Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum facts for kids

The Karpeles Manuscript Library is a special collection of over a million old papers and documents. It's the biggest collection of its kind in the world! David and Marsha Karpeles started it in the early 1980s. They wanted to help people, especially kids, get excited about learning.

To make these amazing documents easy to see, the Karpeles family opened several museums across the United States. Each museum is in a cool, old building. They also have "mini-museums" in schools and offices. The documents move between the museums every three months. This means there's always something new to see! Every museum has a daily exhibit and special shows throughout the year. The best part? Everything at the Karpeles Manuscript Library is free! As of 2020, there were seventeen museums in fifteen cities.

Discover the Karpeles Museums

The Karpeles Manuscript Library has museums in many different cities. Each museum is unique and often located in a historic building.

Buffalo, New York: Two Unique Buildings

In Buffalo, the Karpeles Museum has two separate buildings. Porter Hall used to be a church called Plymouth Methodist Church. North Hall was also a church, built in 1911. The North Hall looks like a medieval church, both inside and out. It has a rough stone look with bright red roof tiles. It also has huge 25-foot windows. The inside is very large with many different areas.

Charleston, South Carolina: A Historic Church

The Karpeles Museum in Charleston is in an old Methodist church. This church, called St. James Chapel, was built in 1856. It was designed in the Greek Revival style, like ancient Greek temples. During the Civil War, soldiers used it as a hospital. In 1989, a big storm called Hurricane Hugo damaged the roof. After being fixed up, it reopened in 1990.

The Charleston location

Duluth, Minnesota: Music and Outreach

The Duluth Museum is in a beautiful building. It was built in 1912 as the First Church of Christ, Scientist. The original organ is still there! The main exhibit hall is very large and has great sound. This makes it perfect for concerts. The Duluth museum also has a special program for schools. They send copies of old documents to schools, colleges, and libraries. These documents help students learn about history and other topics. The museum helps seventeen schools in Duluth and other areas.

Fort Wayne, Indiana: Double the History

The Karpeles Museum in Fort Wayne has two buildings. Fairfield Hall was once a church. It shows old documents, ancient ship models, and stone carvings from Moses' time. Piqua Hall is in a domed church built in 1917. This building displays old maps. The Fort Wayne museum also has a program that sets up "mini-museums" in local schools. Museum staff help maintain these displays.

Jacksonville, Florida: Books and Kids

The Jacksonville location

The Jacksonville Karpeles Museum is in a beautiful building from 1921. It used to be a church. This museum also has an old book library. These books are from the late 1800s. There is also a special center just for kids!

Newburgh, New York: Famous Faces

The Karpeles Museum in Newburgh, New York, is home to the Dona McPhillips Historical Painting Series. This collection includes many paintings of famous Americans. You can see groups like "Founding Fathers," "Civil War Union" and "Confederates," "Indian Heroes," and "Women."

Rock Island, Illinois: A Dome of Glass

The Rock Island location

The museum building in Rock Island was built in 1896. It was designed in a style called Palladian. The outside walls are made of brick covered with limestone. It has six tall columns at the front. The most amazing part is the dome. It actually has two domes! The inner dome has about 8,000 colored glass panes that look like fish scales. This building is so special that it's on the National Register of Historic Places.

St. Louis, Missouri: A City Landmark

The St. Louis Karpeles Museum opened in 2015. It is in a large city, making it easy for many people to visit. The building was built in 1911 as a church. It also houses the St. Louis Media History Foundation's Archives Exhibit Room. In 2019, a fire caused some damage to the roof and back of the building. But the building was strong and could be repaired.

Santa Barbara, California: The First Museum

The Santa Barbara location

The Santa Barbara Karpeles Museum was the very first one to open in 1986. It has shown thousands of historic documents. Some items are always on display. These include an original copy of the Declaration of Independence. You can also see a copy of the globe Columbus used. There are handwritten music scores by famous composers. Plus, you can see the computer system from the first Apollo moon landing! This museum has been very important for education and culture in the area.

Tacoma, Washington: Near a Beautiful Park

The Karpeles Museum in Tacoma, Washington, opened in 1991. It is in an old building that used to be an American Legion post. It's located right across the street from the beautiful Wright Park Arboretum.

The Gloversville location

Gloversville, New York: A Newer Location

The Karpeles Museum in Gloversville, New York opened in 2020. It is in a former church built in 1923. This is the 15th Karpeles museum location.

Amazing Documents You Can See

The Karpeles collection has many incredible documents. Here are just a few examples of the types of items you might find:

Music History

• Ludwig van Beethoven's Emperor Concerto
• Handel's Messiah, copied by Beethoven himself
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro
• Richard Wagner's "Wedding March"

Scientific Discoveries

• Darwin's Theory of Evolution
• Descartes' ideas as the "Father of Philosophy"
• Einstein's Theory of Relativity
• Galileo's announcement about his book Dialogue on Two New Sciences
• Sketches and calculations for the Spirit of St. Louis airplane
• Notes from Charles Lindbergh
• Newton's studies on religion

Religious Texts

• The first printing of the Ten Commandments from The Gutenberg Bible (around 1455)
• John Calvin's Ioannis Calvinus
• Luther and the start of the Protestant Movement
• Pope Lucius III's announcement of the Holy Crusade

Literary Works

• Roget's Thesaurus (a book of synonyms)
• The stage version of Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer
• Webster's Dictionary

Political History

• Bill of Rights
• Confederate Constitution
• The Declaration of Allegiance by Native American Indians
• Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
• John Hancock's letter for the Declaration of Independence
• Olive Branch Petition
• George Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation

Exploration and Adventure

• Christopher Columbus's Lettera Rarissima (a rare letter)
• Sir Ernest Shackleton's hand-drawn map of Antarctica
• Amelia Earhart's Certificate of Landing for her solo flight across the Atlantic

Art and Illustrations

• Pat Burger Homeless Exhibit Collection
• Dona McPhillips Historical Exhibit Collection
• Norman Rockwell pencil drafts Exhibit Collection
• The Brock Brothers Illustration Archive
• Classic Book Illustrations

Educational Programs

The Karpeles Library offers special learning programs for schools. These include lectures and hands-on activities. Two popular programs are the Cultural Literacy Program and the School Outreach Program. They also set up "Mini-Museums" in many universities, high schools, and elementary schools. These programs are all free. Your school can even take part!

Images for kids

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  The Tacoma location