Museum of North Idaho opens for summer in old Roxy Theater

COEUR d’ALENE — Things were quiet at the Museum of North Idaho on Friday afternoon when an adult and several kids walked in. 

Executive Director Britt Thurman, sitting behind the front counter, quickly greeted them with a smile and started a conversation. 

A minute later, the group began checking out the new temporary home of the museum, which pleased Thurman.  

“It was exciting to open the doors today,” she said. 

The museum will be operating out of 115 S. Fourth St. in downtown Coeur d'Alene this summer rather than its longtime home near City Park.

It had to move after high levels of mold were found in the aging building earlier this year. 

The museum would normally have opened April 1. 

“It's unfortunate we had to do that, but it’s fortunate we didn’t have to close for the whole summer,” Thurman said. 

Museum staff, helped by volunteers, spent a few weeks cleaning up and moving some of its collection to the site of the old Roxy Theater. 

Transporting historical items and artifacts is a slow, careful process. 

“It has to be done so delicately,” Thurman said. 

While they couldn’t bring everything, they bought what they hope will attract visitors 

Displays on the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, fur traders, Fort Sherman, mining, logging, hydroplanes, steamboats and fire lookouts spread out over 5,700 square feet. They are just some of the exhibits depicting North Idaho’s past. 

There's also a play area for children with history-related activities and gifts like books, shirts and cups.  

The museum’s plan was to open this spring in the J.C. White House that was relocated in 2019 from Eighth Street and Sherman Avenue to the base of Tubbs Hill. 

Plans call for renovating the structure into an expanded 11,500-square-foot facility to house exhibits, art and educational resources. 

But construction on the several-million-dollar project hit delays and the opening was pushed back to October. 

In the meantime, John Montandon of Coeur d’Alene agreed to rent the old Roxy Theater space on Fourth Street between Sherman and Front avenues to the museum so it could open. The building has been in his family since the late 1950s and is about halfway between the museum's past home and its future one.

Thurman said the museum will be offering free admission to dads on Father’s Day. 

Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. 

The museum’s annual gala fundraiser is scheduled for June 27 at the J.C. White House. It will be a 1960s-themed celebration and include auctions, dinner and drinks, dancing and music. Tickets are $125 and a few remain. Info: museumni.org/gala

    Some of the displays at the Museum of North Idaho that opened Friday at 115 S. Fourth Street in downtown Coeur d'Alene.