Employment Opportunities

Are you interested in working in a fun, friendly and forward thinking environment? Does educating children and adults on local history sound rewarding? Look no further! The Sheboygan County Historical Society currently has several positions open for the right person to join our dedicated and fun-loving team. We at the Society understand the value of history to communities and we pride ourselves on offering interesting and educational displays, programs and other offerings highlighting the wonderful history of all our community members in Sheboygan County. We are an organization that follows current trends in exhibitions and programs but is also always looking to present new and exciting offerings. We are a team oriented organization that values our relationships with co-workers and our community alike. If you think the historical or museum field is right for you, please find our available positions with a short description below.

For further information please contact Executive Director Travis Gross at (920) 458-1103 or travis.gross@sheboygancounty.com

Office Manager – The office manager is responsible for guest and member services and assisting with daily operations. This position also handles volunteer needs and scheduling. The Office Manager works directly with the Membership Committee during membership drives, including organizing the mailing and recording memberships into our database. This position also welcomes walk-in visitors, scheduling bus/group tours, manages the museum store and is responsible for developing and organizing the Society’s newsletters and membership email blasts. The Manager works with the Executive Director and Society bookkeeper in maintaining financial records and sales reports. The Manager also gathers and develops the monthly Board of Directors meeting packets and sends to Board members. The Manager on occasion will assist Board Members with projects and requests. This position occasionally includes other responsibilities not pertaining to guest and organizational requirements.  The position requires strong computer skills, including data entry, in-house development of advertisements, basic graphic design, financial recording and general knowledge of Microsoft and Google operating systems. The Office Manager position is 40 hours per week and includes a week of paid time off upon hiring.

Program Coordinator – The Program Coordinator is responsible for public program development for the museum. The position is responsible for developing and scheduling on-sight and off-sight programs on local history. The position includes public speaking, including presentations and tours, researching local history topics, and collaborating with other businesses and organizations in the Sheboygan County area. The Program Coordinator is also involved with the museum’s social media platforms. The coordinator must have good communication skills, the ability to adjust to change, is personable and enjoys research. Creative thinking and the ability to think outside the box are highly desirable. The Coordinator position is 32 hours per week and does occasionally include other responsibilities not pertaining to public programming.

The Museum Campus

Main Museum Building
Your visit starts here. Built in 1997, the Main Building houses collections, offices, classrooms, work areas, and local history exhibits. The 1999 Kohler Addition, built in the style of a carriage house, provides the Museum’s main entrance, elevator, lobby, additional gallery space, museum store, and collections storage. Most of the Museum’s temporary exhibitions and public programs take place in this 20,000 square foot space.

Taylor House
Constructed in the early 1850s on farm property owned by Judge David Taylor, this Italianate two-story brick structure came into the possession of Sheboygan County in 1905, along with what is now Taylor Park. The county used the home as a jail, workhouse, drunk tank, and park caretaker’s home. In 1948, the Historical Society signed a long-term lease and, after extensive renovations, it became the Museum’s first building. It served as the Museum’s primary building until the current main building was dedicated in 1997.

Weinhold Log Cabin
Originally constructed in 1864 from hand-squared logs in Adell, Wisconsin, this home and its furnishings are typical of the residences built by Sheboygan County’s earliest German settlers. The Weinhold Cabin was moved to the Museum grounds and dedicated in 1978. The armoire on display is original to the Weinhold family. An outhouse, built in 1927, was installed behind the cabin in 1981.

Schuchardt Barn
This German-style wooden barn was built in Sheboygan in the 1890s, near today’s Lower Falls Road. The Schuchardt family donated the 59 x 24-foot structure to the Historical Society. Following two years of fundraising, the barn was moved and dedicated in 1984. The 1930s silo was added in 1992. The barn houses historic agricultural implements and exhibits.

Bodenstab Cheese Factory
Founded in 1867 in Howards Grove, the Bodenstab Cheese Factory was moved and dedicated on the Museum grounds in 1988. Wisconsin’s first known cheese factory was founded in 1837. By 1905, there were 120 factories operating in Sheboygan County.

Calvin Wheeler Exhibit Restoration Center
Thanks to a major gift from a long-time friend of the museum, the Restoration Center was constructed in 2009. It provides extensive collection storage along with work space for large projects and objects. The construction of the building allowed the Historical Society to consolidate its artifact collection in a single location.

Programming & Collections

EDUCATION
The Museum annually hosts nearly 3,000 elementary students for Full-Day Education Programs including First Peoples of Sheboygan County, Journey to Sheboygan County, Historic Jobs of Sheboygan County, and The Civil War and Sheboygan County. The Museum regularly schedules educational programming for all ages to explore and celebrate the history and culture of Sheboygan County.

EXHIBITS
A variety of exhibitions of local, regional, and national interest are displayed in the main building and throughout the historic buildings on the Museum campus. Long-term exhibits highlight local Indigenous culture, maritime, trades and industries, home life, sports, and entertainment. The annual Holiday Memories exhibit presents vintage animated window displays from Sheboygan’s H.C. Prange, Younker’s, and Boston Store Department Stores.

PUBLIC PROGRAMMING AND EVENTS
The museum presents a full calendar of events to engage, educate, and entertain visitors of all ages and backgrounds. Programs include speaker presentations, music, crafts, movies, events, history walks, special tours, and much more.

COLLECTIONS
The Museum’s Collection contains over 30,000 objects of interest about and from Sheboygan county. Exhibited throughout the campus, most of the collected objects are three-dimensional. The artifacts span the entire development of Sheboygan County, dating from 10,000 B.C.E to the present. Textiles represent the largest subset of the collection, with approximately 7,500 items of clothing, bed coverings, and decorative accessories. There are 1,500 archaeological specimens, primarily Native American, and 200 geologic objects. Animations and memorabilia from H.C. Prange’s Department Store and its successors total almost 500 objects. The collection also contains approximately 400 objects each of sound recordings, advertising, art, and furniture. Nearly 1,000 recreational items include dolls, board games, outdoor play equipment, and toys. There are also hundreds of objects related to local manufacturing, farming, and politics, and several thousand household accessories. In 2022, with grant funding from the IMLS, the Museum launched its first complete inventory.

The Museum also maintains a specialized Education Collection that provides hands-on learning opportunities for the Full-Day Education Programs and other programming. Comprised of period objects and reproductions, this 500-plus piece collection allows experiential learning alongside long-term preservation.

The primary mission of the Sheboygan County Historical Society is to collect, preserve, and educate about the history of Sheboygan County.