Chicago History Museum in Illinois, USA

The Chicago History Museum preserves and interprets the history of Chicago through objects, documents, photographs, artworks, clothing, architectural records, exhibitions, oral histories, and research collections. The institution began as the Chicago Historical Society in 1856 and has occupied its present Lincoln Park site since 1932.

From the Chicago Historical Society to the Museum

The Chicago Historical Society was founded in 1856 and incorporated by the Illinois legislature in 1857. Its early collection was housed at Dearborn and Ontario Streets, but the building and most of its holdings were destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. A second fire three years later destroyed much of what remained.

The organization rebuilt its collections and eventually opened a new stone building designed by architect Henry Ives Cobb in 1896. It contained exhibition rooms as well as the Gilpin Library, continuing the institution’s role as both a museum and a place for historical research.

A major expansion of the collection came in 1920, when the Society acquired thousands of manuscripts and hundreds of paintings and historical objects from the estate of collector Charles F. Gunther. Items acquired from the estate included the bed on which Abraham Lincoln died and a compass associated with George Washington.

The Museum Building in Lincoln Park

The institution moved to its present site at Clark Street and North Avenue in 1932. The Georgian-style building was designed by the Chicago architectural firm Graham, Anderson, Probst & White and included spaces for both museum displays and library collections.

The building has changed several times. Alfred Shaw and Associates designed a limestone addition that opened in 1972. In 1988, Holabird and Root redesigned that addition with a red-brick exterior intended to relate more closely to the 1932 structure. The project also created underground storage and additional gallery space.

In February 2006, the Chicago Historical Society adopted the name Chicago History Museum. A reopening later that year introduced a redesigned lobby and new exhibition spaces.

Chicago History in the Galleries

The museum’s exhibitions use original artifacts and archival material to examine how Chicago developed and how people have experienced the city. One of its established exhibitions, Chicago: Crossroads of America, organizes stories around commerce, communities, conflict, innovation, and culture.

An early Chicago rapid-transit vehicle, L car no. 1, stands at the entrance to the exhibition. The galleries then place objects within stories about economic exchange, neighborhood life, civic conflict, technological and cultural innovation, entertainment, and the changing population of Chicago.

Exhibitions Open in 2026

The museum combines long-running displays with temporary exhibitions. In August 2026, its in-person program includes Aquí en Chicago, an exhibition about Latino/a/e communities in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. The exhibition is scheduled to remain open through November 8, 2026.

Facing Freedom examines several episodes connected with efforts to secure freedom and rights, including women’s suffrage, labor organizing, freedom seekers, and a Chicago school boycott. Another exhibition, Injustice: The Trial for the Murder of Emmett Till, focuses on the 1955 murder of Chicago teenager Emmett Till and the criminal trial that followed in Mississippi.

The 2026 exhibition program also includes Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s–70s, built around more than 100 posters, fliers, signs, newspapers, magazines, books, and other printed materials connected with activism in Chicago during those decades.

Collections Beyond the Exhibition Floors

The Chicago History Museum preserves more than 23 million objects and documents. Only a small portion can be displayed at one time, so much of the institution’s work also involves cataloging, preservation, research access, loans, and digital resources.

The Prints and Photographs collection contains more than 6.5 million images covering subjects such as streets, architecture, sports, public events, everyday life, fashion, and Chicago residents. The Costume and Textiles collection contains more than 50,000 items dating from the eighteenth century to the present.

Other holdings include more than 40,000 decorative and industrial arts objects. The paintings and sculpture holdings contain approximately 3,400 paintings and works on paper and more than 500 sculptures. Architectural materials include drawings, photographs, models, documents, and pieces of buildings associated with Chicago’s built environment.

Abakanowicz Research Center

The Abakanowicz Research Center, or ARC, provides public access to the museum’s research collections. Its holdings include books and other printed materials, archives and manuscripts, photographs and prints, architectural drawings, and ephemera.

The research center continues a library tradition that dates to the Chicago Historical Society’s nineteenth-century operations. The current research facility was named for artist Magdalena Abakanowicz in 2021. Its Archie Motley Reading Room honors longtime museum archivist Archibald Motley, who worked at the institution from 1955 to 2002.

As of 2026, ARC admission is free. It is open Tuesday through Friday from 12:00 to 4:00 p.m., and appointments are not normally required. Some collection materials are stored away from the reading room and may require advance arrangements.

Planning a Visit

The museum is normally open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m.. Mondays are generally closed, although the museum opens on selected Mondays and commemorative dates. Holiday schedules can differ from normal hours.

Current general adult admission is $24 for visitors who do not live in Chicago and $19 for Chicago residents. Reduced rates apply to eligible seniors and students, while Illinois residents age 18 and under receive free admission. The museum also schedules free admission days for Illinois residents during the year, so date-specific conditions are best checked on the official website before visiting.

The museum estimates that an average first visit lasts about two hours. General admission remains valid for the ticketed day, allowing visitors to leave and return.

Amateur photography is permitted in the galleries, but tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, and large camera bags are not allowed in exhibition areas. Backpacks, umbrellas, food, and beverages must be placed in the museum’s complimentary coat check.

CTA bus routes 22, 36, 72, 73, 151, and 156 stop near the museum. The Sedgwick Brown Line station and Clark/Division Red Line station are each approximately half a mile away. Public parking is available north of the museum near Clark and LaSalle Streets at 1730 N. Stockton Drive.