VISIT

ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM GATE MUSEUM

The Millennium Gate Museum’s (The Gate) mission is to preserve and interpret Georgia history, art, culture and philanthropic heritage as well as highlight Georgia’s historical and aesthetic relevance to the United States and to the world. The Gate is a classically styled monumental arch located in Atlanta, historically called “The Gate City.” It is designed in the tradition of classical Roman triumphal arches that have been built around the world over the past 2,500 years, and houses a 12,000 square foot museum that narrates Georgia’s history through sophisticated interactive technology, film, period rooms, and exhibitions. The museum is a 501(c)3 non-profit and the winner of the Palladio Award for design of a public space. 

18^th Century Georgia Pioneer Gallery

Beginning with pre-Columbian Native American history and 16th century Spanish settlement of the coast, the Georgia Pioneer Gallery focuses on General Oglethorpe’s creation of the Colony of Georgia and the enlightenment ideals that were so instrumental in its inception. The gallery contains documents and historical artifacts from the Native Indian, Spanish, British Colonial, and American Revolutionary periods that complement and add dimension to the museum’s history exhibit panels.

19^th and 20^th Century Galleries

The galleries narrate the story of Atlanta’s and Georgia’s early history and the bold leadership that has helped them jointly grow into one of the most important destinations in the world. The exhibition features photographs and artifacts from twenty of Atlanta’s pioneering families, names such as Adair, Candler, Glenn, Herndon, Rich, Woodruff, and many others who have helped to shape our social, economic, political, and philanthropic landscape.

21^st Century Interactive Gallery

In partnership with Georgia Tech’s Interactive Media Technology Center, the museum has created an Interactive Philanthropy Gallery that allows visitors to explore Atlanta and how philanthropy has changed the various neighborhoods that comprise this thriving metropolis. Using Nintendo Wii technology in an immersive theater setting, visitors have the opportunity to explore Atlanta’s history. In the second interactive component, a projection visualizes Atlanta’s evolution over the past 150 years, giving visitors the chance to switch between historic and contemporary images of our city’s major landmarks with a simple wave of the hand.

Period Rooms

The Millennium Gate features three period rooms: an 18th century Colonial study from Georgia’s Declaration of Independence signer Lyman Hall’s Midway, Georgia, the 19th century office of Coca-Cola magnate Thomas K. Glenn during his tenure as president of Atlantic Steel and the Trust Company of Georgia simultaneously, and the 20th century drawing room of Pink House, the Rhodes-Robinson home designed by Philip Shutze and Edward Vason Jones.