My mom and I went on a little trek to see The Feline Historical Museum which is located in Alliance, Ohio. I am still not quite sure, even after reading all the information, how this happened to become home to all of the wonderful exhibits that we viewed but I was very happy that my mom had spied the article in the local paper that featured it. I took a bunch of pictures and today’s post will be the first of several that will highlight this unique and informative point of interest.
Cat eyes grace the windows of the historical renovated Midland & Buckeye Federal Savings and Loan Building to welcome visitors to the the Cat Fanciers” Association Foundation’s permanent display of artifacts and information.
Once we entered the museum we were greeted by Director and Curator Karen Lawrence who graciously answered all our questions and let us view the collections at our leisure . She was a fabulous source of information and was responsible for reorganizing the museum and ensuring that there are new exhibits that the public can view. Karen came from Canada as a consultant and director and is quite active in the Cat Fanciers’ Association. She travels extensively as a judge for cat shows (competitions) and was a delightful person to spend a few hours with as we explored the museum.
Karen Lawrence
If it had a cat on it you could find it here. Cat rugs, cat prints, cat quilts, cat dolls, cat china, cat furniture, cat books, cat carriers, cat everything! What a fun place for a cat lover or for anyone who appreciates a bit of art in interesting forms.
A complete cat library with books and more books–all feline related. If someone had a cat related question I am sure the answer could be found here.
Some of the exhibits were china and glass articles and yes—there was a whole section of cat teapots which will be a post of its own at a later date.
One of my favorites were these Staffordshire Porcelain beauties from circa 1810.
How about these Lenox fine china kitty cats??? Complete with multicolored crystals and 24 karat gold.
Another favorite area was dedicated to cat carriers used years ago. I loved the artful display of these “crates” used for transporting the felines probably on ships or trains during years gone by.
Please note the added inscription of “only” . Do you think someone tried to walk or pet or what???
Sometimes the most enjoyable things to tour are those that hold the unexpected. This museum is definitely filled to the brim with treasures and is worthy of several blog posts that are yet to be written. The history of the building that houses it, the artful hand of Karen Lawrence in designing displays and the welcoming open floorplan simply lend themselves to an enjoyable hour or two.
