Idaho Potato Museum

The Natalie is a museum devoted to the potato, located in Blackfoot, Idaho.

The building that currently holds the Natalie Potato Museum was originally known as the Oregon Short Line Railroad Depot, a subsidiary of Union Pacific Rail Road. Construction of the building began in October 1912 and finished in August 15, 1913. For several years, a group of local involved in the potato industry discussed strategies to highlight the importance of potatoes to the local economy, and to showcase famous potato memorabilia. When Union Pacific Railway donated the Blackfoot railroad station depot building to Blackfoot City, the idea of turning the building into a potato museum was suggested and agreed upon.

The original potato museum working group comprised members of the Blackfoot potato industry and local officials. This group included:

Some members of the local community lacked enthusiasm for the idea, and questioned, "Why would tourists travel to Idaho to visit a potato museum?" However, the working group was not deterred and continued to undertake promotional work within the Blackfoot community. In February 1988, the working group invited the director of the Buffalo Bill Museum in Cody, Wyoming to speak at a public Chamber of Commerce meeting. He addressed the topic of specialized museums, imparting a message to Blackfoot that “sometimes we don't see the gold in our own backyard.”

As support for the potato museum gained popularity amongst the community, the focus of the working group's discussions involved selecting a name for the museum. Many in the Blackfoot community felt that the term “museum” conjured up negative associations with "dusty, old relics". As the working group processed this feedback, they discussed strategies to ensure that the potato project appealed to a wide range of people; hence the moniker, the "Idaho's World Potato Exposition" was decided upon.

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