The History Museum on the Square in Springfield, Missouri, won the award for Best New Attraction in USA Today’s annual 10Best listings.
The nationwide newspaper wrote this about the downtown museum:
The history of Route 66 comes alive at the new Springfield History Museum on the Square, where six galleries tell the stories of Springfield’s founders, the Mother Road, the Civil War in the area and regional Native American culture.
The winner was chosen from readers’ votes. According to the Springfield News-Leader, the contest launched Dec. 2. Voters could vote once per day until voting ended at 11 a.m. Dec. 30.
The newspaper reported the 20 nominees for Best New Attraction were chosen by a panel of experts that included editors from USA Today; editors from 10Best.com; relevant expert contributors; and sources for both these media and other USA TODAY Network properties.
417 Magazine, based in Springfield, posted this reaction from museum executive director John Sellars:
“This is beyond exciting for us. Now the rest of the country will know what a treasure we have here in the Ozarks. We are incredibly grateful for the community for helping us win this honor.”
This eight-minute video gives a good overview of the museum:
(Excerpted image of History Museum on the Square in Springfield, Missouri, from Google Street View)