Angel Museum facts for kids
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| Established | 1 May 1998 |
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| Dissolved | 29 September 2018 |
| Location | 656 Pleasant St, Beloit, Wisconsin |
| Type | Private museum |
| Key holdings | Oprah Winfrey Black Angel Collection |
| Collection size | 13,600 |
| Public transit access |  Beloit Transit |
The Angel Museum was a special place in Beloit, Wisconsin. It was a museum filled with a huge collection of angel figurines. The museum first opened in 1998. It was located in an old church building called St. Paul's Catholic Church, right next to the Rock River. Sadly, the museum closed its doors in 2018 because it didn't have enough money to stay open.
Contents
Discovering the Angel Museum's Story
How the Angel Collection Began
The idea for the Angel Museum started with a woman named Joyce Berg. She began collecting angels in 1976. Her very first angel was a small Italian figurine showing two angels on a seesaw. Joyce loved collecting angels, and her collection grew very quickly over the years.
By 1994, Joyce had so many angels that a newspaper, the National Enquirer, wrote about her. The headline said, "Heavens above! Grandma's living with 10,455 angels." Imagine having that many angels in your home!
Finding a Home for the Angels
In 1995, Joyce's collection had become too big for her house. She needed a new, larger place to keep all her angels. Around the same time, the old St. Paul's Catholic Church in Beloit was in danger of being torn down. People wanted to build something new there.
Joyce decided the church would be a perfect home for her angels. With help from many people in Beloit, the church was saved and turned into a museum. The Angel Museum officially opened on May 1, 1998. The city of Beloit charged only $1 a year for rent! Sometimes, for special visits, Joyce Berg would even dress up in an angel costume. She wore cherub socks, angel earrings, a halo, and wings.
Why the Museum Closed
After 20 years of sharing its beautiful collection, the Angel Museum closed in 2018. The people who ran the museum wrote a letter to the community. They explained that they didn't have enough money, members, sponsors, or volunteers to keep the museum running.
In October 2018, all the angels and other items from the museum were sold at an auction. In 2019, the City of Beloit made plans to turn the old St. Paul's Catholic Church building into a place for events.
Exploring the Angel Collections
A World Record Collection
The Angel Museum was famous for having what it said was the largest private collection of angel figurines. In 2001, the Guinness Book of World Records even recognized it as the biggest collection of its kind! By December 2008, the museum had over 13,600 angels. About 10,000 of these were on display for everyone to see.
These angels came from more than 60 different countries around the world. They were all different sizes, too. Some were as tiny as a thimble, while others were taller than 5 feet! The angels were made from many interesting materials. These included porcelain, glass, copper, and acrylic. Some were even made from lambskin, corn husks, tree roots, and spaghetti! Outside the museum, two large concrete angels, each weighing 100 pounds, stood guard.
Oprah Winfrey's Special Angels
One of the most famous parts of the museum's collection was Oprah Winfrey's collection of 571 black angel figurines. In 1997, on her TV show, the Oprah Winfrey Show, Oprah mentioned to her guest, Cher, that black angel figurines were hard to find.
After that, Oprah's fans started sending her black angel figurines from all over! She received so many that she eventually had to ask her fans to stop. Later in 1997, just before the Angel Museum opened, Oprah generously donated her entire collection to the museum. Other people also donated angels to the museum, often as a way to remember loved ones.
In 2018, after the museum closed, all the angels, including Joyce Berg's famous collection, were sold. The building itself has since been used for other purposes by the Visit Beloit organization.
