Exhibits

Special Exhibits

Nettle Creek Aqueduct

The Nettle Creek Aqueduct over the I&M Canal collapsed from rising water during the historical flood of April 2013. The state of Illinois is in the process of constructing a new aqueduct that is scheduled to be completed in September 2023.

The Museum has set up an exhibit chronicling the construction of the new acqueduct. The acqueduct is immediately behind the Museum. The exhibit was set up so hikers along the I&M Canal towpath can stop by the Museum to learn about the history of the acqueduct and see the progression of work.

Celebrating 175 Years on the I&M Canal

The I&M Canal is celebrating its 175th anniversary from April 2023 through April 2024. The Museum has on display pictures of the Canal through the years.

Stop by the Museum to get your National Park Service passport stamped.

Earn your I&M Canal Junior Ranger Badge

Hough Native American Exhibit

On Loan from Goose Lake Prairie Visitor Center

The artifacts on display were collected in and around Mazon, IL by Harry Hough and were in fact his first historical interest. Several of the artifacts were collected on the Hough farm in Mazon and others from nearby areas.

Permanent Exhibits

Treasures from Matteson Hardware

In 1906 Matteson Hardware was built at the corner of Liberty and Jackson Street in Morris as part of the Collins Building. It dominated that iconic location for 70 years until 1977 when it moved to the current Ace Hardware location at the north end of Liberty Street. Matteson’s was an old fashioned place, the walls were lined with wooden drawer boxes, and grass seed was measured out onto an old Fairbanks scale.

What happened to all those memories? Steve Matteson has saved a lot of them, donating them to the Grundy County Museum. There’s even the original account book, kept by Price Matteson and preserved in a fine handmade wooden display box – the first entry is dated October 1, 1906. As well as later receipts from the 1930’s and 1940’s, the metal “We Sell Everything in Hardware” sign, an empty can of Beat Sall Drain Pipe Cleaner, because Gerry Matteson bought the patent for it in the 1960’s, a couple of those drawer cabinets, and yes! The old Fairbanks scale! All of these things and more, are now on display in the south east corner.