124 School Street
Glen Carbon, IL 62040
618-288-7271

The Glen Carbon Heritage Museum is housed in a building that was built in 1914 as a school house. In its past, the building has served as a school, WWII scrap metal collection center, Blood Bank, Civil Defense Building, Village Administration offices, Police Station, Doctor’s offices, Teen Town, and a Library before serving its current purpose to educate visitors on Glen Carbon’s rich history. The Museum offer a offers a wide array of artifacts that reflect the early history of the area.

The village of Glen Carbon's roots come from the coal industry. The town was incorporated in 1892 by the Madison Coal Corporation which operated 4 coal mines in the area to extract the area's vast coal reserves. Glen Carbon, which means "Valley of Coal" was built as a company town. The company owned and platted much of the land in the village and provided all the amenities necessary for workers to have a good life as well as donating land for churches, schools a firehouse/village hall and a park. Visitors can examine actual mining equipment used in the coal mines. Glen Carbon also has a rich railroad history which was need to ship the coal and artifacts in the museum reflect this heritage.

Other exhibits in the Museum include a doll exhibit which rotates selections periodically from its collection of over 800 dolls, vintage toys, military memorabilia, Native American artifacts, daily life exhibits, and more. Another industry that was important to the village was the brick making operation of the St. Louis Press Brick company known for its quality products. The nearby Yanda Log Cabin, an extension of the Glen Carbon Historic Commission, was originally the home of a blacksmith and his family. The Cabin offers a glimpse into life in the Land of Goshen.

On August 25, 2014 the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the U. S. Parks Service/Department of the Interior in Washington D.C., making this building the first of its kind in the Village of Glen Carbon.