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Danish Immigrant Museum to build new center

News

May 10th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The Danish Immigrant Museum has announced plans to construct an 8,000 square foot curatorial center at its location on the western edge of Elk Horn.

Danish Immigrant Museum

The center will be located below ground on the west side of the present building and will feature an environmentally-friendly green roof. The project cost estimates are $3 million – $2 million for construction and $1 million to be invested in the museum’s endowment to meet increased operational costs.

To date, over $2.3 million has been raised or is anticipated, though construction will not begin until the $3 million fundraising goal is reached. The new addition will include offices for the curatorial staff and interns and space for traveling exhibit design, fabrication and storage, as well as additional climate-controlled artifact storage.

There will also be a loading dock to facilitate the shipping of traveling exhibits and a quarantine space for isolating artifacts before accessing them. The increased space will allow for the consolidation of four off-site storage facilities that the museum presently rents. Museum Executive Director Dr. John Mark Nielsen says the museum “Is the only museum in the country dedicated to preserving artifacts of the Danish American community here in the United States.” He says “The planned curatorial center will assure that the museum has appropriate space for expanded artifact collection and for creating traveling exhibits that will be shared with museums across the country and in Denmark.”

The museum is currently preparing for Memorial Day weekend’s Tivoli Fest in the Danish Villages of Elk Horn and Kimballton, and  a 30th anniversary celebration, in June. More information can be obtained by calling (712) 764-7001 or visiting the website at www.danishmuseum.org.