Harlan County Museum
The Harlan County Museum is home for the Hufnagel “PIETA.” Given to St. Mary’s Catholic Church by German immigrant, Frank Hufnagel, it arrived by wagon freight about 1878, and was displayed in the original frame church and then the “new” 1898 church until the late 1970s. the Pieta was moved to the museum and restored in 1991.
The museum’s main building is the former Orleans Opera House, built in the early 1880s. Not only was it used for plays, but also for speakers such as Carrie Nation, George Norris, and William Jennings Bryan.
Also on the museum grounds is an 1877 log cabin, an 1893 school house, and an 1879 jail. Watch the artists at work at the working blacksmith shop, and see the old time Barber Shop, Creamery, and Post Office, plus lots of old hand tools and memorabilia.
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Getting There & Details
- Hours
- Hours: Mid-April through SeptemberThursday thru Saturday afternoons, 1:00 to 4:000 p.m.Appointments Welcomed
- Address
- Downtown Orleans
- Map
- Get Directions →
308-928-2211, or 1-800-762-5498 (Harlan County Tourism)
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