The Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History is located in

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

. It claims to be the largest municipal museum between Chicago and Denver. It is housed in a building funded by the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

and dedicated on June 15, 1939. The museum exhibits include

Kool-Aid Kool-Aid is an American brand of flavored drink mix owned by Kraft Heinz based in Chicago, Illinois. The powder form was created by Edwin Perkins in 1927 based upon a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack. History Kool-Aid was invented by E ...

, natural history dioramas, local history, weapons, life of pioneers on the Plains, rocks, minerals, fossils, antique vehicles, coins, and a

planetarium A planetarium ( planetariums or ''planetaria'') is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. A dominant feature of most planetarium ...

Governance

The Museum is under the jurisdiction of the City of Hastings and all employees are personnel of the Hastings government. The museum is governed by a 7-member board, with each member serving a term of 5 years. The board has the power to adopt rulesand it has control of the Museum funds. The board is responsible to the Mayor and City Council of Hastings, Nebraska. It is also supported by a Foundation to increase awareness and support, which was incorporated in 1985. The Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History displays natural and cultural histories of Hastings, Adams County and the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

of Nebraska. Founded in 1926 by Albert Brooking, it became home to his collection of Native American artifacts, fossils, and mounted birds. Albert Brookings’s bird collection was one of the largest in the United States. Other exhibits include natural history dioramas, an extensive armaments collection, and the history of Edwin Perkins, a local merchant famous for inventing

in 1927. The museum hosts an annual Native American festival. The Hastings Public Library and Adams County Historical Society are both at the museum.

References

External links

Hastings Museum
{{authority control Museums in Adams County, Nebraska History museums in Nebraska Buildings and structures in Hastings, Nebraska Natural history museums in Nebraska Planetaria in the United States

Governance

See also

References

External links