Photo: Wikimedia Commons — see author and license on the file page.

American Writers Museum

Museum
In Chicago, Illinois
0.4 mi from Route 66

The American Writers Museum in Chicago, IL, is dedicated to American literature and the craft of writing. It opened on North Michigan Avenue in May 2017, in the downtown area where Route 66 begins. For road trippers who love books, it is a good reminder that the Mother Road has its own place in American writing, and a comfortable indoor stop before the long drive west.

What is American Writers Museum?

This museum celebrates American writers and writing as a whole rather than a single author. Its exhibits were designed by Amaze Design, a firm from Boston. The idea for the museum came from the Dublin Writers Museum in Ireland, which honors that country's literary figures, and the Chicago museum sets out to do the same for authors from the United States. The organization behind it dates to 2010, several years before the doors opened.

Visiting American Writers Museum: tips

The museum has restrooms on site, is listed as wheelchair accessible and welcomes children, so it works for families too. Plan on about an hour.

It sits in a cluster of downtown attractions. The Chicago Architecture Center and the Chicago Design Museum are each about 0.2 mile away, and the Pritzker Military Museum & Library is about 0.3 mile away. Together they make an easy walking morning before you pick up the car and head out on Route 66. Drivers with electric cars will find charging about 0.2 mile away.

Practical info

Address: 180 North Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: +1 312-374-8790
Website: americanwritersmuseum.org
Hours: Mon, Thu–Sun 10–5
On site & nearby

Sources: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Wikidata · official site — may be outdated. Suggest a fix

Where to eat near American Writers Museum

All diners →

Diner & restaurant
The Berghoff
Chicago, IL · 0.5 mi from American Writers Museum
A Chicago Loop restaurant dating to 1898, on Adams Street where westbound Route 66 begins.