Housed in the 600,000 sq. ft. former International Shoe Company, the museum is an eclectic mixture of children’s playground, fun house, surrealistic pavilion and architectural marvel made out of unique, found objects. The brainchild of internationally acclaimed artist Bob Cassilly, a classically trained sculptor and serial entrepreneur, the museum opened for visitors in 1997 to the riotous approval of young and old alike. Cassilly and his longtime crew of 20 artisans have constructed the museum from the very stuff of the city and, as a result, it has urban roots deeper than any other institutions’. Reaching no farther than municipal borders for its reclaimed building materials, City Museum boasts features such as old chimneys, salvaged bridges, construction cranes, miles of tile and even two abandoned planes!