DOWNTOWN — A new museum dedicated to America's greatest authors is finally ready to tell its story Downtown.
The American Writers Museum, which first announced its plans to open in Chicago years ago, announced Tuesday it signed a lease at 180 N. Michigan Ave. The museum plans to open in early 2017.
"We are thrilled to have found the perfect space in the heart of Downtown Chicago, just steps from the city's major attractions," Malcolm E. O'Hagan, the museum's founder and president, said in a statement. "The American Writers Museum will become a beloved attraction for Chicago residents and visitors from all over the world, and will provide an exciting and unprecedented opportunity to showcase true Americana in one of the nation's most culturally rich cities."
Watch: A video introducing the museum
The museum has partnered with 50 major author homes and literary museums across the country for its forthcoming exhibits, which will offer a glimpse at the lives and stories of scribes ranging from Mark Twain to Dr. Seuss. A hall dedicated to Chicago authors will also be included.
"The essential literary experience, of course, takes place in silence inside a book, but why shouldn't the abundant joy of American writing have its own museum, a physical place that readers can walk into and learn and marvel?" said Billy Collins, the former U.S. poet laureate, in a statement.
Check out the museum's website for more information, and scroll down below for renderings:
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