[1] Serving as Professor of Dramatic Arts[2] at the University of Connecticut from 1956 to 1989, Ballard developed internationally renowned programs for puppetry education.

The museum opened in 1996 and was moved to a prominent new location in the downtown business district of Storrs near the main UConn campus in 2014.

[4] Born in Alton, Illinois, on December 7, 1929, Ballard began making puppets and producing shows while in elementary school.

His aunt Margaret helped build puppets, his father Glen built stages, and his mother Alice drove him to performances.

[3] After graduating, Ballard worked for three years at the University of Iowa, designing sets for local shows and educational television programs.

[1] Ballard's puppets were exhibited all over the United States and abroad, including Czechoslovakia, Argentina, Canada, France, and the former Soviet Union.