An interactive children’s museum celebrating professional and collegiate mascots in the US is due to open on 26 December 2018.

Situated in Whiting, Indiana, US, the Mascot Hall of Fame (MHOF) is intended to engage, educate and entertain fans, school groups and visitors through innovative and interactive exhibits.

The interactive exhibit areas within the 25,000 square foot site have been designed by Cincinnati-based Jack Rouse Associates (JRA), which has worked on museums and attractions such as the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta, the Crayola Experience in Pennsylvania and the Green Bay Packers’ Hall of Fame. Exhibits have been given fun names such as the “Department of Furry Arts”, “Science of Silliness Lab” and “Phuzzical Education Department”.

However, there is also a serious educational side to the MHOF, with displays and activities incorporating STEAM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math), to complement state and local curriculums. The MHOF hopes to become a “perfect destination for school field trips and youth organizations”.

More “mascot fun” will involve birthday parties, mascot boot camps and weekly mascot appearances.

Taking in an annual class of inductees, MHOF’s current class includes mascots from professional sports teams such as National Football League franchise the Kansas City Chiefs, Major League Baseball’s New York Mets, and National Basketball Association teams the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia Phillies; college inductees include Bucky the Badger from the University of Wisconsin and Brutus Buckeye from Ohio State.

The Mascot Hall of Fame began as an online-only hall, started by original Phillie Phanatic mascot David Raymond. Planning for the move to a permanent hall began in 2014. It is expected to attract significant out-of-town tourism to the region on weekends and holidays, with almost US$241m (€213.4m, £191.8m) in total economic output projected for the local economy over a 20 year period.