Sibley House Historic Site [MN]

Description

The Sibley House Historic Site consists of four historical limestone structures, dating to 1825 through 1853 when Mendota, Minnesota was an important player in the U.S. fur trade with the Dakota people. Begun in 1838, the home of Henry Hastings Sibley is the best known of the four. Sibley served as regional manager of the American Fur Company and the first Minnesota governor. Structures accessible to the public include the 1840 home of Jean-Baptiste Faribault, trader and hotelier, and an 1843 fur company cold store.

The site offers tours and period rooms.

Evergreen Museum and Library [MD]

Description

The Evergreen Museum and Library presents more than 50,000 objects once owned by Baltimore's railway royalty—the Garrett family. The collection, which includes manuscripts, decorative arts, artworks, and more than 8,000 rare books, is housed within the residence in which the Garretts lived between 1878 and 1942. Key artworks include those of Degas, Picasso, and a variety of post-Impressionists; and the museum boasts one of the largest privately held collections of both Japanese minor arts and Tiffany glass. Also within the house is the Bakst Theatre, decorated by Leon Bakst, costume and set designer of the Ballet Russes, a major visual influence of the early 1900s. A 28,600-volume library is available for use. The non-circulating collection's strength is 16th- and 17th-century English literature and history.

The museum offers guided tours, concerts, lectures, library access, and boxed lunches for group tours (at an additional price). Groups of 20 or more require advance registration.

Wallace House Foundation [IA]

Description

The Wallace House Foundation presents information on the Wallace family of Iowa and its far-ranging influences. The Wallaces included the co-founder of the American Farm Bureau Foundation, two Secretaries of Agriculture (1921-1924 and 1933-1940), and a Secretary of Commerce. The foundation operates a museum, located in an 1882 Italianate Victorian residence once owned by the Wallaces.

The museum offers exhibits and group tours. Reservations are required for group tours.

El Pueblo History Museum [CO]

Description

The "Cultural Crossroads on the Arkansas," El Pueblo History Museum has always been a gathering place for diverse people and cultures. The site includes an 1840s-style adobe trading post and plaza, as well as the archaeological excavation for the original 1842 El Pueblo trading post. The museum building showcases the city's history and the various cultural and ethnic groups in Pueblo and the region. The site also features the Frontier Pathways Scenic and Historic Byways Information Center.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, and educational programs.

Brendan T. Byrne State Forest and Whitesbog Village [NJ]

Description

Whitesbog was an active 19th- and 20th-century cranberry- and blueberry-producing community. This company town was founded in the 1870s by Joseph J. White. The commercial high-bush blueberry was developed here by Elizabeth White. Once a thriving town and one of the largest cranberry farms in the state, the now silent village is an example of the changes in agriculture in this state.

A second website for the site, operated by the Whitesbog Preservation Trust, can be found here.

The site offers tours, lectures, and occasional recreational and educational events.

Lincoln State Monument [NM]

Description

Lincoln State Monument manages most of the historical buildings in the community of Lincoln. This most widely visited state monument in New Mexico is part of a community frozen in time—the 1870s and 1880s. The monument includes 17 structures and outbuildings, 4 of which are open year-round and 2 more seasonally as museums. Most of the buildings in the community are representative of the Territorial Style of adobe architecture in the American Southwest. Lincoln is a town made famous by one of the most violent periods in New Mexico history. Today's visitors can see the Old Lincoln County Courthouse with museum exhibits that recount the details of the Lincoln County War and the historic use of the "House" as store, residence, Masonic Lodge, courthouse, and jail. Visitors walk in the footsteps of Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, and other famous and infamous characters of the Wild West, and trace the events of 1878 through the Courthouse and the Tunstall Store, which contains displays of the original 19th-century merchandise in the original shelving and cases. They can then continue through history by visiting the Dr. Woods House, defensive torreón (tower) for the village; the San Juan Mission Church; and the Montaño store. The Anderson-Freeman Museum features historical exhibits in a timeline starting with American Indian prehistory and ending with the Lincoln County War. A 12-minute video about the Lincoln County War and the community is shown throughout the day.

The site offers a short film, exhibits, and tours.

Oregon Maritime Museum

Description

The Oregon Maritime Museum presents the history of river usage in Oregon and the Great Basin. The collection includes the 1947 stern-wheel tugboat Portland and the 1930 square-rigged fishing vessel Mom's Boat.

The museum offers guided tours and outreach speakers.

Andrew Low House [GA]

Description

Beginning in 1849, the Andrew Low House belonged to cotton factor, Andrew Low, and his family. Low's daughter-in-law, Juliette Gordon Low, founded the Girl Scouts after being inspired by her friend Sir Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the British Boy Scouts. The Italianate structure contains period furnishings.

The house offers guided tours. Reservations are required for groups of 10 or more.

Gamble Plantation Historic State Park [FL]

Description

This antebellum mansion was home to Major Robert Gamble and headquarters of an extensive sugar plantation. It is the only surviving plantation house in South Florida. It is believed that Confederate Secretary of State, Judah P. Benjamin, took refuge here after the fall of the Confederacy, until his safe passage to England could be secured. Today, the mansion is furnished in the style of a successful mid-19th-century plantation.

The park offers tours.