{{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox museum | name = Whatcom Museum | image = Whatcom Museum of History and Art.JPG | caption = Old City Hall as seen from Maritime Heritage Park | map_type = Washington#USA | location = Bellingham, Washington | type = Art museum, History museum | accreditation = American Alliance of Museums | architect = Olson Kundig Architects, Lightcatcher Building | website = {{URL|https://www.whatcommuseum.org/}} | embedded = {{Infobox NRHP | name = Old City Hall | nrhp_type = | embed = yes | image = | alt = | caption = | locmapin = | map_alt = | map_caption = | map_width = | coordinates = {{coord|48|45|10|N|122|28|48|W|display=inline,title}} | location = Bellingham, Washington | built = 1892 | architect = Alfred Lee | architecture = Late Victorian | added = April 03, 1970 | designated_nrhp_type = | refnum = 70000648 <ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2008a}}</ref> | mpsub = | governing_body = | designated_other1 = | designated_other1_name = | designated_other1_date = }} }}
The '''Whatcom Museum''' is a natural history and art museum located in Bellingham, Washington. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Teehan |first=Joe |date=March 20, 2018 |title=The Whatcom Museum gets the accreditation its staff worked hard for |url=https://kgmi.com/saga_news/007700-the-whatcom-museum-gets-the-accreditation-its-staff-worked-hard-for |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=KGMI |language=en-US}}</ref> the Whatcom Museum has a three building campus that includes Old City Hall, Old Fire Station No.1, and The Lightcatcher.
== About == The Whatcom Museum was established as a non-profit organization in 1982.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-05-09 |title=Nonprofit Explorer - Whatcom Museum Foundation |url=https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/916174771 |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=ProPublica |language=en}}</ref> The museum has a three building campus that includes Old City Hall, Old Fire Station No.1, and The Lightcatcher which encloses the Family Interactive Gallery (FIG).
The museum is jointly managed by the City of Bellingham<ref>{{Cite web |title=About the Museum |url=https://cob.org/gov/dept/museum/about-museum |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=City of Bellingham |language=en-US}}</ref> and the Whatcom Museum Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About the Museum |url=https://www.whatcommuseum.org/learn-2/about/ |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=The Whatcom Museum |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Architecture === The Old City Hall building was originally built in 1892 for the former town of New Whatcom. The original building was designed in a Late Victorian style by Alfred Lee, a local architect, who used red brick and Chuckanut sandstone for its construction.<ref>McQuaide, p.34</ref> The design itself was an almost exact replica of the second Saginaw County Courthouse in Saginaw, Michigan (1884, destroyed 1971), designed by Fred W. Hollister.<ref>"[http://courthousehistory.com/gallery/states/michigan/counties/saginaw Saginaw County, Michigan]" - CourthouseHistory.com. Retrieved 2018-02-27.</ref>
At the time of construction, the building was situated on a bluff above Bellingham Bay. However, over the years, significant amounts of the waterfront were filled in to make more land.<ref>Kirk, p.221</ref> Currently, the building sits above Maritime Heritage Park.
The building served as city hall until 1936,<ref>Mueller, p.51</ref> and became part of the museum in 1941.<ref>[http://www.whatcommuseum.org/pages/index.php?page=oldCityHall Whatcom Museum website]</ref> In 1962, fire damaged the building, but efforts from the community raised money to restore the building.<ref>Kirk, p.222</ref>
In 2009, the Whatcom Museum opened a location in the newly designed The Lightcatcher. The Lightcatcher, designed by Seattle-based Olson Kundig Architects, is named for its 37 feet high and 180 feet long translucent wall, which facilitates a number of energy saving strategies.
=== Collections === The Whatcom Museum houses a collection of over 30,000 objects.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About |url=https://www.whatcommuseum.org/explore/collections/about/ |access-date=2023-03-14 |website=The Whatcom Museum |language=en-US}}</ref>
Key holdings in the collection are the 4,000 plus items from the archives of Pacific Northwest photographers Darius Kinsey and Tabitha Kinsey.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harris |first=John M. |date=2023-01-20 |title=Why Ken Burns and Ralph Lauren buy Kinsey photos from the Whatcom Museum |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/why-ken-burns-and-ralph-lauren-buy-kinsey-photos-from-the-whatcom-museum/ |access-date=2023-03-14 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jiménez |first=Javiera Carmona |date=August 3, 2022 |title=Bellingham's past from the voices of the present |url=https://www.cascadiadaily.com/news/2022/aug/03/telling-the-story-of-tabitha-kinsey-and-bellinghams-past-from-the-voices-of-the-present/ |access-date=2023-03-14 |website=Cascadia Daily |language=en}}</ref>
The museum contains the John M. Edson Hall of Birds, which is a floor of hundreds of taxidermized birds, from the collection of John M. Edson.
==References== {{reflist}} * Kirk, Ruth; Alexander, Carmela (2003). ''Exploring Washington's Past'', University of Washington Press. * McQuaide, Mike (2006). ''Insiders' Guide to Bellingham and Mount Baker'', Globe Pequot. * Mueller, Marge (1995). ''North Puget Sound '', The Mountaineers Books.
==External links== *{{Official website|https://www.whatcommuseum.org/}}
{{bellingham}} {{Museums in Puget Sound}} {{Registered Historic Places}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whatcom Museum of History and Art}} Category:Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state) Category:Government buildings completed in 1892 Category:Former seats of local government Category:Museums in Bellingham, Washington Category:Art museums and galleries in Washington (state) Category:History museums in Washington (state) Category:Children's museums in Washington (state) Category:National Register of Historic Places in Whatcom County, Washington Category:Museums on the National Register of Historic Places Category:2009 establishments in Washington (state)