Sioux City Public Museum
Encyclopedia
The Sioux City Public Museum located in Sioux City, Iowa
was originally a mansion
and had exhibits relating to the history of the region. There were also exhibits detailing the Lakota people, Omaha people, and Winnebago people.
Subjects in the museum exhibits included anthropology
, archeology, natural history
, science
, and the military
.
home out of Sioux Quartzite
with 23 rooms in 1893. First purchased by a group called the Junior League in 1959, the opening of the mansion as a museum was in September 1960. There was a robbery of a saddlebag from the museum in 1996 that was part of a string of museum thefts which involved stealing Native American artifacts.
A second location was opened in Sioux City's downtown at a former J. C. Penney
store which includes a theater, classrooms, and exhibition rooms. The museum project cost 12.5 million dollars. A new exhibit was opened that is all about the song "Sioux City Sue
". The museum takes up 10,000 square feet.
The original mansion is being renovated to its original purpose; there are currently rooms for different functions and a ballroom.
The museum's deaccession
criteria is a six step process that was used as an example in the book Museum administration: an introduction. The mansion is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
Sioux City, Iowa
Sioux City is a city in Plymouth and Woodbury counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, a decline from 85,013 in the 2000 census, which makes it currently the fourth largest city in the state....
was originally a mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
and had exhibits relating to the history of the region. There were also exhibits detailing the Lakota people, Omaha people, and Winnebago people.
Subjects in the museum exhibits included anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, archeology, natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
, science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, and the military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
.
History
The museum used to be home to the financier John Peirce who built the RomanesqueRomanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
home out of Sioux Quartzite
Sioux Quartzite
The Sioux Quartzite is a Proterozoic quartzite that is found in region around the intersection of Minnesota, South Dakota, and Iowa, and correlates with other rock units throughout the upper midwestern and southwestern United States...
with 23 rooms in 1893. First purchased by a group called the Junior League in 1959, the opening of the mansion as a museum was in September 1960. There was a robbery of a saddlebag from the museum in 1996 that was part of a string of museum thefts which involved stealing Native American artifacts.
A second location was opened in Sioux City's downtown at a former J. C. Penney
J. C. Penney
-External links:*...
store which includes a theater, classrooms, and exhibition rooms. The museum project cost 12.5 million dollars. A new exhibit was opened that is all about the song "Sioux City Sue
Sioux City Sue
"Sioux City Sue" is a 1945 song by Dick Thomas. The song was Thomas' first chart entry on the Juke Box Folk Records chart and was also his most successful release: "Sioux City Sue" spent four weeks at number one and a total of twenty-three weeks on the charts....
". The museum takes up 10,000 square feet.
The original mansion is being renovated to its original purpose; there are currently rooms for different functions and a ballroom.
Activities and recognition
Students from the Sioux City Community School District make models of local landmarks that are judged every year by the museum and the Historical Association.The museum's deaccession
Collection (museum)
A museum is distinguished by a collection of often unique objects that forms the core of its activities for exhibitions, education, research, etc. This differentiates it from an archive or library, where the contents may be more paper-based, replaceable and less exhibition oriented...
criteria is a six step process that was used as an example in the book Museum administration: an introduction. The mansion is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.