Wilton House Museum [VA]

Description

The Wilton House is a circa 1753 Georgian style home, once the center of the Randolph family's tobacco plantation. Site guests included Washington, Jefferson, and the Marquis de Lafayette. Collections date from the 18th- and 19th-century, and assist in the interpretation of the mid-18th-century plantation owner lifestyle and the story of the Wilton House and its residents. The site is furnished to the specifications of an 1815 survey.

The museum offers exhibits, period rooms, curriculum-based tours for students, hands-on activities for students, an outreach program for students, an after school program, a day trip to local sites for students, group tours, Scout tours, and summer camps. Two weeks advance notice is required for school tours. Please mention at the time of reservation if disability accommodations are needed.

San Antonio Conservation Society [TX]

Description

The San Antonio Conservation Society is primarily a local preservation advocacy organization. However, the society also operates two historic house museums, namely the Steves Homestead and Yturri-Edmonds House. The 1876 Steves Homestead consists of the main residence and servant's quarters. The circa 1840-1860 Yturri-Edmonds House is a rare adobe block home. The grounds contain a reconstructed 1820 grist mill.

The society offers tours, period rooms, self-guided walking tours, an annual educator seminar, an annual fourth grade bus tour, research library access, and research services. A fee is charged for more than one hour of research conducted upon request.

Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and Museum [FL]

Description

The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and Museum presents the history of Florida. Particular emphasis is given to the area between the Loxahatchee River and the Jupiter Inlet. In the mid 19th-century, the railroad reached no further south than Jacksonville, Florida. As a result, sea travel was the easiest mode of transportation along the southern Florida coastal region. To reduce the significant number of shipwrecks in the area, Congress authorized the creation of the lighthouse in 1853. The lighthouse was first operated in 1860. During the Civil War, Confederate troops shut down the light, and took command of the grounds. The museum is housed within a World War II barrack, which presents exhibits of local historical interest.

The site offers climbing lighthouse tours, exhibits, lectures, and a summer camp. Reservations are required for all visits. Visitors must be at least four feet tall to climb the lighthouse, and no flip-flops or spike heels are permitted.

San Diego Air and Space Museum [CA]

Description

The Museum provides visitors with a journey through the history of flight. Visitors may stand beneath a model of the Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon of 1783—the first manned vehicle in recorded history to lift man above the Earth. They can view specimens of aircraft from World War I, or marvel at the antics of the barnstormers of the 1920s. Mint condition aircraft help visitors appreciate the increasingly complex technology represented in the classic military aircraft of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, and exhibits on space flight project aeronautics into the future.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, research library access, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.

Atlanta History Center [GA]

Description

The Atlanta History Center consists of the Atlanta History Museum, Swan House, Tullie Smith Farm, Centennial Olympic Games Museum, historic gardens, Kenan Research Center, and the Margaret Mitchell House. The Atlanta History Museum depicts the story of Atlanta, GA, from early settlement to modern day. Permanent exhibits address historical development, the Civil War, folk arts, and golfer Bobby Jones. The Olympic museum presents the history of the Olympic Games and the sports which take place at the games via a collection of artifacts and photographs. Topics addressed include financing the event, community involvement, global travel to the Olympics, the bid process, and building game venues. The six historic gardens represent groups of people who influenced the development of Atlanta. The Kenan Research Center provides resources for the study of the history and culture of Atlanta and the South. Particular emphasis is given to gardens, military history, decorative arts, and genealogy. The 1928 Swan House portrays life in the 1920s-1930s; while the 1840s Tullie Smith Farm home is representative of area rural life, and is surrounded by outbuildings, such as a blacksmith shop. The Margaret Mitchell House is listed separately within this database.

The center offers guided student tours, self-guided student tours, traveling trunks, interactive outreach programs for students, homeschool days, educator workshops, lectures, toddler programs, summer camps, musical performances, gardens, and living history presentations. The Atlanta History Museum offers exhibits, summer camps, and a cafe. The Centennial Olympic Games Museum offers interactive and traditional exhibits, a sports lab, and multimedia presentations. The Kenan Research Center offers research library access. The Swan House offers an exhibit of decorative arts, audio tours, guided tours, and period rooms. The Tullie Smith Farm offers period rooms, guided tours, and demonstrations. The website offers lesson plans, a virtual tour, and a game based on the P.O.W. experience.

Historic Bath [NC]

Description

European settlement near the Pamlico River in the 1690s led to the founding of Bath, North Carolina's first town, in 1705. By 1708, Bath had 50 people and 12 houses. It soon became North Carolina's first port. Political rivalries, Indian wars, and piracy marked its early years, but in 1746 Bath was considered for the colony's capital. However, when county government moved away in the late 1700s, Bath lost most of its importance and trade. Its original town limits encompass a historic district today. Restoration efforts in Bath have saved the St. Thomas Church, the Palmer-Marsh House, Van Der Veer House (circa 1790), and the Bonner House (circa 1830).

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

Historic Columbus Foundation [GA]

Description

The Historic Columbus Foundation primarily functions as an advocate for historical preservation and heritage tourism in Columbus, GA. However, the foundation also operates the Heritage Corner, which consists of an early 19th-century log cabin, the 1828 Federal Walker-Peters-Langdon House, 1840s Woodruff Farm House, the Greek Revival Victorian Pemberton House, and the Italian-villa style Janice Persons Biggers House. The Pemberton House served as the residence of Dr. John Stith Pemberton, creator of the original Coca-Cola recipe, between 1855 and 1860. All of the above properties are furnished to the style of their respective period. The lower floors of the Rankin House, the foundation's headquarters, also serve as a historic house museum, focusing on the years between 1850 and 1870. The society's final public site is the Heritage Park, which is an outdoor recreation area with interpretive panels.

The foundation offers period rooms, tours, curriculum-based guided student tours and programs, a park, and wayside interpretive panels. Reservations are required for all student tours and programs.

Adams County Historical Society and McGowan House [WI]

Description

The Adams Historical Society seeks to preserve and share the history of Adams County, WI, and its people. The society's major property is the 1889 McGowan House, which serves as the society headquarters, archive, and a historic house museum. The residence is furnished in Victorian style, and depicts the daily life of Doctor Washington Emmet McGowan and his family.

The society offers period rooms, archive access, and research assistance.

Sotterley Foundation and Plantation [MD]

Description

The Sotterley Plantation, built in 1703, is one of the oldest examples of colonial architecture in Maryland's Tidewater region. The plantation was built by James Bowles, a wealthy British tobacco merchant and later owned by the Plater family, which included Maryland's sixth governor, George Plater III. The plantation was favored by George Washington and may have served as a model for his home, Mount Vernon. The site also includes a slave cabin, gardens, and several 18th-century outbuildings.

School groups may take the standard plantation tour (mansion and gardens), a specialized tour with a more personal feel, or a self-guided tour. Groups may opt to dine on the portico after their tour. The site also offers a variety of educational programs for students of all ages, focusing on Maryland history, agriculture and daily life, and the environment.

President James Buchanan's Wheatland [PA]

Description

In 1856 diplomat and statesman James Buchanan was elected the 15th President of the United States at the age of 65. Today, visitors to President James Buchanan's Wheatland can learn more about Pennsylvania's only United States President and explore the story of his presidency; the fractious political issues of the times; and his private life in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and at his Wheatland estate.

The site offers tours, exhibits, educational programs, and recreational and educational events.