The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum

The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum opened its doors to the public on September 19, 1998, after a year of planning and construction. However, it was created in the mind of Mike Chapman, the founder and former director of the museum, nearly 40 years ago.

Considered the leading authority on wrestling history, Mike Chapman has been participating in, watching, studying, writing about, and collecting the history of wrestling since his school days. Authoring thirteen books on the sport, Mike has been a proponent of educating and maintaining its history for ours and further generations. This is where the idea of the Museum was spawned with a simple goal, expressed as the Museum’s mission statement:

Mike and Bev pose for a photo in the ring in the Pro Wing of the Museum.

The mission of the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum (DGIWIM) is to preserve, maintain and promote the long and illustrious heritage of mankind’s oldest sport in a manner which will benefit the sport, educate and entertain the public, and to inspire youth to dream big and work hard.

Today the museum boasts over 600 displays as it takes visitors through the history of wrestling, from ancient Greece through the present day Olympics. The Professional Wing of the museum has a half-size wrestling ring, a wall devoted to the legendary Frank Gotch, the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, and many other exciting displays.

The Museum is a not-for-profit corporation and subsists on donations from the public, revenue from the many events it puts on every year, including the DGIWIM Celebrity Golf Tournament and the Dan Gable Classic, as well as the many unique wrestling products that it sells in the gift shop and online.

Mike retired as the Museum’s Executive Director on October 31, 2009, after serving in that position for eleven years.