Exhibits
The Working Mens Institute’s second floor museum is a must-see while visiting New Harmony. Explore our exhibits of history, art, and natural history to enjoy New Harmony’s rich heritage and fascinating past. The museum is free and open to the public.
Museum Collections
From the Harmonist wagon, the skeleton of a Civil War horse, to the unusual “eight-legged calf,” every object on display at the Working Men’s Institute has a unique story. Our museum collection includes cultural artifacts, specimens of rocks, plants, and animals, historic house wares, 19th century tools, and much more.
Artifacts
Every artifact on display at the Working Men’s Institute has a unique story. There’s the harmony wagon, built in New Harmony in 1825 and used by the harmonists on their return to Pennsylvania after they had sold the town and the property to Robert Owen, then returned here during the centennial year of 1914.
There are curiosities like an eight-legged calf. Pat Lyon’s Piano Pump, one of the earliest versions of a fire engine to be found anywhere. A German trench mortar. Historical firearms of every description. Intricate models and machinery. Historical housewares. Plus archives brimming with photos, documents, artifacts and more — so many that we continue to catalog them all!
Works of Art
The museum’s Murphy Gallery contains noteworthy reproductions of Renaissance art. These 130 year-old copies were commissioned by Working Men’s Institute benefactor Dr. Edward Murphy after a trip to Italy in the late 1800s. He wanted the magnificence of the originals to be shared with common people. The gallery also features works from Stephen Pace, Franco Prosperi, and several local artists.
Explore from Home
View a sample of our museum collection on our online database by clicking the button below.