The Beer Can Museum, located in East Taunton, Massachusetts, is a collection of more than 3,000 different beer cans, along with beer can art and crafts, beer can clothing, beer can telephones and radios, and a beer can and breweriana related library. Cans dating back to the mid-1930s are on display, as are beer can oddities and obsolete and current trends in beer packaging (e.g. antique cone tops and the newly released alumabottles). The collection is private, but tours can sometimes be arranged by appointment. The collection was started in 1978 by the museum's director and curator, Kevin Logan. The museum hosts an annual "Museumfest" in the summer, where recent contributors are treated to a barbecue, museum tours, and an awards ceremony. The oldest can in the collection is a Krueger Ale can from the 1930s which is similar to the first beer can ever produced in 1935. On display as well are older cone tops (such as a Brockert Ale "J-Spout" can from Worcester, Massachusetts) and obsolete "flat top" cans from the early days of beer can production. The museum is enhanced by a significant collection of breweriana (beer related collectibles) such as hanging pub towels in the rafters, thousands of coasters or "beer mats", beer trays, and a bar displaying both colorful cans and beer glasses from around the world. Crocheted beer can hats from the 1970s, beer can transistor radios, and a beer can telephone are also on display, as are miniature beer cans used in dollhouses. A unique 'pysanka' (painted Ukrainian style 'Heineken' egg) is also housed at the museum. References^ "The Nation", Los Angeles Times, October 11, 2002. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "No one is quite sure how many of these oddball exhibits exist, because many are set up in private homes, open by appointment only. Officially, the Institute of Museums and Library Services in Washington classifies them as "collections of curiosities," not educational enough to gain true museum status. But some academics are not so quick to dismiss them as random junk." "There's something about bringing together as a collection that lets you see a phenomenon in a way you wouldn't otherwise. ... And there's something about the relentless focus of really hard-core collectors that's impressive and intriguing in its own right," said Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, a professor at New York University who has written extensively about the interplay between food and culture. "What the Museum of Modern Art does in classifying paintings by genre and period--that's the same thing that the Mustard Museum or The Beer Can Museum or the nut museum is doing," Steiner said. "Only, unlike modern minimalist art, these museums are dealing with something that everyone can relate to." ^ The museum has been featured in such publications as The Cambodia Daily, The Boston Phoenix, and the Brockton Enterprise, and has also been mentioned in the Los Angeles Times, The Taunton Daily Gazette, The Patriot-Ledger, and the Austin American-Statesman (TX).^ "Weekend Excursion", New York Times, April 23, 1999. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "And for those who haven't had their fill of culture, there is always the Beer Can Museum with its collection of 5,500 beer cans at Ye Ol' Watering Hole, 287 Pleasant Street. But that's another story." ^ "In Northampton, Mass.", New York Times, October 29, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "Going south on Pleasant Street, NoHo reverts back to Hamp somewhere around Ye Ol' Watering Hole and Beer Can Museum (287 Pleasant Street, 413-585-0990). As the name suggests, it's an unprettified dive with a truly insane number of beer cans from around the world and the beginning of time (or at least the beginning of canned beer). The collection is not as well lighted as you might wish, but that's probably for the preservation of the artifacts." ^ a b c Beer Can Museum. Beer Can Museum. Retrieved on 2007-09-25.