Titanic Historical Society — Attraction in Springfield

Where to begin.

It really depends on what your expectations are. From its high rating on Google, I was expecting something much better than what I actually got. If you are expecting a stranger-than-average museum experience that you'll definitely tell your friends about in a "let me tell you about this weird place" way, you'll love it.

Unless you know what you're looking for, it is extremely difficult to find. I only found it because I looked at Google Street View after getting directions to the spot and seemingly finding nothing. Sure enough, there's a teeny sign in the grungy window of a run-down abandoned-looking jewelry store. I had to talk myself into going inside.

When you walk inside, the store looks like it hasn't been touched in decades. There are boxes everywhere and shelves of faded/outdated greeting cards. It looked more like a shrine than a store with all sorts of pictures of the pope and various religious icons all about.

An elderly woman waited at the back of the store along with two other people who would be entering the "museum" as well. The woman was quite knowledgeable, though she did follow us closely like we might steal something. I really wish photos had been allowed because there was some of the weirdest stuff in there, like creepy Jack and Rose dolls and mannequins around corners. Some of the artifacts were interesting, but a lot of things were only tangentially related.

Hoo boy, and it was stinky. Stinky like mildewy, stinky like you maybe let something rot too long inside your garbage can. Nothing in that whole store had (obviously) been cleaned for some time.

I was on a tight-ish schedule, so I told the woman I had to go (but I had not paid the entry fee yet, so I could not just leave), but she kept stopping me with "oh, but you haven't seen THIS." Held hostage, I tell you.

I finally did get out, grateful to breathe fresh air again. Like I said, you just have to manage your expectations, and this could be an...

This is a great museum hidden well behind a mom-and-pop card shop. If you don't know where you're going, you could definitely pass right by this Gem of a museum. In the back of the store are 2 rooms full of artifacts. The society does not believe in bringing anything up from the ocean floor as that is the final resting place. What they do have in the store though, are items from either people who survived the Titanic, or family members of people who passed away and donated some of their belongings. For instance, Milton Long was his son of the mayor of Springfield, he unfortunately died on the Titanic, his pocket watch is there. There are letters that were written home to family members from people that were on the ship, there is a scarf that was being worn by one of the women who survived. She was wearing it when she was rescued. There are menus of what was served in the dining halls of the different classes on this ship. There are also items that did not come off the Titanic itself, but came off one of the sister ships. Since everything was built at the same time, even though it didn't come off the ship itself, it's the same exact item that was on the Titanic. For instance, there is a table chair, china & a few other items from one of the sister chips that are on display there that are replicas of what were on the Titanic. You are not allowed you to take any photos in the museum, but there is a 4' model of the Titanic in the front store that you're allowed to photograph. The woman that owns the store is extremely knowledgeable on the Titanic and even though my daughter and I had read many books on the subject, we still learned so much more from her! She is very kind. There are no hands on displays at the Museum, but what is there I believe is more valuable than anything like that. I have told many people about this Museum, and I will keep raving about it as it was a very memorable experience...

Small, 2 room museum in back of their family owned jewelry store. Contains artifacts from the Olympic, Britannic, Carpathia and 1 fragment from the SS Atlantic. There are also items from the production of the various movies about Titanic including a few set pieces/props, original movie scripts and items from Dr. Ballard research vessels. The Kamuda's were advisors on the 1997 movie and are actually in the film. Edward's sister hosts the museum (as he passed away in 2014)and will answer any question you might have. Unfortunately some items are not at the Indian Orchard location. Astor's life vest, the original ice message(you can view a copy of it), the full size lifeboat are not here. The life vest is in the midwest and the lifeboat is in storage. Still worth a visit, definitely read the handwritten letters and notes from the crew and passengers to get a real feel for the people behind the event. Admission was $4 per person. Stuff for sale includes the gift shop, model kits of Titanic and other important ocean liners, new and used books about ships from different...