The Sunnyvale Historical Society is just $300,000 from having all the funds it needs to rebuild the house as a historical museum next to the Sunnyvale Community Center.

"I think this is something that is 42 years in the making, if not 42 years past due," Laura Babcock said. Babcock is chairwoman of the society.

She said the construction goal is $1.6 million, and the society has raised more than $1.4 million. But $500,000 of that is a grant from the city to be used only for design and display purposes, so it is still $300,000 short of being able to begin construction.

When finished, the museum will look like the original 20-room Murphy House from the outside, and four rooms inside--the dining room, parlor, kitchen and one bedroom--will be recreations of rooms in the original house. The rooms will house Murphy artifacts and tell the family's story.

The rest of the downstairs rooms will have a Murphy family timeline and exhibits on early Sunnyvale development, early businesses and the agricultural history of the area. Babcock said she also hopes to incorporate the 10-acre apricot orchard next to the house.

Upstairs exhibits will tell the story of Sunnyvale's transition from agriculture to high-tech innovation. Babcock said that different exhibits will rotate through the upstairs displays.

"We are working to make sure all of our cabinet displays are interchangeable," she said.

Babcock says the museum will be primarily about the development of Sunnyvale, but she explains that the area and the Murphy family actually had a huge impact on the development of California. When Martin Murphy Jr. died, he was the state's largest landowner, and his property stretched from the South Bay down to San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara County.

"Once we get the word out, I think it will attract a very wide audience," she said.

Babcock said the historical society is currently working with designers and builders on final plans and, once they are complete, the society will enter the permit phase with the city. She said it hopes to have permits in place and ground broken by May or June of this year.

To meet that deadline, the historical society is working hard to bring in the final funds. It is waiting for word on several grants it applied for in 2005 because some of the donor groups said they would grant money once funds were available in the new year.

And the society is still selling engraved bricks and tiles--which will be displayed outside the finished museum--to residents and businesses. Many of the bricks have been purchased by Murphy family descendents, and those bricks will be made into a family tree display on the grounds.

Because the museum is based in Sunnyvale, Babcock said the society is always looking for residents to share memories, photos and ideas that could be incorporated into the final project.

"We're trying hard to make sure this is a community museum, so we're trying to get as much community input as we can," Babcock said. "It'll be a place to go, a destination, a place to take your visitors."

For more information, donation forms or to offer input, contact Laura Babcock at 408.736.4713 or visit the website www.heritageparkmuseum.org. Forms for the engraved bricks and tiles are available there.