Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum - Lake Placid, NY - Honoring the Winter Olympic Games

The Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum is located at 2634 Main Street in Lake Placid, New York. The Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum is sometimes called The 1932 and 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum because it honors the 1932 Winter Olympics and the 1980 Winter Olympics, both of which were held in Lake Placid. In fact, Lake Placid is the only city in North America that has hosted the Winter Olympics twice.

This museum was opened in 1994 by the state of New York. This museum is the only Olympic museum in the nation, and it resulted from the work of the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), which is a public benefits corporation that was created by New York. ORDA operated the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum and other select sites.

The Winter Olympic Museum is housed in the Olympic Center. The Olympic Center housed some of the actual events of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Games. For example, in 1932, this is where figure skater Sonja Henie and Olympian Jack Shea won gold medals.

The Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum houses several items that were used in the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympic Games and serves as a tribute to the Winter Olympics. One of the items on display at the museum is the Fram III bobsled that was used during the 1932 Winter Olympic Games. Until this bobsled was donated to the museum, its whereabouts were unknown for over 60 years. The museum is also home to the ice skates that Jack Shea used in the 1932 Winter Games. Other exhibits include items like Jim Craig's jersey and pads. Jim Craig was a goalie on the US hockey team. Memorabilia from the 1980 hockey team is also housed at the museum.

The 1980 US hockey team completed was became known as a "Miracle on Ice'' when they played against the Soviet Union. The US team was lead by Herb Brooks, their coach, and defeated the team from the Soviet Union, which was considered the world's best hockey team at the time. The US hockey team went on to win the gold medal at the Winter Olympic Games that year. A movie called Miracle, based on the story of the 1980 team, was released in 2004. The Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum supplied materials that were used in making this film.

When the Olympic Torch came through the US prior to the 2002 Olympic Games that were held in Salt Lake City, the museum hosted the Olympic Torch. In addition, the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum received the Olympic Cup in 2005. The Olympic Cup is given by the International Olympic Committee to recognize institutions that contribute to the development of the Olympic Movement. Each year, the museum generally gets between 25,000 and 35,000 visitors.

The facility is typically open from 10:00am to 5:00pm daily. It is closed on certain holidays. Admission is $4 per adult, $2 per junior, $3 per senior, and $2.50 for military personnel (with ID).

The exhibits at the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum do change from time to time. Additional information about the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum can be obtained by calling 518-523-1655.