Pioneer Village is a museum and tourist attraction along U.S. Highway 6 in Minden, Nebraska, United States, featured in many roadside and historical attraction guides.[1] It is made up of a collection of 50,000 historical objects and 28 historical buildings.[2] Its location in Minden, Nebraska has been a boon to the city since its opening in 1953, through to the present day.[3]
 The Pioneer Village's Iconic Highway Sign | |
  Location within Nebraska | |
| Established | 1953 |
|---|---|
| Location | 138 E US Highway 6, Minden, Nebraska 68959, United States |
| Coordinates | 40°30′17″N 98°57′02″W / 40.50472°N 98.95056°W |
| Type | Pioneer Museum |
| Website | pioneervillage.com |
History edit
Inception edit
The Pioneer Village was founded in 1953 by Harold Warp, a Chicago manufacturer of Flex-O-Glass, he returned to his home town of Minden to find that the city had put the one room school house he attended as a child up for auction. He purchased the building in 1953, placed it on the museum grounds.[4] Thus beginning the collection of historical buildings, technology, and art that would come to represent his recollection of the history of man's progress.[2][5]
The Warp Family edit
the Pioneer Village, since its inception, has been family operated. opened in 1953 by Harold Warp it has now passed through two generations to the current heads of the Pioneer Village nonprofit organization, and Harold's grandchildren.[6] Pioneer Village was founded by Harold Warp, a Chicago manufacturer of Flex-O-Glass, who was born near Minden.[7] In 1983, Warp donated the museum to the nonprofit Harold Warp Pioneer Village Foundation.[8] After Harold Warp's death in 1994, Skip took over, but because he lived his entire life in Chicago, he often wasn't involved with the museum's upkeep[8] Since the death of Skip, Harold senior's grandchildren have taken over. they are deaccessioning objects to raise income for restorations on the main and outer buildings.[6]
Collections edit
The museum comprises a complex of 28 buildings on 20 acres (81,000 m2) with a total collection of over 50,000 items.[1] The museum's collection spans Americana from 1830 to the present. The objects comprise a distinctly eclectic sensibility. Warp, who is responsible for the vast majority of the collection, purchased anything, across North America, representing the daily use of American technology. including, but not limited to, early cars (more than 350 are on display) and airplanes; a Wurlitzer Caliola; tractors and other farm implements; appliances (televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, mechanical banks, pencils, etc.); and an art collection. which features William Henry Jackson paintings and a set of John Rogers plaster sculptures.[3]Objects are in chronological order of development within a type. The buildings that house the collections are mostly from Nebraska, and they are set up to loosely resemble a village, organized around a central green. They are similarly heterogeneous, including a pony express station, a one room school house, a church, a sod house, and 24 others, including a steam powered carousel.[9][10]
Controversy edit
In 2011 the tax exemption on the attached motel and campground was brought into question by the state tax commissioner. the commissioner's position was upheld and the Pioneer Village foundation appealed to the Nebraska High court. The decision was reversed.[11]
Gallery edit
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The Pioneer Village's General store -
The One Room School House Harold Warp Attended as a child and later purchased -
One of Many antique Cars on Display -
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An Early Fire Engine From The Pioneer Village Automobile collection -
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See also edit
- List of museums in Nebraska
- Nebraska Prairie Museum, located about 20 miles west in Holdrege, Nebraska.[12]
- Hastings Museum, located about 30 miles east in Hastings, Nebraska.
References edit
- ^ a b Exploring Nebraska Highways: Trip Trivia. Exploring America's Highway. 2007. p. 86. ISBN 978-0-9744358-7-9.
- ^ a b "Watch American Pickers Season 24 Episode 4 | HISTORY Channel". The HISTORY Channel. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
- ^ a b "Time takes toll on Pioneer Village history museum". Omaha World-Herald. 8 December 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
- ^ "Home". Pioneer Village - Minden, NE. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
- ^ Warp, Harold. A History of Man's Progress, From 1830 to the Present; a Complete and Historical Description in Chronological Order of Items on Display at the Harold Warp Pioneer Village. ISBN 978-1013734656.
- ^ a b "Watch American Pickers Season 24 Episode 4 | HISTORY Channel". The HISTORY Channel. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
- ^ "Home". Pioneer Village - Minden, NE. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
- ^ a b writer, Joe Duggan / World-Herald staff (2013-12-08). "Time takes toll on Pioneer Village history museum". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
- ^ "Watch American Pickers Season 24 Episode 4 | HISTORY Channel". The HISTORY Channel. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
- ^ "Home". Pioneer Village - Minden, NE. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
- ^ "Court of Appeals of Kentucky. Daviess County Court, Appellant, v. A. G. Howard et. al., Appellees". The American Law Register (1852-1891). 25 (7): 428. 2013. doi:10.2307/3304194. ISSN 1558-3813.
- ^ "Nebraska Prairie Museum". Archived from the original on 2008-12-25. Retrieved 2017-06-20.
External links edit
- Official website
- Harold Warp's Pioneer Village, Roadside America
- Family Motor Coach Association - Pioneer Village
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