…quote taken from the Muskegon Museum of Art website.

“Muskegon was a prosperous and booming town during the 1870s and 80s.  The “Lumber Queen of the World,” as Muskegon was known, produced much of the lumber for a growing nation. Nearly 50 sawmills circled Muskegon Lake at the peak of the lumbering era and over 40 millionaires, those who had made their fortunes in lumber called Muskegon their home. However, once the boom times came to an end, many of the barons moved away, taking their fortunes with them.

Fortunate for Muskegon, among the few who stayed was Charles H. Hackley.  Hackley and other local leaders were determined to save Muskegon after the sawmills closed by making this town “one of the most distinctive cities of its size in the country.”  In the next eleven years, Hackley invested a good part of his fortune towards meeting that goal.”

For more information on Current Exhibition and Art please visit the Muskegon Museum of Art website.