Ella Sharp Museum - Jackson, MI
N 42° 12.863 W 084° 25.021
16T E 713204 N 4676810
Ella Sharp Museum is a history museum that opening in 1965 in Jackson, Michigan.
Waymark Code: WM173V1
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 12/03/2022
Views: 0
Ella Sharp's gift to Jackson became the Ella Sharp Museum in 1965. Renovations funded by community members and the
Jackson Junior Welfare League (JJWL) converted Ella's house from living space to a thriving community museum. The JJWL
worked with various art, history, and cultural groups, leading a community effort to form the Ella Sharp Museum Association.
The Association leased Ella's home from the City, and grew quickly thanks to Peter Hurst, the first board president.
In 1968, the museum moved an early log house and Jackson's Dibble one-room schoolhouse to the museum grounds, began
constructing a modern gallery building, and collaborated with Jackson Public Schools to build the Hurst Planetarium. Ongoing
community support allowed for continued growth, adding additional buildings and renovating the original gallery building to
add classrooms, meeting rooms, and offices.
Today the museum operates 11 buildings on six acres. The Hadwin Center connects seven galleries featuring changing art,
science, and history exhibits, permanent exhibits of Jackson history, wildlife art, and a beautiful clock collection. Regularly
scheduled tours of Ella's farmhouse and family-friendly shows in the Hurst Planetarium complete the museums public offerings. -
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