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Mission statement

The Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society’s mission is to preserve Hungarian culture and the history of Hungarians in Northeast Ohio, so that present and future generations can draw upon its collection for education, inspiration and enrichment. To carry out its mission, the Society sponsors educational and research activities, and operates a museum and library as a repository and exhibition center for Hungarian historical, literary and artistic items.

The Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society cordially invites you to attend our 28th Annual Vintner Dinner on FRIDAY, October 11, 2024.

Celebrating fine Hungarian wines, lively Hungarian music and great Hungarian hospitality, honoring George J. Pogan.

Woodside Event Center at St. Michael’s
5025 East Mill Road, Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147
Reception from 6:30 – 7:15 pm with dinner served at 7:30 pm
Dinner music by Harmonia – Cocktail attire requested
Buy Your Tickets for the Vintner Dinner

News about the Museum: hours we are open and future programming!

Come visit us!

The Museum is open to visitors on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 11-3. If you would like to visit us on another day when we are not open, you can make an appointment by writing a message to our email address, museum@clevelandhungarianmuseum.org, and we will answer your email and arrange for your visit.  Please give us at least a 4 day notice! Note: the Museum will close at 2:25 on Wednesday, August 21.

We are pleased to announce that we have been awarded a grant by the Hungarian Government through the Bethlen Gábor Fund Management, in support of our efforts to share with the greater community our Hungarian culture and history and the Hungarian immigrant story of Northeast, Ohio.

Save the date! Our annual Vintner Dinner will be held on Friday, October 11. This is the Museum's major fundraiser, and we hope you will join in supporting the mission of the Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society and Museum!!

Our 2024 Fall program Series will have its first program on Saturday, September 14th. Our speaker will be Connie Connally,  a wonderful author who will introduce her latest book, Fire Music. The story takes place in Hungary, and is briefly summarized- During the World War II siege of Budapest, a teenage violinist writes beautiful, shattering music. Sixty years later, his hurting family asks for the story behind the music—but will the music’s secrets crush them, or heal them?  Plan to join us for what promises to be a wonderful program!

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Middle school students visit the Museum.

Group pic in frot of the Hungarian Museum

On July 17th, members of our Board, our curator and our librarian, along with some gracious volunteers, welcomed some special guests to our Museum. As Eva Szabo reported to our Board, "we had the good fortune to see 18 middle school members, some counselors and two adult teachers from the Western Reserve Academy in Hudson. They were part of the Young Scholars Program and had a long agenda for the day.  By visiting our museum at 1:30, they hoped to learn of Hungary...."

These wonderful photographs serve as compelling images of how we live our mission, and the rich cultural experiences that we offer to the greater Northeast Ohio community.

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Saying farewell to our founder....

Otto Friedrich

How do you say good-bye to someone who breathed life into a dream, and that dream became the Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Museum? How do we say "Isten Veled Ottó", when what we really want to say is "wish you were still here"?  Our beloved founder, Otto Friedrich, passed away this year on February 13th, on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. He was 92 years old. It seems like only yesterday that Otto, along with a few other committed Hungarians, grabbed the opportunity to form the Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society. That was in 1985. That was 39 years ago; today the Hungarian Museum is an ethnic gem in the heart of Downtown Cleveland, and we have Otto's unbounded enthusiasm and energy to thank for these 39 successful years.

Everyone who worked with Otto could not help but being swept away by his relentless energy, positive outlook and practical sense. We shared his conviction that what this Hungarian community here in Northeast Ohio needed was a permanent Museum featuring our culture and immigrant history. To so many of us he was like an older brother who led the way, challenged us to do our best in this endeavor, and who supported us as we worked to grow this project into a lasting testimony to those hardworking immigrants who lived here and prospered. He understood that each successive generation stood on the shoulders of the previous generation, and he wanted this Museum to reflect the contributions of all the generations who identified with their Hungarian heritage.

Opening at St. Elizabeth 1986

Otto was the perfect Executive Director of the Museum. He was outgoing and friendly and treated  dignitaries as well as tourists and visitors who came to our Museum with courtesy and a hearty welcome. He loved socializing, meeting people, dancing and tasting wine with Museum supporters, but most of all, he enjoyed working with people. He was open to new ideas, and also welcomed projects and programs that required a lot of planning and organizing. He succeeded, because few could say no to Otto!

Our Board and officers, along with our members, will miss him. But we will keep his dream alive, and will work to maintain this Museum that serves as a reminder to every Clevelander, that there is a vibrant  Hungarian-American community living on the shores of Lake Erie.

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We have launched our Online Collections Catalog
and we are excited to share them with the world!

~ WELCOME to our ONLINE COLLECTIONS DATABASE ~

You can see the many wonderful items that have been entrusted into our care ** no matter where you are **

Click here to visit the Museum’s exciting new resource!  There’s a lot more to come, so check back often!!

 

In February, 2020, the Museum received a grant from the Ohio History Connection, which allowed us to purchase software that will enhance our ability to catalog our collection, and incorporate donor and support information into one database. As a recipient organization, we are please to announce that this project is made possible in part by the Ohio History Fund, a grant program of the Ohio History Connection. The Ohio History Fund is made possible by voluntary donations of state income tax refunds, sales of Ohio History “mastodon” license plates, and other donations.

The Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society which sponsors the Museum and its Programs, is an Ohio state registered non-profit 501 (c) 3 organization. Your donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.