Built in 1980 and expanded in 1987, this beautiful limestone structure serves as the center of our complex and a site for community activities. All of the items in the museum have been donated by people from Madison County, or those who have roots in the county.

Some of the articles on display are quilts, glassware, furniture, Indian artifacts, military memorabilia, and even a drum used in the Civil War. The medical bag of Dr. Jessie V. Smith, the doctor who delivered John Wayne, is one of our prized possessions. One room is a local history library. We have a very unique and extensive rock collection. Early Madison County advertising artifacts are housed in several cases. The museum is also home to deer antlers that are the third largest “non typical” rack found in Iowa and the 82nd largest in the world. It is truly a place where one could spend hours!

One of our most unusual sights to see is the pencil collection of Miss Florence Neeley. It includes over 11,000 different pencils! Her first unsharpened pencil was a gift from her father which started her collection.

The clock above the museum entrance was one of four clocks that graced the dome of the Madison County Courthouse from 1878-1973. For many years before electricity came to Winterset, the clocks were wound and driven by heavy weights.