Will be able to serve and attract more visitors
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (April 23, 2015) — The Frazier History Museum announced plans to develop an expanded Bourbon history exhibit and experience at its location on West Main Street in Louisville, Interim Director Paula Hale said today.
The $1.4 million Future Fund Phase II includes increasing classroom space, creating a more visible entrance and an expanded museum store. This project allows the museum to serve a projected 41,500 students, teachers and families annually, increasing the current number served by 13,000 and attracting approximately 10,000 new visitors to the museum annually. Phase I of the Future Fund project, included increasing exhibit space by nearly 5,000-s.f. and creating a first floor theatre for historic interpretations and cultural programming.
Working with the Kentucky Distillers’ Association (KDA), the Frazier will explore and develop the concept of a new Bourbon-oriented visitor experience that will be located at the Frazier and will serve as an official starting point to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail adventure and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour, both of which are owned and trademarked by the KDA.
Initial plans call for Bourbon-related exhibits and visitor experiences that impart the history and cultural development of one of Kentucky’s signature industries. Interactive learning programs and events will be developed to introduce and support the growing number of Bourbon distilleries throughout the commonwealth.
Consideration of an expanded Bourbon presence at the museum began nearly a year ago when the Frazier and the KDA partnered on a Bourbon history exhibit that included the actual Congressional resolution declaring Bourbon to be “America’s native spirit.” The exhibit marked the first time the document left the National Archives since it was signed in 1964. The exhibit, which is still on display, also includes artifacts from the KDA and Kentucky Bourbon Trail distilleries.
The Frazier History Museum will provide space and management services for the Bourbon exhibit as an extension of its mission to showcase national and international issues and events from local and regional perspectives. It is expected that the exhibit and its related services will require the Frazier to expand to the three buildings adjacent to the museum on West Main Street.
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