| The national award-winning Douglas County Museum is operated by volunteers (with a
part-time paid director). The museum features short-term exhibits about a wide range of topics
pertinent to the history of Douglas County and East Central Illinois. Throughout the year, the museum
staff also offers a wide range of special events and programs. Browse our website for more details.
Regular museum hours:
Monday through Wednesday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Every Sunday: 1 p.m.-4 p.m.
Other hours: By appointment only
Jarman Baby Project Notice:
Be sure to get on the preorder list to purchase a
Jarman Baby Book!
Milestone Year for the Douglas County Museum!
The year 2009 marks the 25th anniversary of the Douglas County Museum. Watch our
website for information about the celebratory events that will be held to mark this important milestone
in the museum's history.
25th Anniversary Fund
The Board of Directors of the Douglas County Museum encourages the public to participate
in our special 25th Anniversary Fund drive to raise general operating funds to keep the museum going
into the next 25 years and beyond. Make your tax-deductible donation payable to: Douglas County
Museum, 25th Anniversary Fund, 700 S. Main Street, Tuscola, IL 61953.
Contact information:
Douglas County Museum, 700 S. Main Street, Tuscola, IL 61953
Phone
217-253-2535 Monday-Wednesday and Sunday afternoon. Call the museum director, Lynnita Brown, after
hours at 217-253-4620. E-mail: Lynnita.
Admission to the museum is free. Our facility is handicapped-accessible and there is plenty of
bus/off-street parking.
See Calendar of Events for Upcoming Special Events.
Now showing: "Farm Exhibit"
Click to view Photo Album The “Farm Exhibit” opened on February 15, 2009 and will be available
to the public through May 15, 2009. It is a recurring exhibit in the Douglas County Museum, held
to recognize area farmers and affirm the importance of the agricultural industry in East Central Illinois.
“Farmers settled East Central Illinois well over a hundred years ago,” said Lynnita Brown, museum director.
“There is no denying that ever since they arrived here, their presence has helped make the area prosperous.
In this immediate area, the drain tile that pioneering farmers placed underground changed the prairie
from swampland to rich farm ground. When farmers have a good year, so do neighboring communities.”
The museum’s Farm Exhibit 2009 features several vintage tractors, including a John Deere Model B
and John Deere Model BR owned by Dave and Beckie Galbreath of Paris; Ford 8N owned by Rodger Clements
of Gunnison, CO; Minneapolis-Moline owned by David Pittman of Maroa; International Harvester 140 and
International Super A owned by Charles Hartman of Tuscola; Oliver Model 77 owned by Duff Hoel of Tuscola;
Super M owned by Duane Brian of Tuscola; Farmall 340 owned by Leonard Rentz, Massey-Harris Pony owned
by Gary Appleby of Atwood; and a Case CC owned by Dave Berbaum of Champaign. There is also a horseless
carriage built and owned by Bill Deem of Tuscola.
In addition to the full-sized tractors, there is a Minneapolis-Moline engine, Lowell Davis figurines,
barn-building tools loaned by John Alexander of Tuscola, USA Train advertising cars, photographs, painting,
posters and murals. There are also Oliver, Farmall, John Deere, Case, and Ford pedal tractors. John
Galaway Farm Toys of Farmer City has a display of Breyer horses, horse-drawn wagons, plows, surreys,
etc. There is also extensive Case memorabilia loaned by Dave and Jane Berbaum and Don Berbaum, all of
Champaign.
The museum’s showcases also display a wide range of farm toy collections. Scale models being shown
include Farmall, John Deere, Case, Ford, White, International McCormick Farmall, Massey Ferguson, Oliver,
Allis-Chalmers, Graham-Bradley, Mogul, B.F. Avery, Huber, and Minneapolis-Moline. Exhibitors include
Vince Early of Seymour; Dale Fleming of Villa Grove; Gene Hackett of Charleston; Clarence Painter of
Tuscola; Lynnita Brown of Tuscola; Jack Allen of Tuscola; Charles Hartman of Tuscola; Dave and Jane
Berbaum and Don Berbaum of Champaign; Duane and Lottie Brian of Tuscola; and John Galaway of Farmer
City.
In addition to these toys, the exhibit features wooden hand-carved toys, including pre-World War
II farm buildings built by Wilfred C. Schroeder of Pesotum, farm implements such as corn pickers and
combines built by Glenn Miller of Seymour; and a hand-carved wooden wagon, horses, and rider by Orin
J. Ruby, Tuscola. There are also Breyer horses and horse-drawn wagons, plows, surreys, etc. from the
John Galaway Collection, Farmer City.
Corn-related items on display are seeders dating from the 1870s, including an 1880s “Man-Killer”,
seed graders, a corn slicer, shellers, a Clipper Seed Cleaner from the Mike Eastin Family of Pesotum,
and vintage walking plows. The exhibit also features a display of vintage garden tractors, including
1950s George tractors, 1945 McLean, and 1947 Eaglesfield Unitractor. Gary Davis of Herrick restored
the tractors.
Other items on exhibit include household items such as feed sack clothes, sad irons, and a rare Tri-lite
ironing board. There are gas engines, a potato plow, miscellaneous tools, and a unique 1940s Hammermill
Feed Grinder. A special feature of the Farm Exhibit is also “The Farmer’s Quiz”. The quiz is a
showcase filled with tools used inside the farm home and outside the home. Another display is “Farm
Tools from Many Angles” by Dale Fleming of Villa Grove.
Museum Brochures Available
Brochures are now available thanks to generous donations from Dicks Pharmacy in Arthur and Henry
and Shirley Rahn of Tuscola. Call 217-253-2535 or stop by the museum for single or quantity copies.
Find it on the Douglas County Museum's website:
A form to register your veteran in the museum's Veterans Registry is now available on our website.
Read all about it by clicking on the link at left.
Visit Douglas County
Planning a trip to the Douglas County area in East Central Illinois? Learn about our county
here: Visit Douglas County
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