St. Charles History Museum

St. Charles History Museum The St. Charles History Museum mission is to Collect, Preserve, and Present St. Charles' History. The building served St.

Charles History Museum houses permanent and temporary exhibits, the Colonial Anderson Research Room, photo and research archives, a gift shop, administrative offices, and the collections storage facilities. The Museum is located in the 1928 McCornack Oil Company building at 215 East Main Street. Charles as a Texaco gas station from 1928-1990. As a 501(c)3 non-profit, the St Charles History Museum

is supported by the community. The Museum accepts donations and offers memberships on our website. Open Tuesday-Saturday
11am-4pm
Closed Sundays, Mondays, and Major Holidays

As we celebrate our Indigenous community this year, our Museum would like to highlight one way to actively help make a d...
02/05/2025

As we celebrate our Indigenous community this year, our Museum would like to highlight one way to actively help make a difference.

Since 2019, our friends at the Midwest SOARRING Foundation and Friends of the McKee House in Glen Ellyn have been busy at work trying to establish the Native American Cultural & Environmental Center. Located at the McKee House in Churchill Woods, the Center would be the only one of its kind in Illinois!

Learn more about this wonderful project on February 22nd at 2:00PM at the Glen Ellyn Historical Center.

https://fundthecenter.org/

02/05/2025
02/04/2025
Our latest edition of the St. Charles History Chronicle podcast is now online. You can find it anywhere you get your pod...
02/03/2025

Our latest edition of the St. Charles History Chronicle podcast is now online. You can find it anywhere you get your podcasts, as well as on YouTube. It's all about Greyhound, died 60 years ago this week.

A big thank you to Jan Heine and Nancy Brejc for their assistance on this podcast. You can find them on Facebook at Friends of the great trotter Greyhound.

YouTube link: https://youtu.be/WTjRyCoxzwk

You can listen to it directly on our website.

https://www.stcmuseum.org/podcast/2025/2/3/remembering-greyhound-641932-241965

Remembering the great horse, Greyhound, and the story of the saving of his stall. Nancy Brejc and Jan Heine join host Steve Gibson to describe Greyhound’s legacy on the 60th anniversary of his death in 1965.

Here's something to keep you busy this cold weekend... A word puzzle. How many of the 25 St. Charles street names we use...
01/25/2025

Here's something to keep you busy this cold weekend... A word puzzle. How many of the 25 St. Charles street names we used can you find? We have included some two word street names, like INDIAN MOUND, but there's no space between the words. Got it?

Okay, you'll need to print out the attached puzzle. We saved it so it fits an 8.5x11 piece of paper...

There's a list of all the street names in the comments.

In a little while, we'll post a link to the solution...

Enjoy!

FYI: Unfortunately, this event is sold out, but the Library is developing a waiting list and may open a second session.W...
01/18/2025

FYI: Unfortunately, this event is sold out, but the Library is developing a waiting list and may open a second session.

What are we talking about? Well, Steve Gibson, historian and past President of the Museum, regularly leads walking tours of downtown St. Charles. The St. Charles Public Library has partnered with the St. Charles History Museum to allow Steve to present a "virtual" version of his downtown walking tour on February 13th at 1 PM.

So now you can learn more about the fascinating history of our historic downtown district and the people who made that history. You can leave the floppy hat, the sunblock, and the sunglasses at home. Feel free to wear comfy shoes, though!

If you are interested, follow the link below and sign up for the waiting list. The Library will let you know if a second session option becomes available.

St. Charles History Museum Historian Steve Gibson regularly leads visitors on engaging walking tours of St. Charles. Now, he will bring this virtual edition of the walking tour to the library!

So here are the terra-cotta transportation designs that were once part of the Hotel Baker Garage facade. They were saved...
01/17/2025

So here are the terra-cotta transportation designs that were once part of the Hotel Baker Garage facade. They were saved when the garage was demolished. Actually, these are concrete casts made from the original terra cotta pieces. You can find them on the west side of the plaza behind McNally's and the Steel Beam Theater. On these tiles, you see different modes of transportation.

Well, at least we think that was the idea. We understand the Native American with the travois, the Conestoga wagon, the steam locomotive, and the biplane. But what is the last one? Is that a dinosaur wearing some kind of harness?!?

Happy National Trivia Day! Part 2So we asked a question earlier about an oil boom in the St. Charles area in the early 1...
01/04/2025

Happy National Trivia Day! Part 2

So we asked a question earlier about an oil boom in the St. Charles area in the early 1930s. Now here's a second question along the same lines.

True or False: The City of St. Charles struck oil in 1936 while drilling a new water well. Experts said that the well was "actually pumping oil and in a quantity to approach commercial pumping possibilities."

Ready to learn more about your hometown? Follow our FB and IG pages!

(Image Source: Wikimedia - Public Domain)

Happy National Trivia Day! Ready to play?True or False: Reports of oil discovered just west of St. Charles in 1931 led t...
01/04/2025

Happy National Trivia Day!

Ready to play?

True or False: Reports of oil discovered just west of St. Charles in 1931 led to a short-lived "oil boom" in St. Charles.

Ready to learn more about your hometown? Follow our FB and IG pages!

(Image Source: AI Generated)

Address

215 E Main Street
Saint Charles, IL
60174

Opening Hours

Tuesday 11am - 4pm
Wednesday 11am - 4pm
Thursday 11am - 4pm
Friday 11am - 4pm
Saturday 11am - 4pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

Telephone

(630) 584-6967

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Your City. Your History. Your Sense of Community.

The St. Charles History Museum houses permanent and temporary exhibits, the Colonial Anderson Research Room, the Jack & Kathy Brens Exhibit Hall photo and research archives, the Curious Fox Gift Shop, administrative offices, and the collections storage facilities. The Museum currently holds over 10,000 artifacts and 15,000 photographs from St. Charles’ 185+ year history in its collection. The Museum is located in the 1928 McCornack Oil Company building at 215 East Main Street. The building served St. Charles as a Texaco gas station from 1928-1990. After renovations, the Museum opened to the public in May 2001. Prior to 2001 the Museum was located in the St. Charles Municipal Building.

Leave your mark on history by supporting the St. Charles History Museum. The Museum relies on the generosity of its members and supporters throughout the community. The St. Charles History Museum is a 501(c) 3 and all charitable donations are tax deductible.

ALL GIFTS SHOULD BE MADE TO:

St. Charles Heritage Center