Museum of Danish America

On 22 September 2010, the Danish Villages of Elk Horn and Kimballton, Iowa, were selected to join the Iowa Great Places Program.[6] Included in the Elk Horn-Kimballton Great Places proposal was the development of the Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park on the museum's grounds.[7] Wayne Alwill, a farmer in Manning, Iowa, left the museum $1.3 million when he died in 2008.[8]

The park emulates and celebrates "the philosophy and artistic vision" of Jens Jensen (landscape architect).[9] The park is designed by Jens Jensen's great-great grandson, also named Jens Jensen,[10] and Bill Tishler, a professor emeritus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Jensen scholar. The park incorporates native plants and includes two council rings, a trademark of Jensen landscapes.[9]

In 2013, a pergola exhibit with interpretive panels was installed near the entrance to the park. Later that year, nine pieces of Danish-designed outdoor fitness equipment was added along the recreational trail that winds through the park.[11] A free mobile app is available through the manufacturer, Norwell USA, to help users find the park, demonstrate how to use the equipment, time and track activity, and share via Facebook.

The museum's permanent exhibition, Across Oceans, Across Time, begins on the museum's lower level. The exhibit explores the experience of Danish immigrants and their descendants from 1840 to 1940.

The lower level also contains the museum's visual storage area, where many of the museum's artifacts are stored behind glass walls.

The museum's permanent exhibition Across Oceans, Across Time continues on the ground level and covers the years from 1940 to the present day. This level also contains the Danish-American Artist Series exhibit, which showcases a different Danish-American artist every six months. Some recent artists featured in this series include artist Paul Solevad[12] and conceptual artist Anni Holm.[13]

In addition to exhibits, this level of the museum houses the museum's Wall of Honor, the first piano owned by Danish immigrant performer Victor Borge,[14] the museum gift shop and a Lego play area.

The mezzanine level houses the museum's temporary exhibits. Some recent temporary exhibits include Rescue of the Danish Jews, Victor Borge: A Centennial Celebration,[15] and Church Basements and Children's Homes: Danish-American Missions Here and Abroad.[16]

In 1996, the museum's research library opened in-house and was initially staffed by volunteers. A librarian was hired in 2002. The following year, the Genealogy Center opened at its current location on Elk Horn's Main Street.[3]

In addition to its collection and resources,[17] the Genealogy Center offers translation and research services, as well as genealogy workshops, for a fee.[18] The library has summer and winter hours, which are listed on the museum's official website.[19]

Located just north of the museum building is an authentic North Dakota homesteader's cabin once occupied by Danish immigrant Jens Dixen. Jens Dixen settled near Kenmare, North Dakota circa 1901. A schoolteacher and preacher, Jens Dixen offered instruction to boys from the local area out of this house. During spells of bad winter weather, some of his students would sleep in the small space above the main floor room.

The Jens Dixen House was moved to the museum property in 1999 and restored by the Cedar Valley Danes. The house is open to visitors during the museum's regular operating hours.[20]

Bedstemor's House is a historic house museum located at the intersection of Union and College Street in Elk Horn, Iowa. The two-story Victorian home was built in 1908 by a Danish immigrant named Jens Otto Christiansen. The home was intended to be an engagement gift, but Christiansen's marriage proposal was rejected, and the house was rented out to local families instead. Christiansen sold the house to the Salem Old People's Home in 1933 for one dollar.

From 1946 to 1982, a woman of Danish descent named Meta Mortensen lived in the home. In 1982, Mortensen sold the home to the Elk Horn-Kimballton Arts and Recreational Council. The Council named the house Bedstemor's House, which means Grandmother's House in Danish, and operated it as a house museum for seven years. Bedstemor's House was deeded to The Danish Immigrant Museum in April 1990. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places on 16 January 1997. Today, the house museum is interpreted circa 1910. Bedstemor's House is open daily during the summer months and open by appointment throughout the rest of the year.

A 3-part documentary video entitled "The Story of Bedstemor's House" is accessible through the museum's official website.[20]