New Museum Celebrates Historic Furniture Store in Tell City, Indiana

It looks like I might have a new addition to my list of Indiana's most unique museums, as the Tell City Chair Gallery and Museum celebrates its grand opening this week in Southern Indiana. It's a furniture and retail store and it's a museum about a furniture store, but it's really more than that - it's an homage to a company that has been crucial to the history of the town of Tell City, IN.

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The Importance of Tell City Chair

The Tell City Chair Company has been around for just about as long as Tell City has. The furniture company opened way back in 1865, just seven years after the town was founded. The company would go on to put Tell City on the map, selling millions of chairs (and eventually other pieces of furniture) to customers all over the country. Tell City Chair closed down in 2011, but its furniture is still highly sought-after and highly valuable - some pieces go for as much as $5,000 at auction. Tell City's mayor, Chris Cail, says,

Tell City Chair Furniture was a company that helped build our community and give Tell City a sense of identity and recognition, not only on a local level but on a State and National level. Tell City Chair not only built furniture, it built a community – and I am excited and proud to honor that through this new business and museum. I hope that this store and museum will provide our community with an increased sense of identity and pride while paying respect and homage to a company that provided our community with so much more.

The Gallery and Museum

The Tell City Chair Gallery and Museum will open its doors for the first time on Thursday, August 11, 2022, at 640 Main Street in Tell City. The museum allows visitors to see a variety of rare artifacts and displays, as well as learn more about the history of Tell City Chair furniture. The museum will also include a retail store that offers Tell City Chair Company furniture along with other gift shop items.