Located in the private study of Major General Lew Wallace, author of Ben-Hur, the museum contains items collected by Wallace during his life as an author, soldier, statesman, artist, violinist, and inventor. Wallace often wrote his literary works on the grounds of the study. Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by General Lew Wallace was published by Harper and Brothers on November 12, 1880. The novel was the result of seven years research and writing, most of which was carried out underneath a beech tree near Wallace’s residence in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

The novel grew in such popularity during Wallace’s lifetime that it was adapted into a stage play in 1899. That dramatization was followed by the motion picture productions in 1907, 1925, and 1959. Since the last film, Ben-Hur has been adapted into several cartoons and a musical.

However, Ben-Hur’s impact on American culture is larger than the dramatic adaptations alone. There was a national fraternal organization founded upon Ben-Hur known as the Supreme Tribe of Ben-Hur, which was later reformed into Ben-Hur Life Insurance. There have even been American towns named after Ben-Hur.

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http://www.ben-hur.com/