Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial [IN]

Description

The Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial consists of a visitor's center; the Lincoln Living History Farm; and the burial site of Nancy Hanks Lincoln (1784-1818), President Abraham Lincoln's mother, killed by milk sickness. The farm depicts 1820s pioneer life via costumed interpreters, farm animals, crops, herb gardens, and a reconstruction cabin. The farm is not original, but is based on facts known about Lincoln's childhood home and about life typical of the period. Demonstrations include arts, crafts, animal husbandry, farming, and gardening. Lincoln (1809-1865) lived in Indiana between 1816 and 1830, prior to moving to Illinois.

The site offers a 15-minute introductory film, exhibits, living history interpreters, trails, a traveling trunk, and Junior Ranger activities. The website offers audio files about several of Lincoln's family members, a teacher's guide, a lesson plan.

Old Sacramento State Historic Park [CA]

Description

Old Sacramento State Historic Park is a cluster of noteworthy, early Gold Rush commercial structures. Historic buildings include the 1849 Eagle Theater; the 1853 B. F. Hastings Building, once home to the California Supreme Court; and the 1855 Big Four Building. Old Sacramento's historical significance comes from it being the western terminus of the Pony Express postal system, the first transcontinental railroad, and the transcontinental telegraph. With over 50 historic buildings, Old Sacramento has more buildings of historic value in its 28 acres than any area of similar size in the West.

A second website for the park can be found here.

The park offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, living history programs and events, and other educational and recreational events.

Geauga County Historical Society [OH]

Description

The Geauga County Historical Society is dedicated to the preservation of the historical heritage Geauga County. The Society's primary project in order to aid in the preservation of history is the Century Village Museum, which is a large living history site featuring 23 historic structures.

The society offers guided and self-guided tours of the Century Village Museum, educational tours of the village, special exhibitions, a research library, and a summer program. The website offers visitor information, a brief history of the society and village museum, and an events calendar.

Rye Historical Society and Square House Museum [NY]

Description

The Rye Historical Society seeks to preserve and share the history of Rye, New York. To this end, the society operates the Square House Museum, located within a circa 1730 tavern, and the Knapp House Archives, housed in a circa 1670 residence. Collections include 8,000 artifacts ranging from vernacular items and costume to the decorative and fine arts. The archives boast more than 15,000 items. The Square House contains six period rooms which include recreations of a 19th-century bedroom, the village's 1904 council room, and an 18th-century tavern room.

The museum offers period rooms, exhibits, self-guided tours, guided tours, historic crafts, traveling trunks, bus tours, walking tours, hands-on history workshops, slide shows, and summer camp. The archives offer public access, exhibits, and historical gardens.

T.B. Ferguson Home [OK]

Description

The Ferguson Mansion was built in 1907. T.B. Ferguson was appointed to serve as Oklahoma's sixth territorial governor by President Theodore Roosevelt and governed from November 1901 until January 1906, longer than any other territorial governor. In 1927, the famous novelist Edna Ferber stayed in the Ferguson home where she found much of the material for her novel, Cimarron.

The home offers tours.

Weir Farm National Historic Site [CT]

Description

The Weir Farm National Historic Site is located in the summer retreat of famed artist J. Alden Weir. After several summers at the home, Weir transformed the location into a creative refuge for friends and fellow artists. Today, the home stands as a historic house museum, and also offers Weir Farm art center, which is an educational center and art museum.

The home offers guided tours, educational programs, workshops, field trip programs, and a gallery of artwork. The website offers a history of the home, visitor information, suggested readings for students, curriculum guides, and a calendar of events. In order to contact the website via email, use the "contact us" link located on the left side of the webpage.

William H. Seward House [NY]

Description

The William H. Seward House preserves four generations (1816-1951) of artifacts of daily life; and presents the life of William H. Seward (1801-1872), Governor of New York, U.S. Senator, Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, abolitionist, and organizer of the Republican Party. Seward was involved in the writing process of, and signed, the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. The 1816 structure itself is Federal and Tuscan in style.

The house offers period rooms, tours, and brown bag lectures. Advance notification is required for groups of 10 or more.

Pawnee Bill Ranch [OK]

Description

The Ranch was once the showplace of the world renowned Wild West Show entertainer, Gordon W. "Pawnee Bill" Lillie. Visitors can tour Pawnee Bill and his wife, May's, 14-room mansion, fully furnished with their original belongings. Completed in 1910, the home is filled with Lillie family memorabilia, photographs, original artwork, and more. The Ranch property also houses a museum with exhibits related to Pawnee Bill, the Wild West Shows, and the Pawnees. The 500-acre grounds include the original Ranch blacksmith shop, a 1903 log cabin, a large barn built in 1926 and an Indian Flower Shrine. The Ranch also recreates Pawnee Bill's Original Wild West Show the last three Saturdays in June every year.

The ranch offers exhibits, tours, performances, and educational and recreational events and programs.

Spiro Mounds [OK]

Description

Today, the Spiro site and artifacts are among Oklahoma's richest cultural resources. This archaeological site includes the remains of a village and 11 earthen mounds. Although various groups of people had camped on or near the Spiro area since early prehistoric times, the location did not become a permanent settlement until approximately A.D. 600. Spiro Mounds was renowned in southeastern North America between A.D. 900 and circa 1400, when Spiro's inhabitants developed political, religious, and economic institutions with far-reaching influence on societies from the Plains and the Mississippi Valley to much of what is now the southeastern United States.

The site offers exhibits.