Ohio Historical Society

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Ohio Historical Society is a non-profit organization incorporated in 1885 "...to promote a knowledge of archaeology and history, especially in Ohio." The society exists to interpret, preserve, collect, and make available evidence of the past, and to provide leadership on furthering knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of the prehistory and history of Ohio and of the broader cultural and natural environments of which Ohio is a part.

The Society operates dozens of state historic sites across Ohio. Its headquarters is the 250,000-square-foot (23,000 m²) Ohio Historical Center museum in Columbus, Ohio, a Brutalist concrete structure. Extensive exhibits cover Ohio's history from the Ice Age to the present, and the Center includes state archives and library spaces, a gift shop, and administrative and educational facilities. The 1989 Smithsonian Guide to Historic America described the Center as "probably the finest museum in America devoted to pre-European history."

Ohio Village, a reconstructed Civil War-era town, is on the grounds of the Ohio Historical Center.