If you’ve been following our adventures somewhat regularly, you know that I have a goal to visit all fifty states by the time I’m out of my fifties (50 by 50 went out the window a few months ago). Driving through doesn’t count–I actually have to do something or visit something in the state. Enter our trip west on Route 80 from the Ohio/Pennsylvania border to Laramie, Wyoming, before veering off to head south to Denver, Colorado. On this trip, we’d go through three states I’d never visited: Iowa, Nebraska, and Colorado. In Iowa, we stopped to visit the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, a mere 1/4 mile north of I-80, but we had no idea what to see in Nebraska. After consulting my Roadside America app, I decided we should visit the Kool-Aid Museum, a.k.a. the Hastings Museum in Hastings, Nebraska.
The Hastings Museum
Hastings is a small town about 25 minutes south of Grand Island, Nebraska. We spent the night at the Best Western Plus in Grand Island and would definitely stay again. After sleeping in a little, we headed down routes 34 and 281 to Hastings, planning to arrive around 9:00 a.m. when we thought the museum opened. That information, gleaned from the Roadside America app, was incorrect. The museum didn’t actually open until 10 a .m., so we found ourselves with an hour to kill.
Outside the Museum
When you pull into the parking lot at the Hastings Museum, the first thing you notice a tiny park with a locomotive and caboose, a playground, picnic area, and restrooms on the northeast side of the parking lot. If you have little ones, this would be a great place for lunch and a break. Since we were so early, we checked out the park. There is also an interactive “Intel From the Field” self-guided cell-hone audio tour which gives information about different objects on the grounds.
On the south side of the parking lot is the Highland Park Arboretum. This is a work in progress, but it was interesting to walk through. The arboretum is on the site of the old Highland Park Cemetery (1873-1886), and several gravestones are still in place. Many, if not all, of the trees have markers telling their species. My favorite part was the children’s memorial garden. It was beautifully done with bronze statues. I could imagine how peaceful it would be when all the flowers were in bloom.
As you walk toward the museum, there are two more bronze statues: one of the Martin Brothers escape on horseback and another of a Native American. You can also see Kool-Aid Man’s footprints from the Hollywood Walk of Fame outside the museum.
Why Kool-Aid Man? Well, Hastings, Nebraska, is the birthplace of Kool-Aid, believe it or not. Oh, yeah! It’s true. Edwin Perkins invented Kool-Aid in 1927 and began manufacturing it at the Perkins Products Company in Hastings soon after.
Growing up in the 1970s and 1980s, Kool-Aid was a big part of my life. We drank it daily–it was Kool-Aid or milk in our house, and I hated milk. Kool-Aid Man was huge icon in pop culture back then, both literally and figuratively. My brothers and I even saved up the Kool-Aid points on the packets and sent award for our own Kool-Aid cup to share. And, guess what? A similar cup was in the museum! Ah, the memories!
Inside the Hastings Museum
When I first read about this museum, I thought the whole place would be about Kool-Aid. I also thought the museum would be much smaller than it is. The Hastings Museum is actually the largest city museum between Chicago and Denver. There’s a lot more to look at than just the Kool-Aid exhibit (even if that’s why we came). Dennis actually remarked that he could have spent all day here.
The First Floor
When you first enter the Hastings Museum’s lobby, the gift shop and theater are to your left. Straight ahead is the Wildlife Hall, home to several dioramas depicting taxidermied animals in their habitats. I was amazed to see several baby animals and wondered where the museum had obtained them.
To the left is the entrance to the planetarium. There were free shows the day we were visiting, but we didn’t take the time to watch them. A temporary exhibit with artifacts that the museum is collecting and restoring was behind the Wildlife Hall.
The Basement
The basement houses two exhibits, Traveling in Style and Kool-Aid: Discover the Dream. To get to the basement, you can take the stairs like we did or ride on the elevator.
Traveling in Style: Antique Vehicles
At the bottom of the stairs, you will see a great collection of antique vehicles, including a hearse from the 1880s, and 1880 Victoria Phaeton, a 1912 International Harvester, 1910 Buick, and many more.
kool-Aid: Discover the Dream
This was what I came to see, even if it wasn’t quite what I’d imagined. (Remember how I’d thought there’d be an entire museum dedicated to the delicious, refreshing drink of my childhood.) The exhibit showcases the life of Edwin Perkins, the inventor of Kool-Aid, and tells how Kool-Aid became a household staple.
Included in the Kool-Aid exhibit are two Kool-Aid Man suits, displays with Kool-Aid merchandise, and other memorabilia. There’s even a display where you can choose Kool-Aid commercials from different eras to play as you reminisce. It was definitely a blast from the past!
The basement also was home to a replica of D.M. Perkins General Merchandise store. Children would have a great time playing inside.
The Second Floor
The second floor was also interesting. Half of the floor housed the People on the Plains collection showcasing pioneer and Native American artifacts, while the other half was home to an antique weapon collection, rocks, minerals, and fossils, and displays of birds, insects, and other creatures.
Know Before You Go
The hours of the Hastings Museum vary, as we found out. Check their website for the most current hours. Admission is $8.00 for adults and $6.00 for children. You can also purchase combination tickets that include a film.
There is a small museum gift shop. I was hoping for more Kool-Aid merchandise, but there wasn’t much.
Final Thoughts on the Hastings Museum
The Hastings Museum was an interesting stop. We sped through it, but easily could have spent several hours inside. If you have school-age children, this would be a great place to stop. It’s not far from I-80, and there are plenty of hotels near the highway.
So, do you have a special Kool-Aid memory? Or a favorite flavor? Leave a comment and let me know.
How fun! I’m gonna have to take my three kiddos the next time we head that way!
I lived on Kool-Aid growing up and can’t believe to this day, my mom fed us all that sugar and chemicals…but man, did we love it! Love your 50-state venture and I’m doing it too, and agree that driving through does not count!
The museum looks FUN! I love it when museums aim for kids too making it less academic and old fashioned but more fresh, new funny and entertaining. The experiences must have been great!
OH YEAH! Lol sorry I couldn’t help myself, the kool-aid man was a huge part of my childhood. I’d be interested in learning from all these cool exhibitions
Great memories and info right here; especially for we the kool aid gang
Wow… Hastings Museum sounds like such a fun place for both kids and adults! By the way…that bear looks so real 😁 I would like to visit here someday 🙂
The museum looks great, and very good value. So much to see. You just brought back memories of Kool Aid. I have relatives in the USA who brought packets of Kool aid for me when they visited back in the 70’s. I loved it. Seems to be an amazing amount of flavours. I tried it a few years ago and hated it. I guess my tastebuds changed.
The Kool-Aid museum looks so fun. Hastings looks fun!
Oh yeah……. Kool Aid, loved the commercials as a kid and had no idea something like this even existed. I do enjoy visiting a good museum and would have never thought that this obscure museum in Nebraska would be largest city museum between Chicago and Denver. Looks like a very interesting place.
I’ve never been a big fan of Kool-Aid, but I was born in the later 80’s. I distinctly remember the commercials and bright packets, so this was a really fun read! It is always interesting to learn about household brands/names and where they came from. I can’t wait to read more about your travels through new states.
I love that the museum has a focus on children as well as history.
Who knew there was a Kool Aid museum?! I drank so much Kool Aid in the 80s, this sounds like a neat spot to visit.
Love visiting museums, something to look out for in Nebraska
Love your posts. You do such a good job of describing places you have visited.
This is beyond amazing. I was a huge fan as a kid. Always drinking Kool-Aid
This looks like a fun place to visit! My kids would especially love all of the statues. Thanks, Candice @littlestepsbighappy.com
This is so interesting! I love learning about new museums
What a fun exhibit I loved the Kool-ade man growing up and the retro memorbile is so hot right now.
Kool-aid fans here! Yeah, grew up drinking kool-aid and saving the points for swag.
This was such a cool and fun read. I had no idea kool aid originated there, and I’ve honestly never even heard of the Hastings museum. Definitely adding it to the travel list!