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The Anadolu University Republic History Museum (Anadolu Üniversitesi Cumhuriyet Tarihi Müzesi) is located in the Odunpazarı district of Eskişehir, Turkey. It covers the history of the Turkish Republic.
Visiting
The museum is open daily except Mondays from 10am to 5pm. Admission is free, and it’s located on the north end of Odunpazarı, across from Alaaddin Park. There are some interesting exhibits and artifacts on display, but all of the information is in Turkish. We took about a half hour to browse through the museum.
Building
The Anadolu University Republic History Museum is housed in the former Turan Numune School (Turan Numune Mektebi), which was built in 1916. The building was acquired by Anadolu University (Anadolu Üniversitesi) in 1989, restored, and opened to the public as the Republic History Museum on April 23, 1994. The museum was closed to visitors in 2013 for renovation, and it reopened on March 21, 2019.
Ground Floor
The collection is spread out over the two floors of the building. First, on the right wing of the ground floor is a section on Turkish history. It includes information on the Ottoman period and displays swords and rifles.
The corridor connecting the right and left wings features the Ottoman coat of arms, a speech by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881-1938) to the people of Eskişehir on January 15, 1923, and models of ships that participated in the Turkish War of Independence.
On the left wing is a section dedicated to the Gallipoli campaign of World War I and the Turkish War of Independence. Artifacts used by soldiers from both wars are displayed in glass cases. There are also photos and information about the role of Eskişehir during that time.
One final room contains the names of 1603 people from Eskişehir who dğied in the Balkan Wars, World War I, and the Turkish War of Independence.
First Floor
A section at the top of the stairs on the first floor deals with the alleged coup attempt on July 15, 2016. It includes photos of the aftermath and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan leading memorial ceremonies.
One room contains the personal belongings and photos of Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic. On display are some of his shirts, shoes, neckties, tea sets, cutlery, and more.
The next rooms features events from the Republic period, mostly focused on the social and cultural reforms put into place by Atatürk. One of those rooms displays newspapers announcing the death of Atatürk in 1938.
The next section includes the history of Eskişehir, with information about local development of education, industry, and more. One item that caught my eye was a magazine featuring a Greek-Turkish friendship match between football clubs Thermaikos FC and Eskişehir Demirspor in August 1952.
An ethnography room follows, where works from Eskişehir and Central Anatolia are on display. It includes, clothing, jewelry, and other items.
The final two rooms of the museum are dedicated to the first occupant of the building, the Turan Numune School. They include photos, a timeline of the school’s history, and equipment used at the school.
