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Our mission is to preserve, promote, and propel the right of all people to a place where they can live and prosper—a place to call home.

    What's here

    Detail of WPA era posters hung salon style on a gallery wall

    Welcome to the National Public Housing Museum!

    Located in the last remaining building of the historic Jane Addams Homes, our museum is committed to preserving the profound legacy of public housing and fostering a nuanced understanding of its impact on communities.

    Admission is free, with tickets required for the Historic Apartment Tours.

    Public housing posters from the WPA. Photo by Joe Nolasco.

    Now open!

    A restored 1930s apartment kitchen
    Book a Tour Today!

    Historic Apartment Tours

    Experience the texture and fabric of public housing throughout time by visiting three recreated historic apartments showcasing different families’ experiences at different moments in public housing history between 1938 and 1975.

    Timed tickets required.

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    Exhibitions

    All exhibitions
    Museum visitors look at a midcentury high school letterman sweater

    History Lessons

    History Lessons offers intimate glimpses of life in public housing through everyday objects and personal memories.

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    Installations

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    A Black person sits on a couch and holds a baby on her lap

    Feeling At Home

    Beyond the uniform exteriors of public housing buildings, there are apartment units with unique, enthralling, and carefully curated interiors.

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    Title card for the TV show "Good Times" with a cityscape background featuring buildings and parked cars.

    Good Times

    When American sitcom Good Times came out in 1974, it was the first time public housing residents saw themselves on mainstream television. Watch clips selected by current and former Cabrini- Green residents.

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    Public Art

    More art
    A black and white image from the 1940s shows a courtyard surrounded by brick buildings. In the courtyard, children in swimsuits play in water spraying out from the concrete and climb on stone animal statues surrounding the fountain.

    Animal Court

    Experience the enchanting seven-piece sculpture Animal Court by Edgar Miller, which has been lovingly restored and placed in our courtyard. The sculpture garden is free and open to the public during museum hours…

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    Workers on a lift hang a large mural on the facade of a brick building

    Invitation Wall

    Invitation Wall is the museum’s 40-foot outdoor public art exhibition space that reflects the museum’s commitment to radical hospitality.

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    View from above, a white, purple, orange, and blue geometric mural turns a parking lot into a play space

    OOPS & HOOPcycle

    Conceptualized by artist Marisa Morán Jahn and architect Rafi Segal, the mobile art installation HOOPcycle offers a reimagined sports experience that challenges norms and unites communities through play.

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    Museum Spaces

    More Museum Spaces

    The National Public Housing Museum’s new space offers opportunities for our visitors and members to record oral histories, spaces of care, advocacy spaces for the Chicago community to gather.

    Register as a member to reserve spaces!

    • A close up of an older Black man wearing a red shirt and glasses gestures and speaks to someone off camera.

      Dr. Timuel Black Jr. Recording Studio

    • A Black woman in a bright red sweater and sunglasses stands amidst two large stone animal sculptures. She rests her hand on the sculpture in front of her and speaks with passion.

      Demand the Impossible Advocacy Space

    Virtual Exhibitions

    Explore our exhibitions

    Please stay tuned. We are working on virtual exhibitions that will make the museum more accessible to national visitors or for anyone who might not be able to join us in person.

    Tickets

    General admission is free for all.

    Historic Apartment Tours are ticketed. Please see tour page for more information.

    Getting to the Museum

    919 South Ada Street
    Chicago, IL 60607

    Located on the northeast corner of West Taylor Sreet and South Ada Street.

    Rendering of the exterior of the new museum building, a three-story brick building with orange balconies made from historic-looking brick with “National Public Housing Museum” written on the side. A school tour bus is parked in front of it and people are walking on the street towards the building.

    Exhibition Resources

    Additional resources available at the front desk.

    Discover more as a member.
    Join today.