Portland Museum (Louisville)

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Portland Museum
PortlandLouMuseum.jpg
Portland Museum in 2008
Portland Museum (Louisville)
Established1978
Location2308 Portland Avenue
Louisville, Kentucky 40212
Coordinates 38°16′09.7″N85°47′11.3″W / 38.269361°N 85.786472°W / 38.269361; -85.786472
Type History, Art
Website portlandky.org

The Portland Museum is a neighborhood history and art museum in Louisville, Kentucky. It details the history of the Portland neighborhood both as an independent town in the early 1800s and after Portland's amalgamation into Louisville after the construction of the Louisville and Portland Canal. [1] [2]

Contents

The museum consists of three buildings: Beech Grove, a 19th-century Italianate mansion, the former Portland Bridge Baptist Mission Building, connected at Beech Grove's north side, and the AHOY House, a renovated Victorian property adjacent to the museum. [2] [3] The museum is also working to restore the 1812 Squire Earick House.

History

The museum was originally founded by seven teachers from the old Roosevelt Elementary School with an initial grant the National Endowment for the Humanities. [2] The collection originally consisted of scrapbooks from various local families but has now since been expanded since then to include various artifacts, paintings and other memorabilia from local residents. [3] [2] Upon the school's closing in 1980, the museum was moved to the Brown School before settling into its current facility in 1983. [2]

Exhibits

The museum contains exhibits on famous residents of Portland, including an exhibit of paintings by John James Audubon. [2] In 2014, the museum opened a permanent collection consisting of memorabilia donated by former football star Paul Hornung . [4] [5] The museum also features a book printing room for students. [2]

As part of a recent revitalization effort in the Portland neighborhood, the museum acquired an adjacent Victorian home in 2020 and has since begun developing it into an immersive space and play area for children called AHOY. [6] [7] Danny Seim of the indie rock group Menomena was appointed as a co-director of the museum in 2019 and is now the executive director of the AHOY project. [3] [7] [8] [9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "History". portlandky.org. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Martha, Elson (March 11, 2016). "Museum head keeps history anchored in Portland". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 Omalza, Lennie (October 29, 2020). "Victorian house from the 1800s is home to the Portland Museum - and paranormal activity". The Courier Journal. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  4. ↑ Michael, McKay (June 13, 2014). "Paul Hornung's Portland: Golden Boy to lead tour to benefit museum". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Paul Hornung leads tour of Louisville's Portland neighborhood". WDRB.com. June 18, 2014. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  6. ↑ Rucker, Erica (January 20, 2021). "AHOY! Portland Museum Explores Immersive Expansion". The Louisville Eccentric Observer. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  7. 1 2 Schneider, Keith (March 31, 2021). "Unease at Kentucky Project Mirrors Construction Industry's Fears". The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Staff". portlandky.org. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  9. ↑ Menderski, Maggie (August 18, 2018). "Record store plans to open soon by Portland's McQuixote Books & Coffee". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
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