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The Angel Museum in Beloit, Wisconsin, claims to have 6000 figurines of angels, with 6000 more at the home of the museum's collector, Joyce Berg. The museum is housed in the former St. Paul's Catholic Church, and two concrete angels weighing 100 lbs each stand in front of the building. It claims to have the largest private collection of angel figurines; Berg's collection, as of July 2006 numbering 13,406, was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records in 2001. For special visits to the museum, Berg sometimes wears an angel costume including cherub socks, angel ear-rings, a halo and wings.
The museum is notable also for the Black Angel Collection, more than 1,000 donated by Oprah Winfrey; Winfrey had asked in 1998 on her television show why there were no black angels, after which she was sent angel figurines from all over the country, which she donated to the Angel Museum. Others have also donated angels to the museum; as of 2006, more than 1,000, some as memorials. The angels are from more than 60 countries and range in size from thimble dimensions to more than 5 feet tall. In addition to porcelain, glass, copper, and acrylic, materials include lambskin, corn husks, tree roots, and spaghetti.
History
The museum's history goes back to 1995, when Joyce Berg ran out of room for her collection and looked for a space to house it. At the same time, Beloit's Catholic Church of St. Paul was threatened with demolition to make way for a new development. Berg chose the church, and with the help of hundreds of Beloit citizens the church was turned into a museum, which opened on May 1, 1998.
References
- ^ "Angel Museum, Beloit, Wisconsin". Roadside America.com. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
- "Odds and Ends: Beloit, Wis". Ellensburg Daily Record. Associated Press. August 21, 2001. p. 8.
- Huhti, Thomas (2014). Moon Wisconsin. Avalon Travel. p. 123. ISBN 9781612387116.
- ^ Jones, Patrice M. (August 1, 2006). "Angels in action". Chicago Tribune.
- "Oprah's angels to Beloit museum". The Fort Scott Tribune. Associated Press. February 1, 1997. p. 6.
- Grzymkowski, Eric (2012). The United States of Strange: 1,001 Frightening, Bizarre, Outrageous Facts About the Land of the Free and the Home of the Frog People, the Cockroach Hall of Fame, and Carhenge. Adams Media. p. 154. ISBN 9781440536144.
- Schindler, Frances (2001). An Angel at My Side: Surviving Leukemia Through Love. San Jose, California: Writers Club Press. p. 139. ISBN 9780595175994.
- Des Garennes, Christine (2002). Great Little Museums of the Midwest. Trails. pp. 12–13. ISBN 9781931599085.
- Antlfinger, Carrie (December 12, 2002). "Angels on Earth: By Housing World's Largest Angel Museum, Church Spared Destruction". Lakeland Ledger. Associated Press. pp. D3, D5.