The Immel Circus Gallery

The Immel Circus is one of the most interesting “pieces” in the collection of the Massillon Museum. The 100-square foot miniature hand-carved circus contains 2,620 pieces. Surrounding the Immel Circus are rotating displays of a selection of circus-related artifacts from Dr. Robert Immel's collection.

Click here to learn more about Dr. Robert Immel, his collection, and miniature circus.

Click here to view a small online gallery of circus photos from the Immel Circus collection, including P.T. Barnum and Tom Thumb.

Permanent Collection Galleries

Featuring the Massillon Museum's permanent collection, including categories of Massillon history, photography, fine and decorative art, ethnographic and archaeological artifacts, and more.

Photography Gallery

Collection Snapshot: Faces of Massillon Business is an exhibition of photographs selected from more than 75,000 images in the Museum's permanent collection. The images highlight those hard workers who helped build a community filled with quality food and beverages, stylish clothing, fashionable hair, reliable news, and a place where the community could establish their savings for future generations. These images represent the faces of big industries and small businesses over the last one hundred and eighty years.  

Judith Paquelet American Indian Gallery

First Peoples of North America

American Indian tribes are documented as living on the North American continent by the end of the Pleistocene era 11,700 years ago.  Artifacts from the Massillon Museum’s permanent collection show the craftsmanship of a variety of tribes including Adena, Hopewell, Mississippians, Puebloans, Inuit, and local Nobles Pond Paleoindian site. 

Edward and Louise Mahoney Family Gallery

Ethiopian Expedition of 1903

President McKinley charged his friend Robert Peet Skinner (1866–1960) of Massillon with a diplomatic mission to Ethiopia, then known as Abyssinia, a European interpretation of the Ethiopians’ name for their nation: “Al-Habasha.”  After McKinley’s assassination in 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt renewed Skinner’s charge to open trade and diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and the United States.  

In 1903 Skinner traveled with a detachment of United States Marines, and Massillon residents Horatio Watson Wales (who served as secretary) and Dr. Abraham Per Lee Pease (who served as medical doctor).  Emperor Menelik II (1844–1913, reigned 1889–1913) was responsible for modernizing his country in a variety of ways.  Menelik's signature of the Treaty between the United States and the King of Ethiopia to Regulate the Commercial Relations between the Two Countries became the cornerstone for a long and fruitful friendship between Ethiopia and the United States.  The artifacts and images exhibited in this gallery were acquired during that 1903 Ethiopian expedition and represent gifts from Emperor Menelik II.  

Innovators of Massillon Gallery

Massillon Museum has opened a new permanent exhibition in its second-floor galleries.  Innovators of Massillon features individuals whose contributions in a variety of fields have impacted the Massillon community and resonated beyond.  

Sponsored by the Gaetano M. Cecchini Trust, the exhibition includes interactive monitors with biographical content and images highlighting eight Massillonians: James Duncan, Charity Rotch, Abel Fletcher, Caroline McCullough Everhard, Jacob Coxey, James Lawson, Guy Cecchini, and Richard Gessner.  The design was completed by Innis Maggiore, fabrication by CEI, the interactive components created by Classic Interactions, and the biographies narrated by Ray Hexamer.  Scripts were written by Margy Vogt.  Some of the innovators have additional interviews audible within the display.  

Children of Richard Gessner and Guy Cecchini, and James Lawson himself contributed audio to further illustrate the contributions of these individuals to the community in areas of business, technology, suffrage, photography, education, politics, industry, and activism. Philanthropy and civic engagement are additional threads connecting these individuals.  The exhibit is expected to grow over time to include additional innovators.  

Paul Brown and Massillon Tigers Football Timeline

Permanent exhibit

Travel through more than 125 years of Massillon Tiger football, and the story of famed Coach Paul Brown in this 30-foot permanent display, featuring photographs and artifacts 1891 to the present.

*COMING SOON!*  The Paul Brown/Massillon Tigers Football Timeline is getting a facelift!  Updates to the contemporary history panel include the last three, record-breaking seasons. 

Tigers vs. Bulldogs: Origins of a Historic Rivalry

February 11–July 2, 2023

Spanning the course of nearly twenty years in the early 1900s, professional football reigned supreme in Stark County. Massillon and Canton fielded powerhouse teams, bringing forth the best players money could buy and presenting stunning shows for thousands of spectators. The day of “The Game” was anticipated by crowds who attended to cheer on their teams, dressed to impress with pins and ribbons in orange and red. These teams would influence the local high school players, each of whom would adopt the former’s monikers as their mascots and continue the yearly tradition of battling for the championship. A rivalry for the ages, meetings between the Massillon Tigers and Canton Bulldogs are symbolic of Friday nights under the lights.

Massillon Faithful

Intern exhibition

For nearly ninety years, thousands of people have joined the Booster Club to get a closer look at the team, and help instill a stronger sense of spirit and pride within the community.  The objects displayed in this exhibit encapsulate the zealous attitudes and devotion people of Massillon have towards their city and their team.  These objects are proof of the Boosters’ accomplishment in their mission to support the team and to create intrigue, sparking enthusiasm among all ages.  Their work has seeped into the community, spreading both an unmatched and undying passion for their Massillon Tigers.  Curated by Walsh University student and Massillon Museum intern David Maxwell, Massillon Faithful showcases the community's passion for Massillon Tiger Football.