Ohio Historical Center

Inside this unique structure, the Ohio Historical Society offers visitors a rewarding museum experience of Ohio’s past and an Archives/Library that provides rich resources for genealogists and other researchers. The Center serves as the headquarters for the Ohio Historical Society and is the flagship museum of the Society’s network of over 50 historic sites and museums.

Ohio’s story is the nation’s story. This 15,000-square-foot exhibit gallery chronicles Ohio history from frontier days to the 1970s, focusing on agricultural and industrial progress, leadership and the effect of major changes on the lives of ordinary people. Within the gallery is the popular section, Ohio And The Civil War, which describes Ohio’s key role in the conflict. Artifacts include weapons, uniforms, medical and camp equipment and battle flags from the Society’s collections. More than 310,000 Ohioans served in the American Civil War. Other highlights of this history gallery are 1920s newsreels, an operating carriage shop, vintage automobiles and children’s activities, including a log cabin and pioneer kitchen, where young people can try on pioneer clothes, operate a spinning wheel and “cook” pioneer food.

The Museum features a real rarity: a locally-built Seneca automobile. Photo courtesy of Geldred @ Flickr

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