The Lombard Historical Museum

The Lombard Historical Museum consists of a group of three buildings, two of which were moved from other sites, located in downtown Lombard. The original house dates from 1882 and has been restored as a house museum. The other two structures on the site consisted of a small barn and a chicken coop being utilized as a visitor center and a display area.

HPZS created a master plan that addressed the existing physical problems of the building complex and planned for the future growth of the museum and its archive. The master plan included a new structure, sensitively placed on the lot, that linked the two ancillary structures and provided for a new meeting room, public washrooms, research and archival storage areas, display space and a gift shop. New mechanical systems were to be installed in the original house providing for temperature and humidity controls appropriate for its museum function.

The master plan was designed to be implemented in multiple phases over ten years. The house museum is now known as the Victorian Cottage Museum. The back of the small barn (presently described by the Historical Society as a carriage house) has been extended to provide additional space for special exhibits. The chicken coop has been repurposed as “Colonel Plum’s Garden Shed.”

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