National Public Housing Museum

History Museumnphm.org

The National Public Housing Museum is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) cultural institution and the only U.S. museum dedicated to public housing history, operating from the last Jane Addams Homes building. It serves general visitors, K-12 schools, public housing residents, and corporate partners through historic apartment tours, an oral history archive, exhibitions, and workforce development programs.

Company typePrivate
Founded2025
HeadquartersChicago, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2B and B2C
OfferingServices

What National Public Housing Museum does

The National Public Housing Museum (NPHM) is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit cultural institution headquartered at 919 South Ada Street, Chicago, operating from the last remaining building of the historic Jane Addams Homes (1938). Founded in 2007 and opened in its permanent form in April 2025, NPHM is the only U.S. cultural institution exclusively devoted to preserving and presenting the history, present, and future of public housing through recreated historic apartments, oral histories, exhibitions, and educational programming.

The museum's product portfolio centers on the Historic Apartments Tour (ticketed at $15-$25 per visitor) through three recreated apartments spanning 1938-1975; a growing Oral History Archive of 180+ interviews conducted primarily by residents via the Aviary Platform; the Out of the Archives podcast (26 episodes across 4 seasons); and a free digital guide delivered through the Bloomberg Connects mobile app for global multimedia access. Additional offerings include the Beauty Turner Academy of Oral History, Empowerment Hub workforce development, Artist as Instigator Residency, free toolkits and downloadable curricula, temporary exhibitions (e.g., Nathaniel Mary Quinn, BREAKTHROUGH: Housing Futures), event/space rental, and a museum store supporting resident-owned cooperatives.

Revenue is diversified across earned and contributed streams: pay-what-you-can general admission (suggested $10), ticketed tours, individual donations and memberships, corporate membership tiers ($10,000-$50,000), event/venue rental, and grants from foundations including MacArthur, Mellon, Kresge, Donnelley, Joyce, and Feinberg, plus government sources (Illinois Arts Council, DCASE). Go-to-market is hybrid: community-led engagement with public housing residents, education-driven outreach to K-12 schools (including free/discounted Title I programs with transportation support), direct-to-consumer ticketing, and enterprise space rental for corporate events.

National Public Housing Museum firmographics

Firmographics

Name: National Public Housing Museum
Legal name: National Public Housing Museum
Website: https://nphm.org
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2025
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Short description: The National Public Housing Museum is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) cultural institution and the only U.S. museum dedicated to public housing history, operating from the last Jane Addams Homes building. It serves general visitors, K-12 schools, public housing residents, and corporate partners through historic apartment tours, an oral history archive, exhibitions, and workforce development programs.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

National Public Housing Museum industry classification

Industry

Product category: History Museum
NAICS: Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Historical Sites (712120), Historical Sites (71212)
akta.pro primary industry: Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI)
akta.pro secondary industries: Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), History Museums (THAJADAB)

Keywords

Public housing history
Oral history archive
Museum educational programs
Cultural heritage preservation
Community museum exhibitions

Where National Public Housing Museum is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Chicago
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

National Public Housing Museum business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B and B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

Admissions and Tours: Revenue from ticketed Historic Apartment guided tours ($15-$25 per person) and pay-what-you-can general admission with suggested $10 donation
Donations and Memberships: Individual donations, monthly giving programs, Giving Circle memberships ($1,000+), and planned giving options including beneficiary designations and charitable annuities
Corporate Sponsorship and Membership: Corporate membership tiers at $10,000 (Partner), $25,000 (Leader), and $50,000 (Champion) levels, including visibility benefits and free venue rentals
Space Rental and Event Hosting: Rental of museum spaces including Living Room (up to 150 capacity), Alphawood Sculpture Garden, and Good Chaos Empowerment Hub for events and performances
Grants and Foundation Support: Funding from foundations including MacArthur Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Kresge Foundation, and government sources including Illinois Arts Council and DCASE

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Historic Apartment Tour - Ticketed guided experience
Hybrid	Pay-as-you-go	General Admission - Pay-what-you-can
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	School Field Trips
Subscription	Annual	Corporate Membership Tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

National Public Housing Museum product offering

Product offering

Core offering

The National Public Housing Museum operates a cultural institution in Chicago that preserves and presents the history of public housing through guided tours of recreated historic apartments, an oral history archive, exhibitions, educational programs, and community events. It sells ticketed museum tours, hosts K-12 field trips, rents venue space, and offers digital content via a mobile app and podcast, funded by admissions, donations, memberships, corporate sponsorships, and grants.

Product overview

The National Public Housing Museum is a cultural institution offering a portfolio of interconnected products and services centered on preserving public housing history. Core offerings include guided Historic Apartment Tours through recreated apartments at the Jane Addams Homes, the Oral History Archive (180+ interviews conducted primarily by residents), and the Out of the Archives Podcast. Educational programs include the Beauty Turner Academy of Oral History, Empowerment Hub for workforce development, and the Artist as Instigator Residency. The museum also provides a free Digital Guide via Bloomberg Connects, space rental services, and a museum store supporting resident-owned cooperatives. General admission is free; Historic Apartment Tours are ticketed at $25 for adults.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Historic Apartments Tour Guided immersive tours through three recreated historic apartments showcasing different families' experiences at the Jane Addams Homes between 1938 and 1975. Ticketed at $25 adults, $15 seniors/students/youth; members free.
Welcome to the Museum Tour Guided 45-minute tour through the museum's exhibitions highlighting stories of resilience, community, and activism from public housing developments.
School Visits and Field Trips Educational field trip packages for grades 5-12 including Historic Apartment Tours, Welcome to Museum Tours, facilitated dialogue, self-guided scavenger hunts, and curriculum-connected learning experiences. $15 per student; free and discounted tours available for Title I schools.
Digital Guide (Bloomberg Connects) Free digital guide available through the Bloomberg Connects mobile app (iOS and Android), featuring multimedia tours, audio stories from residents, interactive maps, videos, photos, and expanded interpretive content.
Out of the Archives Podcast Oral history-based podcast featuring 26 episodes across 4 seasons, centering voices of current and former public housing residents from across the country. Distributed on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Space Rental Event venue rental featuring Living Room (up to 150 capacity), Alphawood Foundation Sculpture Garden, and Good Chaos Empowerment Hub for cultural events, corporate events, team retreats, celebrations, receptions, and educational programs.
Museum Store Retail store amplifying entrepreneurial history of public housing and supporting small businesses and cooperatives owned by public housing residents.

Quantifiable outcome

26 podcast episodes produced and distributed across 4 seasons, featuring stories from public housing residents
+2 more outcomes

Companies that use National Public Housing Museum

Customer profile

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

National Public Housing Museum technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

National Public Housing Museum partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

International Coalition of Sites of ConsciencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe museum is a member of this network of historic sites that believes history and memory must inform social change. The coalition provides safe spaces to preserve traumatic memories and enable visitors to make connections between past and contemporary human rights issues.
Bloomberg ConnectscoreTechnology or IntegrationDigital guide platform partnership providing free mobile app access to museum's multimedia tours, audio stories, interactive maps, and expanded interpretive content. Available on iOS and Android.
Taylor Street FarmsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity garden partnership located adjacent to the museum on the site of a former subsidized housing complex. Museum has a plot where staff grow garlic and share with guests during programs.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

National Public Housing Museum competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Tenement Museum (Lower East Side Tenement Museum): New York-based nonprofit museum preserving immigrant housing history through restored tenement apartments and guided tours. Most comparable peer: similar apartment-based immersive tours, oral history methodology, and social history mission with strong K-12 programming.
National Civil Rights Museum: Memphis-based social history museum at the Lorraine Motel covering the American civil rights movement. Comparable as a heritage institution centered on a politically significant site, using oral histories, educational programming, and advocacy-adjacent mission.
Japanese American National Museum: Los Angeles-based museum preserving the history of Japanese Americans, including internment and community displacement. Comparable as a community-rooted heritage museum using oral histories, curated exhibitions, K-12 field trips, and advocacy programming.
The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza: Dallas museum located at a historically significant site (the former Texas School Book Depository) focused on a single, defining American history topic. Comparable site-based heritage museum model with guided tours, school programs, and donor-supported nonprofit operations.

Broad incumbents

National Museum of African American History and Culture: Smithsonian museum covering African American history, including housing discrimination and public housing themes. Comparable as a federally supported cultural institution with oral history archive, school programming, and donor/membership model.
Chicago History Museum: Chicago's primary city history museum covering broader urban history, including housing and community themes. Comparable as a Chicago nonprofit with shared donor pool, K-12 field trips, and oral history collection practices.

Regional players

DuSable Museum of African American History: Chicago-based African American history museum on the city's South Side. Comparable as a Chicago nonprofit cultural institution addressing Black American history, with overlapping donor ecosystem and audience.
National Museum of Mexican Art: Chicago-based Latino cultural museum in the Pilsen neighborhood. Comparable as a Chicago nonprofit with K-12 programming, free admission, community-engaged exhibitions, and shared local foundation and DCASE funding pools.

Emerging players

Museum of the African Diaspora: San Francisco museum interpreting the African diaspora through history, culture, and contemporary experience. Comparable as a community-heritage museum using oral histories, exhibitions, and programming to surface underrepresented narratives.
International Slavery Museum: Liverpool-based museum addressing the history and legacy of transatlantic slavery, part of the Sites of Conscience network alongside NPHM. Comparable mission framing of difficult social history and member of NPHM's peer coalition.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

National Public Housing Museum financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

National Public Housing Museum leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

National Public Housing Museum funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

National Public Housing Museum M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Public Housing Museum

What does National Public Housing Museum do?

Is National Public Housing Museum a public or private company?

National Public Housing Museum is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.

When was National Public Housing Museum founded?

National Public Housing Museum was founded in 2025. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is National Public Housing Museum based?

National Public Housing Museum is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.

How does National Public Housing Museum make money?

Five revenue lines are on record. Admissions and Tours are the primary driver. The others are donations and Memberships, corporate Sponsorship and Membership, space Rental and Event Hosting and grants and Foundation Support.

Who are National Public Housing Museum's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Tenement Museum (Lower East Side Tenement Museum), National Civil Rights Museum, Japanese American National Museum and The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. Broad incumbents are National Museum of African American History and Culture and Chicago History Museum. Regional players are DuSable Museum of African American History and National Museum of Mexican Art. Emerging players are Museum of the African Diaspora and International Slavery Museum.

Does National Public Housing Museum have an API?

No public API is recorded for National Public Housing Museum.

What industry is National Public Housing Museum in?

National Public Housing Museum's product category is History Museum. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJADAI, Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations), with a secondary code of BPAGAHAA, Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty). Its NAICS code is 712110.