The Porter County Museum (PoCo Muse) is located at 20 Indiana Avenue,

Valparaiso, Indiana Valparaiso ( ), colloquially Valpo, is a city and the county seat of Porter County, Indiana, United States. The population was 34,151 at the 2020 census. History The site of present-day Valparaiso was included in the purchase of land from the ...

. From May 11, 1975, until March 12, 2020, the museum was located in the

old Porter County Jail and sheriffs residence Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

, located at 153 Franklin Street

, across the street from its current home. The jail was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.Mullins, Lanette; ''Images of America; Valparaiso – Looking Back, Moving Forward''; Arcadia Publishing; Chicago, Illinois; 2002; pg. 71. The museum was founded in 1916 by the Porter County Historical Society (now the PoCo Muse Foundation), the PoCo Muse is the oldest institution devoted to the history and culture of Porter County, Indiana. Artifacts were displayed in the lower level of the Valparaiso Public Library from 1916 until 1937, on the top floor of the Porter County Courthouse from 1938 until 1973, and inside the 1871 Porter County Jail and Sheriff's Residence from 1975 until 2020. Currently The PoCo Muse is located across from two of its pervious homes at 20 Indiana Avenue in downtown Valparaiso.

Gallery

S&H Cornerstone.jpg, Cornerstone S&H Front Door PC120035.jpg, Front door to Sheriff's House S&H Img 3-26-14 104.jpg, Window Styling S&H Img 3-26-14 109.jpg, Main stairway S&H rosete P2030019.jpg, Rosette of front entrance S&H PC120041.jpg, Jail with square & round towers S&H Img 3-26-14 123.jpg, Prisoner cell

Bibliography

*"Counties of Porter and Lake Indiana", Weston A. Goodspeed, Historical Editor and Charles Blanchard, Biographical Ed.; F.A. Battey & Co. 1883; Chapter, "History of Porter County", pg 23 *"History of Porter County", Volume I, Then Lewis Publishing Co; Chicago-New York; 1912, pp. 58–59.

Footnotes

* * Mullins, Lanette; ''Images of America; Valparaiso – Looking Back, Moving Forward''; Arcadia Publishing; Chicago, Illinois; 2002 * Neeley, George E.; ''City of Valparaiso, A Pictorial History''; G. Bradley Publishing, Inc.; St. Louis, Missouri; 1989 * Porter County Interim Report, Indiana Historic Sites and Structures Inventory; Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana; July 1991

External links

1871 Porter County Jail
- official site {{National Register of Historic Places in Indiana Buildings and structures in Valparaiso, Indiana Houses in Porter County, Indiana National Register of Historic Places in Porter County, Indiana Italianate architecture in Indiana Government buildings completed in 1871 Prison museums in Indiana Museums in Porter County, Indiana Jails on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana Jails in Indiana Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana