Jacksonville’s newest museum kicks off a new season this Saturday with an afternoon of blues.
The Jacksonville African American History Museum opens for the 2023 season this week. Art Wilson with the museum says the museum will be open Wednesday and Thursday of this week, but the big event is this Saturday.
“This Saturday we’ll be having Robert Sampson who is one of the most talented blues performers in central Illinois and he’ll be performing from one to four o’clock. There will be refreshments so we encourage everyone to come out and enjoy themselves, sing and dance their way through the museum as they learn about our history here in Jacksonville as well as national history, and just celebrate and have a good time.”
Wilson says the Jacksonville African American History Museum continues to expand and grow with each season, and this year’s off time gave way to an increased offering for children.
“We are working on the children’s portion of the museum which will be the multicultural children’s room. We will be getting books that deal with children in other countries, what goes on in their lives over there, if they live on a farm, what kind of animals they have, and so on. We’re going to introduce children here to different cultures at a young age so they can expand their minds and have a different understanding of people from other countries.”
The Jacksonville African American History Museum is located in the historic Asa Talcott House at 859 Grove Street. The home is one of seven Jacksonville sites that were stops on the underground railroad built in or before 1833.
The museum is open from 1:00 to 4:00 pm every Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. There is no cost to see the museum, however, a suggested donation of $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for students is greatly appreciated.
Private group tours are also available. For more information, call 217-299-6017 or email jvilleaahm@gmail.com