Learn About the Museum

Yoder Memorial House

Mission

The Goshen County Homesteaders Museum is to be a repository of historical artifacts, historical information, and genealogical resources related to Goshen County from the first settlement in 1834 up to 1976 when Homesteading ended; we strive to collect, present, and interpret the history of Goshen County and its people.

Core Values

Along with our mission statement, we have six core values through which we guide the short and long-term goals of our museum:

  • Community: The Homesteaders Museum is committed to fostering the tradition of a strong and healthy community.
  • Inspiration: The Homesteaders Museum is committed to using its assets to foster an environment that nurtures history as a crucial component of a strong community-encouraging learning and interaction from our community and visitors.
  • Integrity: The Homesteaders Museum will earn and maintain the communities trust by demonstrating integrity in all that we do.
  • Remembrance: The Homesteaders Museum will facilitate public examination of the history of Goshen County to integrate the present with the past and how this development led to the common ground and shared future that bind us.
  • Stewardship: The Homesteaders Museum will reflect the professional visual and physical aspects of a museum in an effort to preserve museum grounds, collection items and Goshen County history-through conservation and preservation.
  • Aspiration: The Homesteaders Museum is constantly working to improve the museum and all of its facets through community, board, foundation and city support while safekeeping our history in an honest, interesting, and educational display that is widely accessible to the general public.