Nordic Heritage Museum

Really enjoyed this museum. Good exhibits, easy to follow and created to give you the flavor of the experience being described. Definitely worth the time and small admission fee. Also has free days!

Lovely collection! It is off the beaten path but will worth the visit. Multiple floors of great information, pictures, and artifacts of Scandinavian culture.

What a great place!
I was born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden so when my friend mentioned that there was a Nordic Heritage Museum in Seattle, where we had a girl’s trip planned, I was so in. There is a parking lot so easy to park, and also a big park across the street to take kids if you have any with you.
My friend and I showed up and when the lady at the front desk asked what brought us to the museum, my friend mentioned I was born in Sweden. I immediately get asked «Talar du Svenska?» so I even got to speak some of my native language while there! My friend has Swedish ancestry so she was interested in the museum as well.
The downstairs area mainly highlights the immigration of Nordic people to the US which was very interesting and they had set up different scenes complete with «people» which was really fascinating. Bathrooms downstairs as well. We didn’t even realize there was two more floors! My favorite part was the rooms set up for each Nordic country (Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Iceland) where you could look around and focus on one country at a time.
As an expat, I of course miss my home country and its food. Imagine my delight when there’s a gift shop with Swedish candy! Yay! It was pretty overpriced and since I’m going to Sweden soon where I can stock up for cheap, I only bought a few things. They have books and Nordic glassware and such for sale as well.
I recommend this museum for anyone interested in history, and was surprised to learn that Seattle has a big Swedish population.

This museum is great. First off, it’s buy-​one-​get-​one for adult admission with AAA membership (awesome!). The permanent exhibits are very well laid-​out and provide a very background on what it must have been like coming to the US as a Nordic Immigrant.
As the granddaughter of Swedish immigrants, this museum was a great introduction to my heritage and made me very excited for my trip to Sweden this summer. The volunteers there are very helpful and I’m excited to see what the new museum will look like. As for now, the historic location is fun, beautiful, and engaging.

My favorite museum in Seattle. As a descendant of Norwegian and Swedish family, it was really cool to see the history and artifacts from those who left Scandinavia to make a new life in the Americas. Unlike several other attractions, this one had real «meat» to it in that there were lots of artifacts, displays, and just stuff to see. The museum was not crowded and not too expensive either so even if you’re not nordics yourselves, definitely go check it out. It’s amazing to see how far these nordic countries have come in just 100 years.

You know when you go to an independent museum you sort of wonder how good it is going to be? Well, this museum was great!
When we walked in we were greeted by a woman who was very kind in explaining the museum and all of the different exhibits. She was very polite. Also, they give a AAA discount so for the two of us it was six or eight dollars, I don’t remember.
On the first floor there are several permanent exhibits.
The Dream of America –the story of immigration to the USA from Scandinavia and landing on the east coast and life in the city. Next you follow the. Voyage across country ending up in the Pacific Northwest and Ballard. They have a nice replica of several shops in Ballard, a church and a typical house.
Second Floor
Promise of the Northwest — galleries on the fishing and logging industries which employed many Scandinavian immigrants. There are also folk art galleries with some beautiful examples of textiles, costumes, furniture (including lots of chests) and tools. There are also art history and heritage exhibits as well.
Third Floor
There is a room for each of the Scandinavian countries and the lives and accomplishments of their people in the Pacific Northwest. I thought the Norway exhibit was the best.
Currently there is an exhibition on Ivar Haglund of Ivar’s Restaurant. Being new to the Area I got a lot of history on this Seattle icon. This event runs until November 10^th.
There’s a Scandinavian Spirits exhibition from December 4, 2015 — February 28, 2016.
There is also a small gift shop on the second floor. One of the most interesting thugs was an exhibit where they had about 20 items and you had to guess what they were used for. It was a lot of fun to try and figure them out! Gray apiece of paper and pencil off to the far corner of the exhibit by the number one.
Great place, great stories, well presented and a very good price.

Great narrative of Scandinavian immigration to the US and to the Pacific North-​West in particular.

NOTE: this museum is not about Nordic skiing. (A friend thought it was.)
Covers immigration to the US from each of the Nordic countries: Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Finland.
A visit can take about 1 hour. More if you read every display.
TIP: As they are located near each other and are a bit out of the way from downtown Seattle, combine a visit to the Chittenden (Ballard) Locks with a visit to this museum.

Really neat, interesting museum that spans a wide array of subject matter regarding the history of Northern European countries, especially as they pertain to immigration to North America. I was expecting a waterside building filled with neat old viking ships, and was honestly a bit disappointed to find this place in an old school house instead, with only a couple reproduction ships.
Barring that disappointment, the museum itself was wildly enjoyable, with excellent installations and great old artifacts, photos, and narratives. On the top floor they separate out each country and give them all their own rooms, so you can enter the Swedish room or Icelandic room, and find out a bit about your own lineage. Pretty fun stuff. Can’t wait for this place to get the new building they have design plans and pictures for — should be even more amazing then.

The Seattle Choral Company did a Nordic concert performance here (all music sung in NorVEEgian), so I had the honor of singing in the large gathering space (reminiscent of a church hall) and checking out the museum.
It’s very cute and informative — loved reading about the first families in Ballard.
I just wish it was a bit brighter — with the décor mixed with lighting, it was quite dim and not as inviting as it could be.

Best part of our trip to Seattle was finding this treasure. It was a lot of fun, and what I especially liked was that each of the different National rooms focused on a different aspect of Nordic culture. For example, the Finnish exhibit focused on saunas. I wouldn’t have thought about that.

The Nordic Heritage Museum is a great way to honor Ballard’s Scandinavian culture and residents. Plus, for a mere $ 8 fee, you can turn an educational visit into something very fun for people of all ages.
The museum boasts three floors dedicated to various historical and cultural artifacts from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Iceland. There is also a great gift shop where you can buy lingonberry sauce, books, and knick knacks. From what I understand, the tours are self-​guided and self-​explanatory. The third floor features individual exhibits for each Scandinavian country. From very old vintage items to modern-​day lego exhibits, there is definitely something to whet your appetite.
Definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area and/​or would like to learn more about Scandinavian culture. Continue the fun at Scandinavian Specialities in Ballard if you’ve got time!

This is a cute museum! They have some standard exhibits and some that travel around the country. All of the staff members were friendly, and their gift shop had awesome clearance items. They have everything, from historical artifacts to Lego interpretations of history. Highly recommended.

Finally got to check this place out after being in Ballard for the past five months. I really like it!
I’ve always been attracted to Nordic culture. Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland. all beautiful countries. The museum is pretty well set up (great for kids) and will chronologically take you through from the early settlements to modern day. Some of the dioramas set up are really neat — like a movie set or an «old west» sort of exhibit. Definitely worth checking out on a quiet afternoon with nothing to do.
I was introduced to this place through Viking Days, sponsored by the museum and others. The event was really awesome too, by the way. there are more vikings in Ballard that you realize. be careful.

A great Scandinavian-​focused museum nestled in a Ballard neighborhood. While it was a little tough for me to find (I walked from the Locks) it was well worth the trek. I loved that it didn’t focus on any one specific culture and the Viking ship was definitely a highlight.
This museum is interesting and provides a great historical perspective that people of Nordic heritage made on the United States as well as locally within Seattle.

Such a great little place tucked away in the heart of Ballard. I love how friendly the volunteers are, and how willing they were to chat with me about my Finnish heritage.
The coming to America exhibit was charming and fun. It was nice to see the journey the immigrants had to face. I also love how the top floor had rooms dedicated to each of the Nordic backgrounds, very informative and delightful. I wish I wasn’t as tired as I was when I arrived, I am sure I could have spent a lot more time reading and soaking in the artifacts.

This here, my friends, is proof that us White folks have culture!
Located in Seattle’s hub of Scandinavian roots (Ballard) and hidden on neighborhood side streets (30^th Ave NW and NW 68^th St next to Webster Park), the Nordic Heritage Museum is «an internationally recognized museum and cultural center where people of all backgrounds are welcomed to be inspired by the values, traditions, art and spirit of the Nordic peoples» (the website stated it so well!). It boasts three floors, however, I recommend beginning on the first floor with the «Dream of America» exhibit. The museum illustrates the difficult immigrant journey many of our ancestors took to the New World to search out a better life. Personally, I LOVED seeing many pieces of art and history shared by others of Swedish and Finnish descent like myself.
A mini tour of the floors:
Floor 1:
–Dream of America exhibit
–Auditoriums
–The only restrooms
Floor 2:
–Gift Shop
–The Scandinavian’s Pacific Northwest importance of logging and fishing
–Folk Art Galleries
–Library (only open by appointment)
–Rotating exhibits and galleries (Currently the «Pull, Twist, Blow: Transforming the Kingdom of Glass»)
Floor 3:
–Designated «National Heritage Galleries» with rooms by country (Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Iceland)
–Creepy trolls
-«Brick World» with neat Lego (originally Danish) creations
A few tips for your visit:
–They are closed on Mondays and don’t open until 10 am on the weekdays and Saturdays, and 12 pm on Sundays.
–First Thursday of each month is FREE. Otherwise prices are as follows: Adults-​$ 6, Seniors and College Students-​$ 5, Children 5 and older-​$ 4, Children younger than 5-​Free
–Obtain your museum pass through the Seattle Public library for two Adult entrances free of cost!
–There is coffee near the restrooms with a preferred 0.50 cent donation.
–Almost the entire museum is run by volunteers.
Museum’s Hopes & Future:
The current museum space is leased by the Seattle Public Schools (it use to be a school building with the gymnasium addition holding the Dream of America exhibit). The not-​for-​profit organization and museum was founded in 1980 with current hopes to expand its knowledge, history and collection (many of which are in storage and not shared due to limited space) with a brand spankin’ new, LEED-​certified, 53,000 square foot structure. All of this will sit across from the Chittenden Locks. This will hopefully be realized in 2016 once all the funds have been raised. Please donate a little something to make this happen. Learn more here (
) and see more here (
).

Pretty sweet place. Not only do they have Viking ships, they also offer a plethora of Scandic language classes courtesy of SLI. Come learn about your not-​so-​Danish heritage while learning to speak with a mouthful of hot potatoes.

Did you know that Ballard used to be the center of Washington’s Scandinavian population?
I’ve been meaning to pay a visit to the Nordic Heritage Museum for awhile now, and I finally did so for Yule Fest, their holiday bazaar. I had so so much fun!
First of all, they served excellent food and drink. Think brats, aebelskivers, butter cookies, Odin beer, and glögg (mulled wine). Second, they had tons of Scandinavian wares for sale. Most of the stuff was kind of kitschy (like an «Uff Da!» mug), but some of the jewelry and ornaments were actually really pretty and special. Finally, we got to check out the permanent exhibits. They’re a little outdated and definitely aimed at kids, but still I still enjoyed them. What can I say, I’m a sucker for recreated townscapes!
Although Yule Fest only happens once a year, the museum has a lot of other cool events for adults. I am super excited to take their Swedish language classes (they also offer Danish, Icelandic, and Norwegian).
Oh, and the first Thursday of every month, admission is free!

Last year, several of us trundled down to Ballard in the snowy climes to attend Yulefest 2010. In addition to the permanent collection, there were holiday items like a gorgeously large Dala horse and some holiday Moomin back in the craft sections for kids. There was tasty food everywhere, glögg, sausages, homeade pastries and Æbleskiver, to name a few items.
If you visit to see the museum itself, it is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 to 16:00 and on Sunday from noon to 16:00. Admission is $ 6.00 for adults with $ 5.00 for senior citizen and college students. From their site, the permanent exhibits are as follows:
The First Floor: The Dream of America is the story of immigration told in an exhibit of life-​like dioramas. Travel with your family back to the nineteenth-​century Scandinavian countryside to begin the journey to America, starting with the move to the city. The voyage continues as you board a ship to make the Atlantic crossing, and land at Ellis Island. The adventure goes on to experiences in New York, and the expansion to the Midwest, Great Plains, and Pacific Northwest, ending in Ballard. Here the growth and development of a typical small Northwest community is displayed, complete with a post office, church, drug store, blacksmith shop, and a family home.
The Second Floor: The Promise of the Northwest includes two galleries that focus on the logging and fishing industries, which employed many immigrants who brought skills learned in the old country. These galleries show the contributions of the Nordic pioneers to the settlement of the Pacific Northwest. The Folk Art Galleries display treasured and useful items the immigrants brought with them, including folk costumes, textiles, tools, and furniture. Temporary art, history, and heritage exhibits are housed in the three galleries at the west end of the hall. Visit the Current Exhibitions page for current exhibitions.
The Third Floor: The third floor exhibitions illustrate the differences and the common bonds among the Scandinavian people. There is one gallery for each of the five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. Each gallery highlights that group’s special achievements in the Pacific Northwest.
I liked the progression of the exhibits that showed immigrants arriving to America, professions that Scandinavians took and their effect on modern Seattle/​Ballard. I especially enjoyed learning about my own Swedish roots and feeling a sense of pride. There’s an elevator that will take you to all of the floors if you’re unable to take the stairs. There is also a large parking lot with street parking for their events.