Museums and galleries in Bowling Green

9 museums and galleries in Bowling Green, from the big collections to small independent spaces.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.

Do
Art Walk
Stroll through the historic downtown and visit the many galleries and exhibitions featuring visual and performing arts from all ages. Artists' demonstrations, family activities and performances continue throughout the day. Has a raffle with prizes.
Annual event held the last Sat in AprilFree
See
Fine Arts Galleries
Several galleries dedicated to showcasing student artwork. The Dorothy Uber Bryan Gallery and Willard Wankelman Gallery are conventional art galleries.The Hiroko Nakamoto Gallery, created by an interior design alumna who survived the Hiroshima atomic bombing, is stylized as a traditional Japanese tea room, and is a work of art on its own. Outside the galleries, the Fine Arts Building houses many smaller displays down its corridors which are typically accessible even if the main galleries are closed.
Free
Do
Heritage Days
Annual event held the second full weekend in June. Step back in time and get your hands on history with soap making, rope making, fresh butter churning, free blacksmith and farm demonstrations, farm-themed activities, farm animals, historic games, swap meet, kiddie pedal pull, Power of Yesteryear antique tractor show, BBQ and live music. All set amid the rustic historical museum grounds.
See
National Construction Equipment Museum
NCEM
Showcases historic construction machinery including trucks, excavators, paving equipment, drills, scrapers, rollers, graders, cranes, excavators, and tractors.
By appointment only$7 adult, free for kids 12 or under
Eat
SamB's
SamB's offers a diverse menu in a fine dining environment. SamB's has an art gallery, and hosts a weekly Sunday Brunch.
11AM-9PM$8-24
See
Snook's Dream Cars
Classic car museum features a recreated 1940s-era Texaco gas station with authentic antique signage, a showroom of extensive automobile memorabilia, coin operated antique machines and classic cars that are all in excellent working order and are even driven on a regular basis. Within the museum painted murals and background scenes recreate the looks of a 1930s general store to a racetrack from the 1960s. The car collection features models from the 1930s to the 1960s. The facility also houses a complete four-bay shop for maintaining collector cars and a special area for events.
Mon-Fri 8AM-Noon & 1PM-5PM, Sat Sun by appointmentAdults $8, seniors $6, children $5
See
Toledo, Lake Erie & Western Railway and Museum
TLEW
The museum is re-opening soon after renovations but they offer motorcar train rides that overlook that Maumee River Saturdays and Sundays from Noon to 5 pm which can be found here. Check website for availability.
June-October: the first and 3rd Sat of the month noon-4PMFree (donations appreciated), train rides: $6/adults, $4/kids 3-12
Do
Wolfe Center for the Performing Arts
The performing arts building, featuring a proscenium theater, a black box theater, and the BGSU Box Office. The entrance to the black box theater features several replicas of ancient mosaics, the originals once kept here were returned to their home in Gaziantep, Turkey, at the Zeugma Mosaic Museum. A digital media lab on the second floor contains a giant Starcraft II box, signed by the dev team, one of whom was an alumnus. The back of the building is a grass ramp that leads to the second floor, and this area is occasionally used as an outdoor theater. Often hosts musicals.
See
Wood County Museum
Wood County Historical Society
The Wood County Historical Center and Museum is the original site of the Wood County Infirmary, which was in operation from 1869 to 1971. The site re-opened as an Historical Center & Museum in 1975, and has rotating exhibits and self-guided tours inside, plus a public park outside with trails, picnic tables, herb garden, and original out-buildings. The Historical Center also hosts a variety of educational experiences and public events throughout the year.
Mon-Fri 9:30AM-4:30PM, Sat Sun 1-4PM$5 adult, $1 child (10 or under)

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Bowling Green (CC BY-SA 4.0).