Ethnic Heritage Museum

Join us as local history lives on in a quaint home built in the 1850's. Known today as The Ethnic Heritage Museum it is here that you will find six fascinating galleries devoted to the primary immigrant groups that settled in southwest Rockford, African-American, Hispanic, Irish, Italian, Lithuanian and Polish.   Through displays of early Rockford area maps, everyday artifacts, vintage clothing and more, visitors of all ages can learn about Old World customs and traditions. Historical photographs tell the stories of the earliest settlers who established factories near the old "waterpower district" and built their homes nearby. By comparing early with current lifestyles, the museum strives to bridge the gap between yesterday and today ... encouraging visitors to relive the past with a clear focus on Rockford's bright future.