OMA Award Spotlight - National Museum of the Great Lakes
On Sunday, April 19, the Ohio Museums Association held our Annual Awards dinner to recognize the winners of our 2025 Awards of Achievement and 2025 Visual Communication Awards, in conjunction with the 2026 Annual Conference in Columbus.
During the ceremony, OMA celebrated the outstanding achievement of Ohio museums in Visual Communications, individual and institutional achievement, and the tireless work museum professionals undertake to help to advance Ohio’s museum community both locally, and on a national level.
Over the next few weeks, we will be highlighting our 2025 OMA Award of Achievement winners with our OMA Award Spotlight.
OMA Award Spotlight - Awards of Achievement
The Awards of Achievement are presented to reflect the outstanding quality and caliber of work by Ohio museums and their professionals in two categories: Institutional Achievement Awards and Individual Achievement Awards.
Nominations for these awards are incredibly detailed. This in-depth process helps to illustrate how these institutions and individuals have gone “above and beyond” the normal call of duty to support their institution, serve their public and advance the cause of the museum community.
Each year, the review panel is overwhelmed by the outstanding projects, innovative programming and dedication to our field as exhibited in each of the institutional and individual nominations. Congratulations again to each of our award winners!
Today, we'll be featuring our winner for the 2025 award for Best Exhibition (organizational budget over $500,000).
National Museum of the Great Lakes
The opening of Dark Waters: True Crime & Mystery on the Great Lakes marked a milestone for the National Museum of the Great Lakes as its first large-scale temporary exhibition, debuting in its new Bettcher Foundation wing. Opening with the museum’s transformational Second Wave expansion, the exhibition invited audiences to explore gripping stories of crime, catastrophe, and unanswered questions that shaped Great Lakes communities. Through immersive storytelling, rare artifacts, and regional partnerships, Dark Waters expanded how maritime history can be interpreted, demonstrating the museum’s growing capacity for bold, contemporary exhibitions that deepen public engagement and set a new standard for future programming.
Designed for visitors ages 13 and older, Dark Waters explored the region’s darker chapters, offering visitors a deeper, more complex understanding of how maritime history intersects with social, cultural, and economic forces—while introducing a contemporary true-crime lens that’s rarely applied to Great Lakes storytelling.
True crime was selected as the exhibition theme based on its proven appeal to younger and first-time museum visitors, as well as its ability to spark curiosity and discussion. The planning team recognized that many well-known (and not so well-known) crime and disaster stories—often discussed without regional context—were deeply connected to the Great Lakes. By reframing these narratives through a regional lens, the exhibit aligned seamlessly with the museum’s mission.
The exhibition attracted thousands of visitors and played a key role in the museum achieving the highest overall visitation in its history. Dark Waters exemplifies how museums can responsibly engage popular culture trends while maintaining scholarly integrity and mission alignment. It also not only expanded what the museum could do; it redefined what visitors expect from Great Lakes storytelling.
Does your museum have a spectacular exhibit planned for the 2026 season? Be sure to nominate it for the 2026 award for Best Exhibition! Learn more here.