Cleveland’s Buckland Museum of Witchcraft and Magick, at 2155 Broadview Road in Old Brooklyn, is marking its 60th year in 2026. The museum traces its start to 1966, when Raymond Buckland, a Wiccan high priest described as founder of the first modern coven in the United States, opened it inside his Long Island, New York, home.
Relocations and ownership changes followed. Toni Rotonda, a hairdresser and Wiccan high priestess with Columbus’s Temple of Sacrifice Coven, is the current owner. She worked with Steven Intermill, formerly caretaker of the Christmas Story House, to restart the museum in Cleveland. It first opened in Tremont in 2017 and relocated to Old Brooklyn in 2019.
Intermill now serves as executive director.
Signal Cleveland reports the anniversary is being observed with a memoir, Keeping the Circle: The Story of the Buckland Museum of Witchcraft and Magick, due this month. The book includes photographs and stories about the museum and Buckland’s life. The museum’s three galleries hold objects once owned by Buckland, items from Intermill’s collection, and displays by visiting artists, according to the source. It also sells candles, gems, herbs, and spellbooks and offers tours year round.
Signal Cleveland reports that Wiccans believe in earth-based gods and goddesses rooted in ancient pagan religions; it says witches perform rituals using stones and herbs for purposes such as healing, protection, fertility, or banishing negative influences. The outlet cites an estimate of 500,000 to more than 1 million Wiccan adherents nationwide.
Intermill told the outlet that visitors arrive with open minds and that the museum uses education and humor to counter misconceptions. Rotonda said education is central, arguing that many people know only a Hollywood stereotype. The museum is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. during October, with tickets costing $8 in advance or $10 at the door.