National Museum of the Great Lakes: A Must See!

Hayes Center Communications and Marketing Director Nancy Kleinhenz and Nan Card, Curator of Manuscripts, with Ohio Magazine staff  at Destination Toledo  (Convention and Visitors Bureau) event held at the new National Museum of the Great Lakes. 

Last November, my blog post featured a fundraiser to support the National Museum of the Great Lakes located at 1701 Front St. (right off 280) on the Maumee River. Well, in late April, it became a reality. 

 

This past week, Hayes Center Communications and Marketing Director Nancy Kleinhenz and I had an opportunity to visit. It's a must see! The Great Lakes Historical Society can certainly be proud of its accomplishment. Both educational and entertaining, the museum emphasizes the important role the Great Lakes has played throughout our nation's history to the present day.  Designed by Hilferty of Athens, Ohio, its  48 interactive exhibits make use of photographs, artifacts, ships' logs, and documents of the Great Lakes Historical Society.  The videos, photos, and artifacts that make up the displays capture the interest of visitors of all ages.(I wanted to spend more time writing messages in Morse Code!). 

 

 

The museum ship S. S. Col. James M. Schoonmaker, once the largest freighter on the Great Lakes, was recently docked just behind the museum. It's impressive!

 



H2Oh! Making Waves: National Museum of the Great Lakes Fundraiser Auction

National Museum of the Great Lakes
1701 Front Street
Toledo, Ohio 43605

 

After nearly six years of planning, the Great Lakes Historical Society, in collaboration with the city of Toledo, the state of Ohio, and a number of generous donors, is in the final stages of preparation for opening its new National Museum of the Great Lakes, slated for spring of 2014.

 

On December 14 from 6:30 to 10, the museum will play host to its annual fundraiser, H2Oh! Making Waves. It will be the first time the public will have an opportunity to see inside the new museum located at Maritime Plaza on Front Street.

 

The evening features a selection of Great Lakes cuisine from aboard Great Lakes freighters prepared locally by Chef Marcel and assisted by culinary students from Penta Career Center.

 

Guests will be able to bid live for items such as a Kentucky Derby trip via a private Lear jet; a sail aboard an award-winning luxury sailboat; a wedding package aboard the "James M. Schoonmaker."  A dozen themed baskets valued at $500 each will be raffled. And, of course there will be the drawing of the "Luck of the Lakes" Raffle, $100 per ticket with prizes valued at more than $35,000, including cash prizes as high as $10,000. Tickets for "Luck of the Lakes" are on sale and will be limited to 1,500. "Luck of the Lakes" tickets can be purchased by attending the auction, calling 440-967-3467, or visiting inlandseas.org

The new museum is unique among traditional maritime museums. It will offer a blend of original Great Lakes artifacts  coordinated with interactive hands-on exhibits, bringing both entertainment and education to a diverse audience.