Photo from the venue's own site
Free admission. Open Thursday 1–5 PM, Friday–Saturday 9 AM–5 PM.
The National Building Arts Center in Sauget, Illinois occupies a former Sterling Steel Casting Company foundry and houses the nation's largest collection of building artifacts. Visitors explore architectural pieces and building materials collected since 1973, including several complete or near-complete building elevations, ornamental metalwork, terra cotta, and structural elements. The center maintains an extensive archive and library focused on architectural design, materials manufacturing, labor history, urban studies and building conservation. Exhibitions change throughout the year, such as City 66: The Other Road, a free outdoor exhibition exploring Route 66 history. The center offers monthly campus tours on the second Saturday of each month, where visitors can see the foundry building and artifact displays. Researchers can arrange appointments to access the library and archive collections. Lectures and artist collaborations activate the collections, presenting the social and material histories of America's built environment through design, craft and historical context.
Admission is free. The venue says: “Admission to the outdoor exhibition is free.”
Hours: Thursday 1–5 PM, Friday–Saturday 9 AM–5 PM
Prices quoted from web.nationalbuildingarts.org. Prices can change — the link above goes to the page they came from.
Fancy going together?
One reason to go, each in the venue’s own words, with the date we checked it.
Aug 27 – Oct 17Season
An outdoor exhibition of architectural fragments recovered from buildings along Route 66, including stone, terra cotta, and cast iron pieces from the actual road. Families can view the collection during regular hours.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“August 27 to October 17: Regular hours (Thursday 1–5 PM, Friday 9 AM–5 PM, Saturday 9 AM–5 PM)”
National Building Arts Center publishes its own offers, and when web.nationalbuildingarts.org was last read there was none.
The page stays here because the attraction is still worth knowing about, and because we keep checking. If a deal appears on their site, it appears here.
See web.nationalbuildingarts.org for yourself →
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