Tuesday, March 21, 2023 (Toledo, Ohio) – The National Museum of the Great Lakes will begin the process of moving their vast collection from Vermilion, Ohio, and other various locations to Toledo, Ohio. This was made possible thanks to an $18,000 competitive grant awarded to them through the Ohio History Fund—The Ohio History Connection’s matching grant program for history.

“Although the Great Lakes Historical Society and its National Museum of the Great Lakes relocated from Vermilion to Toledo in 2014, it lacked the means to move its entire collection of 2,000+ artifacts and to conclusively determine the full scope of its collection,” shares the organization’s Executive Director Chris Gillcrist. “This grant and the resulting project will remedy this and enable us to finally establish firm ‘intellectual control’ over its holdings and be better stewards of the regional history entrusted to it.”

Since the opening of the National Museum of the Great Lakes, the Great Lakes Historical Society has been actively managing their collection across multiple storage sites. This extraordinary grant makes it possible for the organization to take the last step of fully relocating to Toledo by bringing their collection all under one roof and within their museum’s hometown. The organization has secured a lease for local storage space and has spent a considerable amount of time and effort over the past few years preparing for this move. Both human and technological resources have enabled the continued cataloging and organizing efforts of their collection covering both the U.S. and Canadian history of all five Great Lakes. Representatives from the museum were informed in mid February of the award and recently finalized their new storage space lease. The Ohio History Connection publicly announced all grant recipients at an annual Statehood Day advocacy event on Thursday, March 2, at the Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio.

The Ohio History Connection awarded $185,624 in grants this year and, since the Ohio History Fund program started in 2012, have made a total of 122 grants to history and cultural organizations across the state, totaling $ $1.2 million. The Fund is made possible by Ohio taxpayers who select “Ohio History Fund” as a donation fund on their state tax returns. For additional information on the Ohio History Fund Grant and other 2023 recipients visit ohiohistory.org.

September 1, 2020 (Toledo, Ohio) – Despite financial hardships due to COVID-19, the National Museum of the Great Lakes will continue their annual tradition to open doors FREE on Labor Day (Monday, September 7) to all union members and union retirees. The museum will be open normal hours from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

“The museum recognizes the importance of honoring the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United States,” says the museum’s Executive Director Chris Gillcrist.

Tickets can be reserved ahead of time online at nmgl.org by selecting the “Member” ticket option, however reservations are not required. Proof of union membership will be requested upon arrival.

We are closed to the public this Sunday, April 21, 2019. We will re-open on Tuesday, April 23 at 10am.

We are closed on Wednesday, January 30, due to extremely cold temperatures.

Thank you to everyone that took part in our 2018 Luck of the Lakes Raffle. The winners are:

6 Tickets into 2019’s Luck of the Lakes Raffle
– Glenn & Mary R., Perrysburg, OH