The Grout Museum District – named after Henry W. Grout – is a set of

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

s in

Waterloo, Iowa Waterloo is a city in and the county seat of Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census the population was 67,314, making it the eighth-largest city in the state. The city is part of the Waterloo – Cedar Falls ...

. The District consist of the Grout Museum of History & Science, Bluedorn Science Imaginarium, Rensselaer Russell House Museum, Snowden House and the

Sullivan Brothers The five Sullivan brothers were World War II sailor brothers of Irish American descent who, serving together on the light cruiser , were all killed in action during and shortly after its sinking around November 13, 1942. The five brothers, ...

Iowa Veterans Museum.

General history

The museum started with the private collection and endowment of Henry W. Grout, a Waterloo

financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital most of the time the investor purchases some species of property. Type ...

and

legislator A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...

. The original Henry W. Grout Historical Museum was dedicated in October 1934. The district is a nonprofit educational entity and is accredited by the

American Alliance of Museums American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

Grout Museum of History & Science

By the time of his death, Grout had collected over 2,000 objects. He had established an endowment and named trustees to care for his collection, which was displayed for many years at the local

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...

(now the River Plaza building on 4th Street). The current building (503 South Street) was completed in 1956 and opened to the public as a not-for-profit museum.

Rensselaer Russell House Museum

The Rensselaer Russell House Museum is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and is one of the oldest homes in

Black Hawk County Black Hawk County is a county in the northeastern part of U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 131,144, making it Iowa's fifth-most populous county. The county seat is Waterloo. Black Hawk County is part of the Water ...

. Guided tours are available.

Picture Gallery

Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum Watrtloo IA pic1

Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum Watrtloo IA pic2

References

External links

Grout Museum District web site
Museums established in 1934 History museums in Iowa Science museums in Iowa Historic house museums in Iowa Museums in Black Hawk County, Iowa 1934 establishments in Iowa Military and war museums in Iowa Buildings and structures in Waterloo, Iowa {{Iowa-museum-stub