Metal Museum facts for kids
Entrance to the museum
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| Location | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
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| Founder | National Ornamental Metal Museum 060523.jpg |
The Metal Museum is a special place in Memphis, Tennessee. It used to be called the National Ornamental Metal Museum. This museum is all about amazing metal art and how it's made. An artist named James Wallace started it. The museum also has cool programs where you can see metalsmiths at work.
Contents
History of the Museum
The Metal Museum buildings have a long and interesting past. They were once part of a hospital that opened way back in 1884. This hospital mainly cared for soldiers who were sick during the Civil War. It was also a place where scientists tried to find cures for diseases like yellow fever.
The hospital grounds first had six buildings. These included a stable, a surgeon's house, two patient wards, a nurse's building, and an executive building. Over time, some buildings were taken down. In the 1930s, a government program called the Works Progress Administration (WPA) removed some of them. Only the nurse's building and the executive building are still mostly in their original form. These two buildings were even moved using wagons and mules! Other buildings were added later.
In the 1960s, the hospital closed its doors. The City of Memphis took over the property. Eventually, the Metal Museum was able to lease the land and buildings.
Bringing Metal Art to Life
Jim Wallace became the person in charge of the museum around 1977. Since 1979, a lot of effort and money has gone into making the Metal Museum a fun place to learn. About $2.5 million was spent to create special workshops. These include a blacksmith's shop, a foundry (where metal is melted and poured), and a repair lab. They also built a gazebo and fixed up the library.
Wallace led the museum for almost 30 years. Under his guidance, the museum became a place for artists to live and work. It also became an official museum with a library. He retired in 2007 after all the renovations were finished. He then went on to create his own metal art.
A New Spot for Art
In May 2022, the museum found another location. It signed a lease for the old Memphis College of Art site. This means more space for amazing metal art!
What You Can See and Do
The Metal Museum has a huge collection of over 3,000 metal items. These are part of its permanent collection. The museum also hosts special traveling exhibitions from other places. You can even see a real working smithy and foundry right there! A smithy is where a blacksmith shapes metal using heat and tools. A foundry is where metal is melted and poured into molds.
Besides looking at the cool displays, you can also take hands-on classes. These workshops teach you how to work with metal yourself.
Repair Days Weekend
Every fall, the Metal Museum hosts a special event called Repair Days Weekend. During this event, volunteer metalsmiths come from all over the country. They fix almost any kind of metal object you can imagine. The best part is that the public can watch them work! It's a great chance to see skilled artists in action.
See also
Images for kids
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The Metal Museum's exhibit space is housed in buildings that were formerly part of the Memphis U.S. Marine Hospital
