DALLAS, TEXAS.-Nicola Longford has been named Executive Director of The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. The announcement was made by Ruben Esquivel, the museum's chairman who said Ms. Longford would begin her new duties October 17, 2005.

Since 2000, Ms. Longford has been Vice President of Community Services For the Missouri Historical Society in St. Louis, which she joined in 1992. From 1984 to 1991, she was with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation in Virginia.

"The Museum is very pleased that Nicola Longford will serve as Executive Director," Esquivel said. "Her broad experience in museum administration, her commitment to preservation and education, and her national success with historical exhibits will be invaluable to the Sixth Floor."

"I am very privileged to become part of this incredible institution and to take part in telling the Museum's story. I look forward to making Dallas my new home and finding my place in this community," said Ms. Longford.

At the Missouri Historical Society, she supervises a staff of 70 and a multi-million dollar programming budget. The areas of responsibility include the Divisions of Education, Exhibits and Graphic Design, Library/Archives/Still and Moving Images, Museum Collections and Conservation, Publications, and Special Projects.

Longford was a key participant in the development, planning and production of the $7.5 million Lewis & Clark exhibit now touring the United States. This exhibit, entitled "Lewis & Clark: The National Bicentennial Exhibition," is a compilation of 500 original artifacts from the Missouri Historical Society, The Smithsonian Institution and other national museums with significant collections of Lewis & Clark items. This exhibition will open at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon in November 2005.

Longford received her BA from Randolph-Macon Women's College in Lynchburg, Virginia, and her MA in Anthropology from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. She is a native of Pembury, Kent, England. She is a member of the American Association for State and Local History, The American Institute for Conservation and is active on the Board of the Association of Midwest Museums.

The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza chronicles the assassination and legacy of President John F. Kennedy; preserves the National Historic Landmark District and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Plaza; and provides audiences with the tools to navigate contemporary culture within the context of presidential history.