Carnegie Museum to hold two receptions for new exhibits Feb. 15, 17

HOUGHTON -- The Carnegie Museum in Houghton will hold two opening receptions for new exhibits this week.

From 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. TONIGHT, Tuesday, Feb. 15, a reception will be held for "A Stroll Down Shelden Avenue: Commercial Development of Downtown Houghton 1852-1910." Renee Blackburn, Michigan Tech graduate student, will give a slide show presentation on the exhibit at 6:45 p.m.

By examining early business directories and historic photographs, Ms. Blackburn has tracked the growth and diversity of different business types. In 1910 Shelden Avenue was home to 22 different saloons!

In Celebration of Black History Month, the Carnegie Museum will present "Engineering the Gateway to Success: A Tribute to Engineers Past and Present," with an opening reception from 6;30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 17.

Created by the Michigan Tech University chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers, this exhibit highlights achievements of 12 black engineers, from the 18th-century Benjamin Banneker to 21st-century Michigan Tech graduates. The exhibit will run through the end of March.

Also currently at the Carnegie Museum are the following exhibits:

"Senter of the Copper Country -- the Story of the Atlas Powder Company of Senter, Michigan" -- a history of the 1800-acre dynamite factory near Dollar Bay. This exhibit continues through Feb. 24.

"Golden Anniversary of the Portage Lift Bridge" -- a photographic documentation of the engineering feat that is the Lift Bridge is still on exhibit at the Carnegie Museum. In the spring, watch for an interactive exhibit about bridge building! *

The Carnegie Museum is on the corner of Huron and Montezuma (former Portage Lake Library building) in historic Downtown Houghton.

Admission is FREE. Parking is available behind the building or in City lot across Montezuma St. Call 482-7140 for more information.

*Editor's Note: See our Sept. 8, 2010, article by Chad Girard, "Carnegie Museum celebrates Centennial with historic, educational displays," on these two continuing exhibits.