Nevada County Historical Society and Museums [CA]

Description

The Nevada County Historical Society seeks to preserve and share the history of Nevada County, California. To this end, the society operates the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum, North Star Mine Powerhouse and Pelton Wheel Museum, Firehouse Museum, and Searls Library. The railroad museum presents local transportation history. Collection highlights include seven historic railroad cars, dating from 1889 to circa 1940. The mining museum's collection highlights include a working Cornish pump; working stamp mill; and the largest Pelton wheel, a mechanism for supplying air to power the mines, ever made. The Firehouse Museum, housed in an 1861 structure, presents exhibits on the Maidu people, the Donner Party, Chinese-American daily life and religion between 1877 and 1938, and vernacular items dating from circa 1850 to present.

The society offers monthly speakers and both library and archive access. Research assistance is available for a fee. The railroad museum and firehouse museum offer exhibits. The mining museum offers self-guided tours, period dioramas, and exhibits. The website offers digital historical and genealogical databases.

David Davis Mansion [IL]

Description

David Davis (1815–1886) was born in Maryland and studied law in New England. In 1862 President Lincoln appointed Davis to the United States Supreme Court. In 1877 Davis resigned from the court after being elected to the United States Senate by the Illinois legislature and served as Senate president pro tempore from 1881 to 1883. Davis commissioned French-born architect Alfred Piquenard to design this late-Victorian style mansion, primarily as a residence for his wife, Sarah Davis. The three-story yellow brick home comprises 36 rooms. The large, tree-shaded lot includes an 1872 wood house, a barn and stable, privies, a foaling shed, carriage barn, and a flower and ornamental cutting garden. The circular drive to the Mansion remains as originally configured. The property was entered on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 and in 1975 was declared a National Historic Landmark.

The site offers tours, a short film, and educational and recreational events and programs.

Paper House [MA]

Description

Construction of the Paper House began in 1922 as the hobby of Mr. Elis F. Steinman, inventor of the machines used to create paper clips. The house is remarkable in that the walls and a number of its intricate furnishings are made solely of varnished newspaper and glue—an experiment in insulation. Steinman summered in the building between 1924 and 1930.

The papers remain readable through the varnish. The Paper House furnishes an opportunity to access period news in an unconventional manner.

Eolia and Harkness Memorial State Park [CT]

Description

Visitors to the site can enjoy the panoramic views of Long Island Sound from Eolia, the elegant summer mansion of the Harkness family set on over 230 seaside acres of sweeping lawns, with stately trees and spectacular gardens. Named Eolia for the island home of the Greek god of winds, the mansion was built in 1906 and purchased by Edward and Mary Harkness in 1907. The over 200 acres were a working farm and the mansion served as the Harkness's summer home.

The site offers tours.

Bodie State Historic Park [CA]

Description

Bodie State Historic Park is a genuine California gold-mining ghost town. Visitors can walk down the deserted streets of a town that once had a population of 10,000 people. The town was founded by Waterman S. Body (William Bodey), who had discovered small amounts of gold in hills north of Mono Lake. In 1877, the Standard Company struck pay dirt and a gold rush transformed Bodie from a town of 20 people to a boomtown. Only a small part of the town survives, preserved in a state of "arrested decay." Interiors remain as they were left and stocked with goods.

The park offers exhibits and tours.

Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site [NC]

Description

Carl Sandburg (1878-1967) was an American poet, writer, and editor and winner of two Pulitzer Prizes. The Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site preserves Sandburg's residence, 65,000 artifacts utilized to interpret his life, and Mrs. Sandburg's goat dairy. The dairy currently raises goats representative of the three breeds historically present.

The site offers a 14-minute video, 30-minute guided house tours, period rooms, live performances of Sandburg's works, a standards-based education program for middle school students, and Junior Ranger activities.

Watts Towers of Simon Rodia State Historic Park [CA]

Description

The Watts Towers are a complex set of 17 separate sculptural pieces built on a residential lot in the community of Watts. Two of the towers rise to a height of nearly 100 feet. The sculptures are constructed from steel pipes and rods, wrapped with wire mesh; coated with mortar; and embedded with pieces of porcelain, tile, and glass. Using simple hand tools and cast off materials (broken glass, sea shells, generic pottery, and ceramic tile) Italian immigrant Simon Rodia spent 30 years (1921 to 1955) building a tribute to his adopted country and a monument to the spirit of individuals who make their dreams tangible. The Watts Towers are one of only nine works of folk art listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The site is one of only four US National Historic Landmarks in the city of Los Angeles. The Los Angeles City Cultural Affairs Department, through the Watts Towers Arts Center, provides diverse cultural enrichment programming through tours, lectures, changing exhibits, and studio workshops for both teachers and schoolchildren. Each year, thousands of people are attracted to the Towers' site for the Simon Rodia Watts Towers Jazz Festival and the Watt Towers Day of the Drum Festival.

The park offers exhibits, tours, lectures, workshops, and educational and recreational events.

Norman Rockwell Museum [MA]

Description

The Norman Rockwell Museum presents the life and work of U.S. artist Norman Rockwell (1894–1978), best known for his observant depictions of American life. The collections includes Rockwell's personal collection of 367 of his works of art—finished pieces and sketches; his materials, personal library, prints, and other contents of his studio; and over 100,000 archival objects. Visitors can visit Rockwell's studio in its original building. This site possess the largest Rockwell collection in the world.

The museum offers 25–minute gallery orientation talks; audio tours, including an option designed specifically for children; interactive curriculum-based tours; student hands-on experiences; advanced art tours; in-classroom presentations and activities; a period room; art activities; a reading of Norman Rockwell's children's book, Willie was Different; slide presentation packets for rental; baseball with the U.S. Military All-Stars; lectures and performances covering a wide variety of expressive forms and artists; professional development programs for educators; and a student lunch option. Reservations are required for group tours. The website offers a 7-minute introductory video, an online exhibit, an interactive timeline, and a resource packet with activities and lesson plans. The museum also maintains an Internet presence on Facebook.

Tanana-Yukon Historical Society [AK]

Description

The Tanana-Yukon Historical Society seeks to preserve and share the local history of Fairbanks, Alaska. To this end, the society operates the Wickersham House Museum, which has been restored to an early 1900s appearance. Once owned by Judge Wickersham (1857-1939), the structure was built in 1904. Wickersham was highly involved in the development of the Alaska Territory.

The house offers period rooms, while the society offers a lecture series.

African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey

Description

The African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey presents the 20th century experience of the national African American community. The collection consists of over 3,000 artifacts, including artworks and decorative items, depicting African Americans.

The museum offers educational programs and a traveling museum which visits schools upon request. Call prior to visitation as the exhibit may be traveling.