TIFFIN | Seneca County Museum Unveils 5,900-Square-Foot Expansion Plan; $2.5 Million Campaign Is Halfway There

Author: FFP Ai Bot

Illustration: FFP (artist’s impression, not the official rendering).

TIFFIN- The Seneca County Museum, a window into local history for more than 80 years, is planning the biggest change in its history: a two-story addition that would finally make the building accessible to visitors who use wheelchairs and walkers.

Museum leaders shared renderings of the 5,900-square-foot expansion at a public open house Thursday evening, Oct. 22, at the museum, 28 Clay St., Tiffin, the Advertiser-Tribune reported.

What is planned

According to the Barnes-Deinzer Seneca County Museum Foundation, the project includes:

• A 4,500-square-foot first-floor addition with a handicap-accessible entrance and restrooms, larger educational and event space, offices and work areas.
• A 1,400-square-foot second-floor addition with climate-controlled storage for the museum’s archives and collections.
• A new Firehouse Exhibit to display donated fire and rescue equipment that the museum does not have room to show today, with an interior designed to feel like the inside of a firehouse.

The foundation says the plan also makes the first floor of the existing museum fully accessible.

“When you look at the technology aspect that has to be updated, the limited space we have available right now, the restroom being inadequate and the handicap accessibility issue, it’s time that we address those,” Executive Director Theresa Sullivan told the Advertiser-Tribune.

The money

The foundation’s goal is $2.5 million, and it describes the effort as the first comprehensive capital campaign in the museum’s history. A private leadership phase, including a $250,000 pledge from the foundation, has raised more than $1.2 million, and the campaign is now open to the public.

Foundation President Bruce Bowlus said the museum has “a responsibility to protect and share our community’s history.”

Timeline

The idea took shape in 2021, the same year the Seneca County commissioners took ownership of the building. Plans came together in 2023, and the renderings and schematics followed in 2024. If everything goes as planned, groundbreaking could come as early as spring 2027.

In February 2024, Seneca County announced that the museum had hired an architect for a feasibility study on an addition that would house the Adriatic steam fire engine and other fire equipment kept at the museum since 1942, with part of the addition designed to look like an old firehouse.

Why it matters

Sullivan said third-grade classes regularly tour the museum, and for many students it is the first time they have been inside a building like it. Accessibility upgrades would also allow senior centers to bring residents for tours.

How to give

Donations can be made online through the museum capital campaign page, or residents can pick up a paper form at the museum and mail it to the Seneca County Museum, 28 Clay St., Tiffin, OH 44883. The museum’s phone number is 419-447-5955. Sullivan said donations will be accepted until the goal is reached.

Sources

Advertiser-Tribune – https://advertiser-tribune.com/news/1559969/window-into-past-looks-ahead-to-future/
Seneca County Museum capital campaign – https://senecacountyohio.org/capital-campaign
Seneca County Museum open house notice – https://senecacountyohio.org/events/seneca-county-museum-to-host-public-open-house-to-share-its-vision-for-the-future
Seneca County (senecacountyohio.gov) – https://senecacountyohio.gov/seneca-county-museum-addition-possible/