After breaking ground four years ago, the Barack Obama Presidential Center will soon be open for visitors.
Announced today (Oct 20), the Center will be open in spring 2026 but the Obama Foundation is giving the public a virtual preview of the 19-acre, community-rooted campus slated to open on Chicago’s South Side.
The museum will tell the story of the USA’s first black president’s journey from community organizer to the nation’s first African American president and aims to show how individuals can make a difference in their communities.
The center, comprised of a museum, library and gathering spaces, has been in the works for nearly a decade. Dozens of neighbors circled the block to get a glimpse of the center, in what was the first official public tour of the site per NBC Chicago.
“My son was two-and-a-half when I moved here. He’s now 19, and there was one swing, one track, a slide board on a bathroom, and that was it, so to see something this beautiful as this, it touches my heart,” one resident said.
Features
The center will feature an athletic, programs and events facility, an auditorium, a branch of the Chicago Public Library, a fruit and vegetable garden and more.
The exterior will feature the words President Obama delivered in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma. Inside, visitors can immerse themselves in interactive experiences such as Power of Words, four stories of digital screens, and hundreds of artifacts that delve into the Obamas’ personal and professional lives.
Campus Experiences
There will be a multitude of physical touch opportunities located across multiple indoor and outdoor spaces.
The Ann Dunham Water Terrace, honoring Obama’s late mother, is an interactive sculpture from renowned artist Maya Lin, entitled “Seeing Through the Universe.” The Terrace provides a sensory opportunity where visitors are encouraged to splash through the water fountain and gather with other visitors in the sunlight.