National Public Housing Museum facts for kids
The National Public Housing Museum is a special place that will soon open its doors at 1322 W Taylor St. in Chicago, Illinois. It's currently located at 625 N Kingsbury St. in Chicago. This museum is found in the very last building of the Jane Addams Homes, which were part of the ABLA Homes.
The museum will have many interesting things. It will include an oral history archive, which means it will keep stories from people who lived in public housing. It will also offer public programs and a place for people to learn about starting their own businesses. You'll be able to see restored apartments that show how three different families lived in the Jane Addams homes. The building itself first opened in 1938. It was Chicago's first federal government housing project. Thousands of families lived there for over sixty years. The building has been empty since 2002.
How the Museum Started
The idea to save a public housing building began in the 1990s. This was when the Chicago Housing Authority announced a big plan. They wanted to tear down 17,000 public housing homes. Then, they would build new homes where different types of families could live together.
Residents of public housing, led by Deverra Beverly, started a movement. Ms. Beverly used to be a commissioner for the Chicago Housing Authority. She and other residents wanted to create a memorial to remember their homes and their lives there.
Ms. Beverly and the residents asked Sunny Fischer for help. Ms. Fischer works in philanthropy, which means she helps give money to good causes. She also used to live in public housing. She liked their idea for a museum. Soon, other people joined them. These included community leaders, people who save old buildings, historians, and cultural experts. They all wanted to create a new landmark. This landmark would honor an important historic site.
This group worked together to save and change the building where the museum is now. The building was first designed by architects led by John Holabird. As the project moved forward, the museum always promised to share the stories of public housing residents. About one-third of the museum's board members are public housing residents.
What You'll See and Do
The museum's main goal is to "promote, interpret, and propel housing as a human right." This means they want everyone to understand that having a safe home is a basic right. They do this by focusing on oral histories. These are stories told by people who lived in public housing.
The museum plans to have several exhibits and collections:
- An archive of oral histories from public housing residents.
- Three restored apartments. These apartments will show how three different families lived. One family was Russian Jewish, one was Italian-American, and one was African American. These rooms are based on the real stories of Inez Medor, members of the Rizzi family, and Marshall Hatch.
- A community space for discussions and learning.
Before the museum opened, it was like a "museum in the streets." It held events in neighborhoods. These included storytelling and poetry readings. They also did projects to make the museum site look nicer. They even held discussions across the country.
Recently, the museum worked with the Oral History Summer School. They helped train activists, organizers, students, and artists. They learned how to collect and use oral histories. This also helped the museum add more stories to its collection. The museum is still deciding how much effort it will put into growing its collections.
The museum is part of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience. This means it has a duty to not only share history but also connect it to current issues.
The museum got ideas from other museums. These include the Apartheid Museum, the District Six Museum, the Tenement Museum, and the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum.
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