October 3, 2025, Press Release from the Allen County Museum:
LIMA, Ohio - The Allen County Museum is thrilled to announce it has received the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ (IMLS) Museums for America Grant. This grant will be used to create a new permanent exhibition, titled Snapshot of Democracy: The Eight Ohio Presidents, which will mark the beginning of the museum’s transformation of the main floor. This exhibition, Snapshot of Democracy, will be a significant part of the museum's role in preserving and celebrating the local heritage, especially during the 250th birthday of the United States in 2026. The primary objective of this exhibition is to reorganize the space to enhance the visitor experience, create thematic programming and interactive experiences within the exhibition, and develop educational resources for schools and visiting families. Likewise, it will highlight Ohio’s importance on the political map of the United States, from its eight presidents to how voters in Ohio almost always reflect the national vote.
Snapshot of Democracy will be created with the help of Edwards Creative, an exhibit design and fabrication firm; Dr. David Strittmatter, Assistant History Professor at Ohio Northern University; and Jennifer Souers Chevraux, founder of Illumine Creative Solutions. With their help, the Allen County Museum plans for Snapshot of Democracy to be a platform for interactive, inquiry-based programming that enables visitors to engage meaningfully with the past. Primary sources and artifacts will spark visitors’ imaginations, developing their historical thinking skills and historical empathy. A guide for family audiences and curriculum guides for school groups will be created as part of this project.
Snapshot of Democracy will be installed in an exhibition space on the main floor in the space that currently houses a large-scale model of Mount Vernon. The artifacts included in the Mount Vernon gallery represent America at the time of the American Revolution—a time when Ohio was still a frontier and wilderness. While this exhibition space is unique and interesting to visitors, it does not align with our strategic goal of being more inclusive and representative of the history of our community and its place within the state of Ohio and beyond. However, being an important part of ourcollection, the museum will reinstall and update Mount Vernon and related artifacts currently exhibited in that gallery in a space on the lower floor of the museum.
The success of our 2022 temporary exhibition, Surprising Legacies: The Ohio Presidents, identified the need to incorporate the political history of Ohio into more permanent programming. Thus, this new permanent exhibition will fulfill this need. Specifically, focusing on the American political landscape throughout the eight Ohio Presidents, their military careers, history of Presidential speeches and debates, and the Presidents’ wives and families.
The Allen County Museum is once again very thankful to receive the IMLS’s Museums for America Grant.
The Allen County Museum is located at 620 West Market Street, Lima, Ohio 45801. The Museum’s regular hours are Wednesday to Sunday 1:00p.m.—5:00 p.m., closed Monday and Tuesday. For more information, please contact Dr. Christine Fowler Shearer at 419-222-9426 or visit us at www.allencountymuseum.org.
