Frazier History Museum facts for kids

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Frazier History Museum

Established	May 22, 2004
Location	829 West Main Street Louisville, Kentucky 40202
Type	History
Founder	Owsley Brown Frazier
Public transit access	TARC

The Frazier History Museum is a cool place to explore Kentucky's past! It's located in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. This museum started in 2004. It was first called the Frazier Historical Arms Museum. Later, it became the Frazier International History Museum.

Today, the Frazier Museum is all about Kentucky history. It shows off amazing artifacts and special exhibits. You can learn about Kentucky's pop culture and famous bourbon whiskey. They also have exhibits on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The museum is a non-profit group. It gets money from donations to keep running.

In 2018, the Frazier Museum became the official starting point for the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. This is a fun way to learn about bourbon history!

Museum History

How the Museum Started

Owsley Brown Frazier was a rich businessman from Louisville. In 1974, a big tornado hit his home. A special rifle he owned disappeared. This rifle was a family treasure. He never found it, but searching for it made him love collecting old weapons.

In 2000, Mr. Frazier showed his weapon collection. It was part of an exhibit called The Weapon As Art. About 10,000 people came to see it! This made him want to open his own museum. He wanted to share his collection with everyone.

So, in 2001, plans for the Frazier Historical Arms Museum were announced. It would open in downtown Louisville. The museum's goal was to show the art and skill of weapon makers.

In 2003, the Frazier Museum teamed up with the Royal Armouries Museum in England. This museum is very old. It used to make armor for English Kings. This partnership meant the Frazier Museum could borrow and display weapons from them. It was the first time a British national museum worked so closely with a museum outside the UK!

Mr. Frazier paid most of the money for the museum. It cost about $32 million to build. Construction started in 2001 and finished in 2003.

Early Years: Arms and International History

Mayor Jerry Abramson speaks at the opening ceremony, May 22, 2004.

The Frazier Historical Arms Museum opened on May 22, 2004. It had about 1,500 objects from Mr. Frazier's collection. These were from 1492 to World War I. It also had about 350 objects from the Royal Armouries. These items included guns, cannons, swords, and armor. They came from many countries like France and Germany. The museum even had life-size figures showing battle scenes.

On May 17, 2006, the museum changed its name. It became the Frazier International History Museum. This new name showed that its collection came from many different countries. Over time, the museum started to focus less on just weapons. It began to show more general history from Kentucky and around the world.

In 2010, the museum got the Bloedner Monument. This is a very old Civil War memorial. It honors soldiers who died in a battle.

The museum also started a fun Halloween tradition in 2010. It was a show called An Evening With Poe. It featured stories by the spooky writer Edgar Allan Poe.

Frazier History Museum Today

In 2011, the museum got its current name: the Frazier History Museum.

In 2012, actor William Shatner gave the museum a cool bronze sculpture. It showed a Japanese warrior on a horse. Later that year, Mr. Owsley Brown Frazier, the museum's founder, passed away.

The museum hosted The Hunger Games: The Exhibition in 2017. This special exhibit was about the popular movie series. Jennifer Lawrence, who starred in the movies, is from Louisville. She helped promote the exhibit!

In 2018, the Frazier Museum became the official starting point of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. This helps people learn about Kentucky's famous bourbon.

The An Evening With Poe show ended in 2019 after ten great years. The museum's staff performed many of Poe's stories and poems.

The Museum Building

The museum is in a large building in downtown Louisville. It's a historic building from the late 1800s. It used to be called the "Doerhoefer Building."

Building History

A fire insurance map from 1892 records "ruins tumbling down" on the northwest corner of the property.

Louisville grew a lot because of river trade. West Main Street became an important street. The area where the museum stands was once a tobacco warehouse.

In 1890, a strong tornado hit Louisville. It destroyed many buildings, including the tobacco warehouse. After the tornado, many new buildings were built. They had cool cast-iron fronts.

In 1897, a man named John Doerhoefer decided to build new business houses there.

Building Design

A 1936 photo shows the original cupola, which by 1966 would be gone.

A 2005 photo shows the new cupola, installed November 7, 2003.

Mr. Doerhoefer hired D. X. Murphy and Bros. to design the building. This firm also designed the famous Twin Spires at Churchill Downs. The museum building was finished in 1898. It was made of brick, stone, and iron. It actually has four buildings connected together.

Ox Breeches Factory

Around 1900, a clothing factory called Ox Breeches Manufacturing Company operated here. They made pants and employed about 350 workers.

In 1916, a big fire broke out at the factory. It caused a lot of damage. You can still see burn marks on some of the wooden beams inside the building today!

Building Updates

When Mr. Frazier bought the building in 2001, he had much of the inside rebuilt. A new copper dome was added to the top corner. The original dome had been removed a long time ago.

In 2012, the museum expanded its exhibit space. It also bought another building next door. In 2018, a new entrance area and an outdoor park were added.

Museum Layout

First Floor Fun

Ghost ferns and other native Kentucky flora line the park.

You can enter the museum from Main Street or Washington Street. Both lead to a glass entrance area called the Cube.

The Kentucky Bourbon Trail Welcome Center is here. This is where you buy tickets. There's also a Museum Store where you can find souvenirs.

The Great Hall is a big open space in the middle. It has a grand staircase. Around the hall, you can see parts of The Stewart Collection. This collection has many tiny toy soldiers and historical figures. There's also a classroom for students to learn history with hands-on activities.

The north wing of the first floor holds large, temporary exhibits. There's also a theater for live history shows.

Second Floor Explorations

On the second floor, you'll find more of The Charles W. Stewart Historic Miniatures Collection. You can see hundreds of toy soldiers and historical figures. They show scenes from different wars like the Revolutionary War and World War II.

There's also a fancy champagne parlor. This space can be used for events.

Third Floor Adventures

The third floor has two main exhibits:

The Spirit of Kentucky: This exhibit is all about Kentucky's famous bourbon whiskey.
The Lewis and Clark Experience: This exhibit makes you feel like you're on the famous Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Fourth Floor and Rooftop Views

The fourth floor has offices for the museum staff. It also has a large event space with wooden floors and brick walls.

The rooftop garden is a great place to see seasonal flowers. It offers views of the Ohio River.

Museum Collections

The museum has many important historical items. These include weapons, war artifacts, and other objects from America, Europe, and Asia. Most were given by the museum's founder, Owsley Brown Frazier.

Cool Historical Weapons

Holland & Holland, Ltd. Royal Grade Double Rifle ("The Big Stick"), presented to Theodore Roosevelt, 1908.

Some of the oldest guns are from the 1500s and 1600s. You can also see rifles and handguns from the 1800s. These were made by famous companies like Colt and Winchester.

One of the most famous items is a rifle that belonged to President Theodore Roosevelt. It's called "The Big Stick." He used it on a safari in Africa! The name comes from his famous saying: "speak softly and carry a big stick."

Self bow and quiver with arrows, attributed to Geronimo, 19th c.

Other cool weapons belonged to famous people like Buffalo Bill, George Armstrong Custer, and George Washington. You can even see a bow and arrows said to belong to Geronimo, a famous Apache leader. There's also a rifle made by Mose Moxley, who escaped slavery using the Underground Railroad.

Many weapons were used in important conflicts. These include the American Revolution and the American Civil War.

Other Amazing Artifacts

Arrest warrant issued for Mary Todd Lincoln dated May 19, 1875.

The museum has artifacts from the American Civil War. This includes a Confederate flag that might have been carried into battle.

You can also see items from Native American history. There are beaded clothes and a grave marker from the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

From Asia and Europe, you can see Japanese helmets and Samurai armor.

The museum also displays rare books and documents. There's a document for Mary Todd Lincoln from 1875. You can also see the Boone family bible. There's even a painting of Geronimo by an artist he actually posed for!

Other items include old clothes, dolls, furniture, and musical instruments. There are also photographs, postcards, and toys.

Exhibits to Explore

Permanent Exhibits

The Founder's Gallery

This exhibit honors Owsley Brown Frazier, the museum's founder. It shows off many important artifacts and weapons from his collection.

The Spirit of Kentucky

A digital library of bourbon-related content resides within a dinner table in The Spirit of Kentucky.

The Bottle Hall will showcase every brand of bourbon currently produced in the state of Kentucky.

This exhibit teaches you all about Kentucky's famous bourbon whiskey. You'll learn how the land helps make bourbon special. You'll also see how distillers work together. The exhibit shows the culture of bourbon fans too.

You enter through a covered bridge. You exit through the Bottle Hall. This hall will eventually have a bottle of every bourbon made in Kentucky!

The Stewart Collection

The Charles W. Stewart Historic Miniatures Collection is one of the best in the world! It has thousands of tiny toy soldiers and historical figures. These figures show scenes from many different wars and historical events. You can see battles from the Punic Wars to World War II.

The Lewis and Clark Experience

This exhibit makes you feel like you're on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. This was a big journey from 1804 to 1806. The goal was to learn about the plants, animals, and land of the new Louisiana Purchase territory.

Special Exhibits

Southern Exposition

This exhibit is in a fancy parlor. It tells the story of the Southern Exposition. This was a big annual event in Louisville, like a mini World's Fair. It ran from 1883 to 1887.

West of Ninth: Race, Reckoning, & Reconciliation

This exhibit looks at the history of racial inequality in Louisville. It focuses on the "Ninth Street divide." This area west of Ninth Street is known as the West End of Louisville. It is linked to the African-American community. The exhibit explores how history led to current issues and protests in Louisville.

It includes items found from historic Black neighborhoods. It also features stories from the "West of Ninth" blog.

Past Special Exhibitions

The Frazier Museum often hosts exciting temporary exhibits. Here are a few examples:

British Royal Armouries USA (2004–2015): This exhibit showed over 300 European artifacts. They included old guns, swords, and armor from England, France, and Germany.

Antique pole arms in British Royal Armouries USA, April 23, 2006.

Da Vinci: The Genius (2011): This exhibit celebrated Leonardo da Vinci. It had full-size models of his inventions. You could see a glider, a helicopter, and even a tank!
Samurai (2012): This exhibit explored the art and ideas of Japanese Samurai warriors. It featured armor, weapons, and artworks from 1,500 years of history.
Diana: A Celebration (2012–2013): This exhibit looked at the life of Diana, Princess of Wales. It showed over 150 of her personal items. This included her royal wedding dress and designer clothes.

Original garments in Diana: A Celebration, December 4, 2012.

Spirits of the Passage: The Story of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (2013): This exhibit showed nearly 150 artifacts. They were found from an English slave ship that sank in 1700.
Spirits of the Bluegrass: Prohibition and Kentucky (2015–2018): This exhibit explored the time of Prohibition. It showed how alcohol was banned in the 1920s and 30s.

Bourbon dumped to open Spirits of the Bluegrass, October 29, 2015.

The Hunger Games: The Exhibition (2017): This exhibit was about The Hunger Games movies. It had movie sets, props, and costumes. You could see Katniss's bow and the Mockingjay pin!