What exactly are kolaces, spaetzle and pierogie? Most of us eat day in day out without giving a second thought to consider the wealth of history and culture that shapes our dinig habits and taste preferences. Our recipes, menus, ceremonies, and etiquette are directly shaped by our country’s rich immigrant experience, the history and innovations of food preparation technology, and the ever-changing availability of key ingredients.

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The United States as we know it could not have been settled and built without fences; they continue to be an integral part of the nation. Fences stand for security: we use them to enclose our houses and neighborhoods. They are decorative structures that are as much part of the landscape as trees.

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Take a journey through the development of Americans' creative expression through music. The music that emerges is known by names like blues, country western, folk ballads, and gospel. The main beat of the exhibition is the on-going cultural process that has made America the birthplace of more music than any place on earth. The exhibition provides a fascinating, inspiring, and toe-tapping listen to the American story of multi-cultural exchange.

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Americans are intensely mobile. Our transportation history is more than trains, boats, buses, cars, and wagons. The development of transportation technology was largely inspired by the human drive for mobility. Journey Stories will examine the diverse stories of Americans and the transportation system that got them where they wanted to go. It is accounts of immigrants coming in search of promise in a new country; stories of individuals and families relocating in search of fortune, their own homestead, or employment; the harrowing journeys of Africans and Native Americans forced to move; and, of course, fun and frolic on the open road.

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