Discover a local region like no other
The Calumet region, shaped by generations of community resilience and passion, is home to rare ecosystems and monumental steel mills. Explore the unique relationship between nature, world-class innovation, and artistic expression that makes this region located at the southern end of Lake Michigan an unexpected national treasure. Calumet Voices, National Stories shines a spotlight on the region’s past, present, and future, and on the people who have fought to protect it. Experience the daily life of an industrial worker and the role their work has in the region. See neighborhoods and nature through the eyes of renowned artists, and learn about the region’s natural areas through specimens like puccoon plants and red-headed woodpeckers on display.
Calumet is one of this nation’s crossroads for nature, labor, and people.
Exhibition highlights
- Encounter a recently re-discovered ten-foot-tall steel slab with welding by some of the first women to work in the area’s steel mills, during World War II.
- Learn how bird feathers show the rise, and fall, of coal-induced air pollution in Calumet.
- See photomurals and maps portraying the unique natural ecosystems of Calumet waterways, dunes, and Lake Michigan.
- Explore the Calumet Voices, National Stories companion website.
Collaboration across the Calumet region
The exhibition at the Field Museum is a culmination of a collaborative series presented across the region in recent years, with 15 local museums and history centers sharing their collections and stories. The Field’s exhibition focuses on the region by highlighting our own Calumet collections while presenting our scientists’ research and activism in the area.
Acknowledgments
The Calumet Voices, National Stories exhibition series is a collaborative effort of the Calumet Curators, a group of the Calumet Heritage Partnership, and the Field Museum. This series showcases the rich cultural, industrial, and natural heritage of the Calumet region. The Calumet Heritage Partnership, the Calumet Collaborative, and the Field Museum lead the effort to designate the Calumet region as a National Heritage Area.
