises the museum’s volunteer program.

Brianna discovered, booked, and coordinated with more than 60 local artists for the museum’s monthly Pop ‘n Art show (formerly called Art & Wine) and over 20 visiting lecturers.  Some of these artists were showcased for the first time at the museum.

Annually, Brianna assists in the Montross Fall Festival planning and gears the WCM educational programs toward the chosen festival theme.  She also develops WCM’s Christmas activities in partnership with the Montross Spirit Festival in December.  These activities included a multi-table display of a model train exhibitor, a 300-piece nativity display, and the museum’s first-ever Gingerbread House Contest with business sponsorships.  Starting in 2013, she planned, organized, and hosted the WCM annual Christmas Gala and Silent Auction with the assistance of WCM’s Community Involvement Committee.  Brianna planned, organized and hosted the museum’s version of an “Antiques Roadshow” featuring 5 appraisers.

Starting in 2016, Brianna created the Montross Soda Shoppe’s Crafternoon (crafting in the afternoon) series as a fundraiser for the museum.  She went on to implement, plan, and host the event for many years.  This series hosted 12 different artists over 3 years.

Brianna serves as the museum representative to the Westmoreland County public schools.  During Covid, she produced a 5-minute video showcasing the museum and participated in a Zoom Q&A for parents and students.  She also serves as the liaison from the museum to the Virginia Association of Museums (VAM) and has represented the museum in more than 50 VAM webinars and meetings.  Brianna formed partnerships with other historical sites in Westmoreland County and throughout the Northern Neck.  Brianna serves as the representative to the community when dealing with museum donations and when deliberating with the Exhibit & Collections committee on donated items.  She has worked with her coworkers on developing and setting up exhibitions during her 10-year employment.  Brianna also assisted genealogy researchers in the museum’s library throughout the years.

Brianna has written and submitted grants on the museum’s behalf beginning in 2013. She has also developed, planned and orchestrated a multi-tiered fundraising effort for the Community Foundation’s “Amazing Raise” events.

Brianna likes baking, and you’ll sometimes see her cookies at the museum for Sprit Festival and other events.  (Pictured below)

Email: [email protected]
Phone: (804) 493-8440
Mailing: PO Box 247
Montross, VA 22520

Rosemary McKenney Mahan

Genealogist and Research Librarian

Rosemary McKenney Mahan is a 2002 graduate of Old Dominion University, with a Bachelor’s of Science in Communications and a minor in Psychology.  She worked for 34 years in Dahlgren, Virginia, for defense contractors supporting the U.S. Department of Defense as a Senior Technical Writer, Editor, Program Analyst, and Program Manager. 

She retired from full-time employment in September 2022 to follow her passion as a genealogist.  She received her certificate from Boston University in Genealogy Research and is currently working on obtaining a Certificate in Genealogy (CG) from the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG).  Rosemary has been a life-long resident of Westmoreland County and lives in Coles Point with her husband, Mike. 

She is currently handling genealogy research requests and is working on exhibits in the Historic Courthouse.  Rosemary is planning genealogy classes and workshops in our library for both children and adults.  If you are interested in attending, please contact our museum so that we can keep you informed of the schedule for these classes.

Rosemary is a working at the Historic Courthouse’s Genealogy Library three days a week.

Kayla Payne

Research Librarian

Welcome back Kayla.  Kayla originally joined us in 2018 as our summer intern; this time, she is joining our team as our part-time research librarian.  We’re glad she is back.

Kayla Payne is a 2020 William & Mary graduate with a Bachelor’s in Art & Art History. In 2022, she worked as a Visitor Services Specialist and later Education Coordinator at Stratford Hall.  Kayla went on to curate art exhibitions for The Arts Center of Montross.  She’s also an artist herself as an illustrator and an exhibiting artist for 2022 InLight in Richmond.  She has taught comics making class at the Essex Public Library.

She is currently working on obtaining a graduate certificate in Public History at Virginia Commonwealth University. Kayla is handling genealogy research requests and ran our summer internship program in 2023.  Kayla is working at the Historic Courthouse’s Genealogy Library three days a week.

Eileen Scholar

Eileen Scholar

Decorations and Store Support

Eileen, a retired art teacher, first joined the museum as a volunteer in 2016.  She then became the manager of our Westmoreland Mercantile General Store.  She now works on decorations in the Wakefield Building, as well as helping with our rotating exhibit in 2022 on Colonial Beach.  She still helps out in the general store.  Mostly, she makes ideas come to life, like the life-sized gingerbread house (pictured here).