Retired Pilot Buys Neil Armstrong's Boyhood Home for Historical Society
A $400,000 donation from Ken Schreiber will allow the Auglaize County Historical Society to acquire and preserve the Ohio home where the Apollo 11 commander spent his youth.
Retired Air Force and American Airlines pilot Ken Schreiber has donated $400,000 to ensure Neil Armstrong's boyhood home in Wapakoneta, Ohio, will be preserved for public tours. The sale is scheduled to finalize Monday, with the Auglaize County Historical Society set to take ownership.
Schreiber, who was 9 years old when Armstrong took his first steps on the moon in 1969, felt compelled to act when he learned the house was for sale and no one had yet stepped forward to preserve it. He cited his father's advice to "make a mark in life" as a motivation for his offer.
The historical society plans to restore the two-story home to its appearance during Armstrong's youth, a period when the future astronaut famously built model planes and experimented with aerodynamics. The goal is to open the home for public tours by 2030, marking the 100th anniversary of Armstrong's birth.
The house, located at 601 W. Benton St., has long been a point of interest for visitors to the nearby Armstrong Air and Space Museum, but it has never been publicly accessible. The historical society has begun researching the home's 1940s appearance and consulting with community leaders about fundraising for its renovation and upkeep.
Armstrong's family lived in the Wapakoneta house during his teenage years, a time when he made his first solo flight and earned his pilot's license at age 16. The home's interior has been updated over the years, but its layout remains similar, and the exterior has changed little. Armstrong's childhood bedroom is currently adorned with space memorabilia and autographed photos from visiting astronauts.
The home was listed for sale in August for the first time in nearly four decades. Its previous owner, retired history teacher Karen Mikesell, purchased it in 1988 and had hosted several astronauts, including Buzz Aldrin, who flew to the moon with Armstrong and Michael Collins in 1969. Mikesell recalled Aldrin becoming emotional during a visit to Armstrong's old bedroom a few years after the astronaut's death in 2012.
Schreiber, who grew up in Dayton, about 60 miles south of Wapakoneta, said he has long admired Armstrong for his accomplishments, modesty, and character. He visited the Armstrong Air and Space Museum and the boyhood home for the first time this past summer, an experience he described as feeling "almost like the ghost of Neil Armstrong was there."