Generous gift increases project funding to $148 million

MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Public Museum (MPM) is grateful to announce The Kellogg Family Foundation has provided a $10 million gift to the “Wisconsin Wonders” fundraising campaign aimed at enabling the once-in-a-lifetime construction of a new museum in Milwaukee, propelling project funding to a total of $148 million.

With this gift, the Future Museum’s Wisconsin-focused exhibit floor, previously known as the Wisconsin Journey gallery, will be called the Winifred & Spencer Kellogg Gallery: Wisconsin Journey in honor of the parents of William S. Kellogg, President of The Kellogg Family Foundation. As previously announced, exhibits in this gallery will focus on the geological wonders and strong and varied cultures of Wisconsin – from the Driftless Area to the Northwoods, the Apostle Islands, the Great Lakes and Wisconsin’s vast prairielands.

“Wisconsin was a special place to my late parents, Winifred and Spencer Kellogg,” said William S. Kellogg. “As a family, we enjoyed frequent trips up north, including to the Apostle Islands, where we explored this beautiful state. The Kellogg Family Foundation is proud to honor my parents’ legacy by supporting MPM’s vision for a museum that makes the wonders of Wisconsin accessible to all those who visit – including those who may not be able to travel the state. We are also excited to be able to make the Museum available to the participants of the Kellogg PEAK Initiative, another organization funded by the Kellogg Family Foundation, which centers on leadership and unique experiences for city youth. This partnership will enhance access for our participants, granting them free admission to the Future Museum as part of this gift.”

“It is the generosity of people like William S. Kellogg and organizations like The Kellogg Family Foundation that will enable us to create a new Museum where future generations of visitors can learn about the world around us and leave feeling inspired,” said MPM President & CEO Dr. Ellen Censky. “We are so grateful to The Kellogg Family Foundation for its $10 million gift, the largest private donation so far in our ‘Wisconsin Wonders’ fundraising campaign. I anticipate that this gift will do more than support the Winifred & Spencer Kellogg Gallery: Wisconsin Journey – it will inspire others to join us as we strive to reach our goals.”

Since unveiling sketches of Future Museum galleries earlier this spring, numerous donors from across Wisconsin have stepped forward with generous gifts, and many more are currently in active discussions. The Museum’s “Wisconsin Wonders” fundraising campaign is unique in that it combines both public funding and private donations from around the state, and has now secured $148 million, including $63 million in private donations, $45 million from Milwaukee County and $40 million from the State of Wisconsin, toward its goal.

The Kellogg Family Foundation joins a group of more than 250 philanthropists and organizations who have contributed to the capital campaign.

Additional details about fundraising for the Future Museum and specific gifts to the “Wisconsin Wonders” campaign will be announced in the coming weeks.

About the Milwaukee Public Museum

The Milwaukee Public Museum is Wisconsin’s natural history museum, welcoming over half a

million visitors annually. Located in downtown Milwaukee, the Museum was chartered in 1882,

opened to the public in 1884, and currently houses more than 4 million objects in its collections.

MPM has three floors of exhibits that encompass life-size dioramas, walk-through villages, world

cultures, dinosaurs, a rainforest, and a live butterfly garden, as well as the Daniel M. Soref

Dome Theater & Planetarium. MPM is operated by Milwaukee Public Museum, Inc., a private,

non-profit company, housed in a county-owned facility with collections that are held in trust and supported by Milwaukee County for the benefit of the public.

About the Future Museum

The Milwaukee Public Museum, Wisconsin’s natural history museum, will be relocating from its current location on Wells Street in downtown Milwaukee to a newly constructed building due to open by early 2027.

To be located on a 2.4-acre site at the corner of Sixth and McKinley Streets in the Haymarket neighborhood adjacent to the city’s Deer District, the Future Museum will be the largest cultural project in Wisconsin history. Heavily influenced by the ecological histories of Milwaukee and Wisconsin, the design of the new Museum will be reminiscent of the geological formations in Mill Bluff State Park, emblematic of the region’s diversity of landscapes formed by the movements of water through time. The building will be approximately 200,000 square feet, including five stories, with an additional 50,000-square-foot collections storage building.

To learn more about the Future Museum, visit mpm.edu/future [mpm.edu].

About The Kellogg Family Foundation

The Kellogg Family Foundation was founded by Bonnie and William S. Kellogg as a funding source of their philanthropy. The Foundation focuses its support on institutions dedicated to the welfare of children, with its main effort directed at the Kellogg PEAK Initiative, which was created by the Kelloggs.

###