Gen X’s Childhood Now an Exhibit at Michigan’s Henry Ford Museum
Discovering My Childhood Toys Are Now a Display at Michigan's Henry Ford Museum
What did I ever do to you, Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation? Huh? I've been touring your halls and exhibits gleefully since my first elementary school field trip dropped us off at the front door in the '80s. I've gone on those same bus rides with my kids, watched them explore your trains, and marvel at machinery. Yet, despite my dedication, you, the Henry Ford Museum, decided that items from my childhood, which WASN'T THAT LONG AGO, are now OLD ENOUGH to be an actual exhibit.
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It is featured in the Your Place in Time exhibit, which looks at what life was like in America from the Progressive Generation in 1890 through what the Henry Ford Museum refers to as the Next Generation (the early 1980s to the present). Lost in thought, I rounded a corner only to be smacked in the face with the reality that the toys of my youth are now behind a glass case in a Michigan museum.
Henry Ford Museum's 'Your Place in Time' Exhibit
If you grew up in Michigan in the '80s, you can HEAR this picture. These brightly colored battery-powered electronics were cutting edge when we played with them at home or in the back of a classroom.
I don't doubt the historical significance of these items, as I wasted several hours of my life trying to get the best of SIMON, but did they really need to be put behind glass and displayed like artifacts?
A Closer Look at Henry Ford Museum 'Gen X Innovations in Technology Exhibit'
This is just one of the Your Place in Time exhibits focusing on Generation X, but it is the one that made me want to reach for Metamucil, call it a day at 3 PM, and head home to watch Matlock and the Price is Right.
Related: Edsel Ford's Retreat Sits In Ruins Near Highland, in Oakland County
Here's a closer look at the technology from your childhood that's now an exhibit at Michigan's Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.
Your Childhood is Now an Exhibit at Michigan's Henry Ford Museum
Gallery Credit: Scott Clow
Remains of Edsel Ford's Retreat
Now take a look at former Michigander, Montgomery Ward...
Montgomery Ward
Take a look at magician Harry Houdini's last days...
Harry Houdini
The old W.K. Kellogg mansion