Historic Rosedale Plantation [NC]

Description

Rosedale, originally part of a 911 acre plantation, was built in 1815 by Archibald Frew, merchant, postmaster and tax collector. In the 1830s, a doctor occupied the residence. He oversaw both his practice and the plantation work, carried out by two slave families. Rosedale exemplifies Federal period architecture (1780–1830) and is noted for its faux grain woodwork and the original French wallpaper that survives in three rooms. On a broader scope, the plantation is motivated by the preservation, exhibition, interpretation, and preservation of the architecture, decorative arts, and lifestyle of the 19th–century Catawba River Valley region.

The plantation offers guided tours (both in modern and period dress), hands-on activities, role playing, and educational activities (with listed corresponding state
standards) specifically for field trips.

Yonkers Historical Society

Description

The Yonkers Historical Society maintains the historic Sherwood House (built circa 1740), sponsors a wide variety of special events, advocates for the preservation of historic landmarks and neighborhoods, and fosters a greater appreciation of the city’s heritage through its educational programs. Its library boasts photographs, books, maps, and documents that cover almost every aspect of our community’s history over the last four centuries. The Sherwood House, a tenant farmhouse, is one of the few existing pre-Revolutionary homesteads in New York state; and a well-preserved example of an Anglo-Dutch home. It contains period furnishings and artifacts.

The society offers a library, a quarterly journal (select articles available online), and a collection of early 20th–century postcards of Yonkers (available online). Tours guided by an interpreter in period dress are available at the Sherwood House.

Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park [CA]

Description

Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park is a three-story, 26-room Victorian house museum that stands as a memorial to John and Annie Bidwell. John Bidwell was known throughout California and across the nation as an important pioneer, farmer, soldier, statesman, politician, and philanthropist. Annie Ellicott Kennedy Bidwell, the daughter of a socially prominent, high-ranking Washington official, was deeply religious, and committed to a number of moral and social causes. Annie was very active in the suffrage and prohibition movements.

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

Governor's Mansion State Historic Park [CA]

Description

California's executive mansion, popularly known as the Governor's Mansion, was built in 1877 for Albert and Clemenza Gallatin. Albert was a partner in the Sacramento hardware store of Huntington & Hopkins. The State of California purchased the house from Joseph and Louisa Steffens to use as a home for California's first families in 1903 for $32,500. Victorian architecture was somewhat out of style by then, but the house was suitably impressive, conveniently located, and comfortable. Today's guests see marble fireplaces from Italy, gold-framed mirrors from France, and exquisitely handcrafted hinges and doorknobs, all of which are reminders of the Gallatins and the Victorian era. Outside some of the Mansion's abundant vegetation includes flowers, shrubs, and trees dating back to 1877. When visitors look behind the grape-stake fence and see Governor Brown's swimming pool built in 1959, they are reminded that the Governor's Mansion State Historic Park is really a walk through time.

The park offers tours and occasional recreational and educational events.

Historical Society of Palm Beach County and Johnson Palm Beach County Museum [FL]

Description

The Historical Society of Palm Beach County promotes local history, in part through support of the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County Museum. Located in a historic 1916 courthouse, the museum presents artifacts that once belonged to Pre-Columbian inhabitants; Seminole Indians; early pioneers; the business and philanthropic community; educators; and influential leaders in communications, medicine, and politics.

The museum offers exhibits, a video display, and both self-guided and docent-guided tours. The society offers fourth-grade Florida history and preservation curricula, a seventh-grade county history and civics curriculum, several traveling trunks, docent-guided walking tours, lectures, an annual art contest with a historic theme, and a history institute for social studies and history teachers.

A.R. Bowman Memorial Museum [OR]

Description

The A.R. Bowman Memorial Museum presents a wide range of displays detailing Crook County history including the City of Prineville Railroad, the ups and downs of the timber industry, and a military exhibit. Along with these major exhibits the museum offers historically accurate depictions of pioneer life and local history. The stone building housing the museum was built as the Crook County Bank in 1910.

The museum offers physical exhibits, an online exhibit, and a research library.

Historic Smithfield Plantation [VA]

Description

William Preston was about 45 years old when he moved his family to Smithfield in March of 1774. He and his wife had seven children at that time; five more children were born at Smithfield. Colonel Preston began at once to make Smithfield a productive and profitable plantation. Smithfield was first opened to the public in 1964; and today is a living document of the past.

The site offers tours, living history demonstrations, workshops, classes, and other occasional educational and recreational events.

Fulkerson Mansion and Farm Museum [IL]

Description

The Fulkerson Mansion and Farm Museum presents the cattle farm—Hazy Dell—and Southern-style Victorian mansion which became the home of Lt. Colonel William H. Fulkerson after his stint with the Confederate Army. Hazel Dell is virtually unchanged today; and the Farm Museum contains many rare agricultural items and equipment with emphasis on farm steam traction engines—utilized for plowing the prairie, threshing grain, and for powering early sawmills. The museum features Reeves steam engines and plows, while the 1866 mansion is furnished with antiques and artifacts of the period, with a special display of the Fulkerson's personal Civil War items, Lafayette Baker's Civil War artifacts, and the Thomas Lincoln Anvil. The building is in an Italianate style—with a low pitched roof and tall, narrow windows—popular between the 1850s and 1880s.

The site offers exhibits and tours of the mansion.