History Center

The History Center is home to the Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society, its museum and collections.  When formed in 1921, the society's assets were few, consisting of some historical relics that had been preserved by the Mary Penrose Wayne Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  Today it maintains a collection of more than 26,000 artifacts, photographs and documents representing the history of Fort Wayne and Allen County. The largest of these is the very building in which the society has resided since 1980--the 1893 City Hall building designed by Fort Wayne architects John F. Wing and Marshall S. Mahurin.  The History Center also oversees the historic Barr Street Market (adjacent to the building), the oldest public space in Fort Wayne, dating back to 1837, and the 1827 home of Miami Chief Jean Baptiste de Richardville.