Kenosha Public Museum
Special Events
Winter Picnic Movie Night: Encanto
Friday, March 14 | 6pm – 9pm | Free
Presented at no cost by the Friends of the Museum
Grab your picnic basket, blanket, or camp chairs and enjoy a family-friendly evening filled with music, magic, and movie fun! Before the film, get creative with fun, hands-on activities for all ages, from making magical paper flowers or animal masks to designing your very own Encanto family tree. If you have an Encanto inspired outfit please wear it and join our costume parade.
Popcorn will be available for purchase, with all proceeds benefiting the Friends of the Museum.
Event Schedule:
6:00 PM: Craft stations and games inspired by Encanto
7:00 PM: Encanto Costume parade
7:15 PM: Movie starts (Encanto, 102 minutes)
All activities including movie will be indoors at the Kenosha Public Museum
Independent Bookstore Day
Saturday, April 26 | 10am – 4:30pm
Hosted by Blue House Books
A Day for Book Lovers
Join us for a book-filled day of fun, featuring ticketed events, free activities, and fantastic bookish deals!
Ticketed Events:
10:00am | Brunch Book Exchange – Chat with fellow readers, swap previously loved books, and enjoy a delicious brunch buffet.
11:30am | Bookseller Picks Presentation & Author Panel – Discover upcoming must-reads, win free books, play bookish games, and hear from guest authors. Author signings follow the presentation.
All-Day Perks | Ticket holders receive a BHB swag bag with a free book, a gift item, and exclusive discounts throughout the event!
Free Activities (No Ticket Required):
11:00am – 4:30pm | Bookish Craft & Vendor Fair – Explore local bookish vendors and get creative with a free craft.
1:00pm – 4:30pm | Food Trucks – Grab a bite while enjoying the festivities.
Stay tuned for vendor and author announcements!
Gateway Rose Society Annual Rose Show
Saturday, June 21 | 12:30pm – 4:30pm | Free
Stop and smell the roses at the Gateway Rose Society’s Annual Rose Show! View stunning displays of locally grown roses, learn more about rose cultivation, and chat with expert growers. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just love beautiful blooms, this vibrant showcase is sure to delight.
Art Making Family Day
Saturday, September 20 | 11am – 1pm | Free, registration recommended | Register Here
Visit the combined exhibits of Women and Water and Ancestral Women and learn about the stories of Native heroes, caretakers, and artists through looking closely with a scavenger hunt and making artwork with natural materials, such as using plant based pigments in a watercolor painting, corn kernels to design an abstract work, and get inspired by the Anishinaabe woodlands style of flowers and plants to create your own artwork.
Museum Store Members Only Sale
Friday, November 28 – Sunday, November 30
Kenosha Public Museum, Civil War Museum, Dinosaur Discovery Museum
Friends of the Museum members get 20% off in addition to the 10% member discount for a total of 30% off all purchases*.
*Excludes consignments, books, and media
Holiday Train Display
Friday, November 28, 2025 – Sunday, January 4, 2026
The Holiday Train returns to the Kenosha Public Museum lobby! Visit during regular museum hours to enjoy this festive display of model trains and holiday houses.
Winter Movie Night Double Feature: Finding Dory and Jaws
Friday, January 30, 2026 | 5:00pm – 10:15pm | Free
Sponsored by the Friends of the Museum and Educators Credit Union
Escape the winter chill and join us at the Kenosha Public Museum for a special movie night double feature! Grab your camp chairs and blankets, and cozy up for two ocean favorites back-to-back. We’ll kick off the evening with Finding Dory, a heartwarming family favorite filled with colorful ocean adventures and a gentle introduction to sharks. Then we’ll follow it with the legendary thriller Jaws–a classic that will have you on the edge of your seat…or blanket!
Don’t miss this one-night-only event that brings together family fun, classic cinema, and the fascinating world of sharks!
Event Schedule:
5 pm: Finding Dory starts (running time, 97 minutes)
7 pm: Explore The World of Sharks exhibit between showings
8 pm: Jaws starts (running time, 124 minutes)
African American Read-In: Honoring Ntozake Shange
Saturday, February 7 | 1pm – 3pm | Free
This program celebrates African American culture through the voices of Black authors across a range of literary forms, including poems, essays, historic speeches, short stories, and children’s books. Community readers lend their voices to works that are sure to inspire, challenge, and reflect upon the Black experience in the United States.
Ntozake Shange (1948–2018) was an influential American playwright, poet, and novelist best known for her groundbreaking choreopoem “for colored girls/ when the rainbow is enuf”, which brought a powerful blend of poetry, music, and dance to Broadway. Born Paulette Linda Williams in Trenton, New Jersey, she later adopted the name Ntozake Shange to honor her African heritage. Her writing illuminated the joys and struggles of Black women with candor, lyricism, and innovation, spanning plays, poetry, fiction, and children’s literature. Shange’s bold voice and inventive artistic style continue to inspire generations of writers and performers.
2026 is the 37th year of the National African American Read In, an event sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English and its Black Caucus. Each year communities across the country are urged to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month. This program is presented in partnership with the Kenosha Literacy Council, the Coalition for Dismantling Racism, the Kenosha Media Center, the American Association of University Women, and the Kenosha Public Library.
Kohl’s Wild Theater: Leona Lionheart Saves the World!
Saturday, March 7 | 1pm – 2pm | Free
Presented at no cost by the Friends of the Museum
On Earth Day, 10-year-old Leona skips a class field trip only to be swept into an unforgettable journey through her imagination! Guided by magical narrators, Leona meets three real-life female conservation heroes. As she explores nature, science, and courage across time and continents, Leona discovers how imagination can lead to real-world change. Leona Lionheart is a joyful celebration of environmentalism, empowerment, and curiosity: and a reminder that every person has the power to shape the world around us.
Book by Zach Thomas Woods, music and lyrics by Matt Zembrowski
Based on “Out of School and Into Nature: The Anna Comstock Story,” “Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist,” and “Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa.”
Women in STEM
Saturday, March 21 | 10:00am – 3:00pm | Free
Bring the whole family and join the Kenosha Public Museum in celebrating Women in STEM! Meet and talk to real scientists from a variety of fields, and participate in experiments and hands-on experiences with them. Explore our hall of scientists and learn about some of the incredible scientific discoveries that have been made by women throughout history–from discovering the crater of the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs to figuring out how to send humans into space, from uncovering the structure of DNA to building the foundation of quantum physics upon which Einstein built his theories.
Donuts with Dinos at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum
Saturday, April 18 | 10:00am – 12:00pm | Free for Friends of the Museum Members ($10 per person non-member) | Registration Required: Register Here
Start your morning with dinosaurs and donuts at this special early-access event at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, hosted by the Friends of the Museums! Families are invited to enjoy exclusive access to the museum before it opens to the public, with time to explore exhibits at your own pace.
Enjoy donuts and coffee for adults, plus juice boxes and water for kids. The lower-level dig site will be open, and children can take part in hands-on activities and crafts, including a special event-only coloring page. Don’t miss a visit from Dr. Dizzy, and stop by the lab to meet Nick, who will be on hand to answer questions about recent lab changes and guide kids through simple fossil activities at interactive stations.
This relaxed, come-and-go event is open to families with children of all ages.
This event is free with a family-level membership and above; $10 per person for non-members.
Family Fossil Hunting
Saturday, May 30 | 10:00am – 12:00pm | $8 per participant ($10 for non-members) | Register Here
Join Nick Wiersum from the Dinosaur Discovery Museum as we explore the local fossils of Kenosha’s lakeshore. Meet at the Kenosha Public Museum to learn about the prehistoric life that called this area home, discuss how to locate fossils, and then head out to the Simmon’s Island beach house to collect fossils of your own! All participants are responsible for providing their own transportation from the Museum to the collection site. The Museum will provide you with any tools you will need, including a collection bag, fossil guide, and magnifying glass.
Christmas at the Museums
Saturday, December 6 | 10:00am – 3:00pm | Free
Celebrate the Christmas season with the Kenosha Public Museums! This dual event features activities for all ages at both the Kenosha Public Museum and Civil War Museum, including performances, crafts, trades demonstrations, a hot cocoa bar, a vendor market, and a one-day-only pop-up women’s fashion exhibit.
At the Kenosha Public Museum, peruse the wares of 25+ vendors, including handmade holiday crafts, crocheted goods, honey, specialty coffee, beach glass jewelry and artwork, baked goods, jam, and much more.
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