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Muskegon County Museum
430 W. Clay Ave.
Muskegon, MI 49440
(231) 722-0278

Ongoing Exhibits


Come and learn more about why people have been Coming to the Lakes for over 10,000 years. This in depth permanent exhibit tells the story of many different "people" who came here and made Muskegon County their home.  This exhibit houses many artifacts from Muskegon's history, including paintings by VICTOR CASENELLI that once hung in the National Lumberman's Bank in Muskegon.

Voices of Muskegon
The new Voices of Muskegon Gallery is home to videos and historical dioramas about Muskegon County and Michigan history.  Watch videos about Lumbering in 1860, Coming to the Lakes, the restoration of the Hackley House, Muskegon in the 20th Century, theater in Muskegon, or a nutrition puppet show.  The Work Progress Administration (WPA) created the dioramas for the museum in 1937.  Audio clips accompany the dioramas. 

Food Webs Gallery
Visitors to the Food Webs Gallery may feel as if they've walked back outside as they explore a dune, grassland, wetland, forest and urban habitats. A mural covers the walls depicting trees and plant life that naturally grows in each habitat. Guests will also see some of the birds and animals that live there including a Bald Eagle, Red-Tailed Hawk, opossum, turkey and bobcat.

Body Works: It's All Up to You!
If you’ve visited Body Works in the past, it is time to visit again.  The gallery has undergone a complete transformation, and has re-opened to the public.  The new exhibit focuses on how to keep your body healthy, rather than how the human body works.

How much should I eat every day?”  “What foods are good for me, and which ones aren’t?”  “Am I exercising enough?”  “How can I protect my body from injury?”  “What happens if I don’t make healthy choices?”  All of these questions and more will be answered when you visit the new exhibit.   

There are lots of items to touch, hear, and see.  You can put together a meal and see if it is healthy, or put on a fat vest and find out how it feels to carry some extra weight.  Test your flexibility, or your endurance on a bicycle.  Discover how different eye conditions interrupt your vision, or dress Felt Lad for a variety of activities.  Hear what it is like to have Type II diabetes, or see what happens to a person’s lung when they smoke.  

Re-discover Body Works and find out how healthy choices really are All Up To You!
 

Temporary  Gallery  

 

The Good, The Bad, The Fad: Women's Fashion from 1890 to 1990

Archive Case 

A History Museum’s Museum History!

See the many locations and changes that the Muskegon County Museum has undergone over the years and read the timeline that details the major events in museum history. From the first gathering of the Board in 1938 to the Museum’s current location on the corner of 4th Street and Clay Avenue, explore the history of the museum with this new exhibit.

Collector's Corner

Rug Beaters
On Loan from Margaret Scheffer

If you have a collection you would like to share with us, please contact us at (231) 722-0278.

Collections Case

Into the Breech
During the Civil War, the length of muskets made it difficult for cavalrymen to fire them effectively.  The carbine, a shortened gun, solved this problem.  "Into the Breech" displays five of the most popular types of carbine.

 City Barn Gallery 

Making a House a Home

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Historic Sites of the Muskegon County Museum are a glimpse into a living past.  The 1890 Hackley House and 1915 Hume House illustrate the homes of the late Victorian Era while the Scolnik House is a peek at a typical family of the Great Depression.  This exhibit examines some examples of products and technology that made these houses homes.

 

Auditorium Gallery: