Martha's Vineyard Museum [MA]

Description

The Martha's Vineyard Museum houses centuries of the island's history dating back to the pre-Columbian period. Its collections relate to all aspects of life on Martha's Vineyard, and include agricultural, hunting and fishing tools, costumes, decoys, artwork, armaments, fossils, maritime and whaling related tools and more. The museum is steward of the Gay Head, East Chop and Edgartown lighthouses.

The site offers education programs designed with Massachusetts state education standards in mind for grades K-12. Lighthouse tours are also offered. It has an interactive website on 19th Century Whaling and a young girl's experience on a whaling voyage, http://www.girlonawhaleship.org

Fort Morgan State Historic Site [AL]

Description

Completed in 1834, Fort Morgan was active during four wars—the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and World Wars I and II. The fort is most famous for its role in the Civil War Battle of Mobile Bay. Union Admiral David Farragut damned the torpedoes and went full speed ahead to win the battle. The massive fort contains more than 40 million bricks and pays tribute to the skilled masons, many of whom were enslaved African Americans.

The site offers exhibits, tours, demonstrations, reference library access, and occasional recreational and educational events (including living history events).

Jane Addams Hull-House Museum [IL]

Description

Jane Addams's Hull House was the most famous example of settlement houses popular during the American industrial revolution. The Hull House functioned as a center for the Chicago’s disadvantaged, offering community programs and other forms of community aid in poor, ethnic areas of Chicago.

The site offers school tours as well as lesson plans for teachers and pre-and post-visit activities.

Sparta Rock House [TN]

Description

The small, stone Rock House, originally built to collect tolls on a private road, was built between 1835 and 1839 by Barlow Fiske, who operated a stagecoach inn and stables nearby. It played an important role in the early development of Tennessee's transportation system. Andrew Jackson often stopped here on trips from Nashville to Washington. Other notable visitors included James K. Polk, Sam Houston, and Frank Clement, all once governors of the Volunteer State.

The house offers tours.

Elgin Area Historical Society [IL]

Description

The Elgin Area Historical Society supports its own museum dedicated to local history. Exhibit topics include Early Elgin, Elgin Road Races, Elgin Architecture, the Hiawatha Pageant, and the Elgin Watch Factory and Industry. The Museum is housed in a historical 1856 building known as the Old Main.

School groups of all ages can take an educational tour of the museum while completing a scavenger hunt. Groups can also upgrade to the Grand Tour which includes hand-on educational activities for each of the museum's five exhibits. The museum also offers programs with specific topics including cooking, architecture, Native Americans, pocket watches, and pioneers. Travelling trunks can also be reserved.

White Hall State Historic Site [KY]

Description

White Hall State Historic Site was first built in 1798 and remodeled in the 1860s. The original home was a two-story Georgian structure, but during the remodeling in the 1860s, the home was rebuilt in Italianate style and greatly enlarged. The house was home to the Clay family, including the noted emancipationist Cassius Clay and his daughter, Laura Clay, who was the first woman to be nominated by a major party for US President.

The home offers guided tours, field trip programs, and exhibits that showcase artifacts from the Clay family. The website offers a photo gallery of the home, a calendar of events, visitor information, and a history of the home.

This is the Place Heritage Park [UT]

Description

Visitors can journey back in time at Old Deseret Village, a collection of more than 40 historic homes and buildings brought to life by historical interpreters. This is the Place Monument, located in the park, marks the end of the 1,300-mile Mormon trail.

The park offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, demonstrations, and educational and recreational events (including living history events).

Carl Sandburg State Historic Site

Description

The Carl Sandburg State Historic Site is the birthplace of Carl Sandburg (1878-–1967), a Pulitzer-Prize-winning poet and Lincoln biographer, a children's author, and folk song collector. The small frame home, architecturally significant as a "workingman’s cottage," contains three rooms—parlor, bedroom, and kitchen. Carl Sandburg was born here January 6, 1878. Several original family items are on display, along with other simple, utilitarian furnishings typical of the era. Also on the site is a two-story Greek Revival frame house built in 1858. The house currently serves as the site visitor center. On the main floor are a small video theater, the site office, and small exhibit gallery.

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

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site [SC]

Description

The Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site preserves one of South Carolina's most important archaeological treasures, the remains of Colonial Dorchester. Dorchester was a trading post that flourished between 1697 through the Revolutionary War, when the town was abandoned. Some of the town remains standing and visible, such as the church bell tower and a long warf, but most of the town lies just out of sight underground.

The historic site offers guided tours, workshops, and field trip programs. The website offers brief historical and visitor information regarding the historic site.