(Radio Iowa)  – A new museum will open on the Osceola County Fairgrounds next year. Beth Thole, who’s been working on the project, says the McCallum Museum in Sibley, which holds artifacts from the pioneer and Civil War era, was built in 1957 and has run out of space. “We’ve been fundraising for about four-and-a-half or five years,” Thole says, “and with the costs of everything — materials and labor — escalating, we came up with an idea that we proposed to the fair board members of using a historic building on the fairgrounds as a museum for agriculture.”

Thole, who is a member of the McCallum Museum Board, says some changes have already been made to the 99 year old Commercial Building on the fairgrounds. “We have done some structural work on making things handicapped accessible, creating a balcony for displays, put eight new fans in, Thole says. “We’re well on our way.”

The Osceola County Fair wrapped up this weekend and Thole says they’ll start moving artifacts into the building soon. The goal is to have a grand opening of the museum during the 2024 Osceola County Fair.