Grinnell Historical Museum
Introduction
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This local history museum dates back to a community effort to create a museum by four women's organizations in the 1950s. The museum opened in 1958 and opened in its current location in 1965. The museum is located in the McMurry House, a ten-room Victorian home built in 1895 for a local merchant. Docents provide free tours anytime the museum is open. Museum staff are also happy to help local residents with genealogical research.
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Grinnell Historical Museum purchased the home, becoming only its third owner. After the McMury's died without children, they left the home to their housekeeper.
Backstory and Context
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The museum includes displays of military history, women's history, antique furnishings, and displays related to Grinell-area businesses including carriages built by the Spaulding Carriage Factory and a washing machine built in the Great Depression by the Grinnell Washing Machine Company.