Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum [PA]

Description

Landis Valley Museum, a living history village and farm, collects, preserves, and interprets the history and material culture of the Pennsylvania German rural community from 1740 to 1940 and enhances understanding of their successful practices, interactions with others, and the impact on the state and nation for citizens of and visitors to the Commonwealth. Visitors experience 18th- and 19th-century village and farm life in Lancaster County, PA, all in one visit. With over 100 acres and many historic buildings to explore throughout the four seasons, there is always something to see at Landis Valley Museum.

The site offers exhibits, tours, demonstrations, educational programs that meet PA state curriculum standards, lectures, workshops, and recreational and educational events (including living history events).

Historic Washington State Park [AR]

Description

Historic Washington is a restored 19th-century town with 45 historic structures. Classic examples of Southern Greek Revival, Federal, Gothic Revival, and Italianate architecture stand as a legacy to life in Washington from 1824 to 1889. From its establishment in 1824, Washington was an important stop on the rugged Southwest Trail to Mexico, and later, Texas. James Bowie, Sam Houston, and Davy Crockett each traveled through Washington at various times. Vistiors can stroll the plank boardwalks along streets that have never been paved, and explore this tree-shaded town many call "the Colonial Williamsburg of the Southwest."

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

Jerome County Historical Society and Museum and Idaho Farm and Ranch Agricultural Museum [ID]

Description

The Society operates a local history museum, the Jerome County Historical Museum, as well as the Idaho Farm and Ranch Agricultural Museum. The latter displays many specimens of old farm equipment and original buildings from the surrounding area, including an exhibit from the World War II Minidoka Japanese Relocation Camp that was located at Hunt, ID in Jerome County.

The society and Jerome County Historical Museum offer exhibits, tours, and research library access; the Agricultural Museum offers exhibits, tours, and occasional recreational and educational events (including living history events).

Flag House and Star-spangled Banner Museum [MD]

Description

At the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House, visitors take part in an interactive experience in which they become part in the story of the sewing of the flag that inspired the National Anthem. They step into living history as they meet Mary Pickersgill, the spirited woman who made the flag. They learn firsthand from Mary, her family, and friends what life was like in the 19th century and take part in activities that let them experience it for themselves.

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

Aurora Colony Historical Society and Museum [OR]

Description

The Society's Museum
The Old Aurora Colony Museum displays and preserves artifacts recounting the history of the Aurora Colony communal society and presents the history, families, and crafts of Oregon's Aurora Colony. The colony was a Christian communal society, consisting nearly entirely of Swiss and German immigrants, which lasted from 1856 to 1883. The museum is located within several structures, including the circa 1860 Ox Barn, 1876 Steinbach Cabin, Will Family Summer Kitchen, Kraus boot and shoe shop, blacksmith shop, and the circa 1864 Kraus House. The Kraus House, Steinbach Cabin, and summer kitchen are furnished to period.

The museum offers exhibits, period rooms, one-hour guided tours, self-guided tours, educational programs for students, a fourth grade farm program for students, outreach speakers, and weekly programming related to quilting. Reservations are required for guided tours, student educational programs, and outreach speakers. The farm program includes a curriculum-based teacher's notebook and pre-visit video. The website offers original Aurora Colony musical scores.

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

Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum [MD]

Description

The Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum is the largest original
African American historical site in the United States. Established in 1998, it
includes Banneker’s original farmstead and a nature preserve that is located in Oella, Maryland. A multitude of adventures awaits you while exploring this 142-acre park and museum.

This site features: exhibits, excavated artifacts, multi-media presentations, a colonial cabin, gardens, and nature trails. Mary Bannaky may even welcome you to her homestead as she goes about her daily tasks.

Educational programs are available for students to learn about: Benjamin
Banneker’s extraordinary life and accomplishments, African American history in
Maryland, settlement and development of the Patapsco River Valley, life in the 18th century, and nature and environmental conservation.

Teachers are welcome to reserve a tour and/or rental space for professional development and teacher workshops. The site also provide digital data about our
programming.

Association for the Preservation of Historic Natchitoches, Melrose Plantation, and Kate Chopin House [LA]

Description

The Association for Preservation of Historic Natchitoches seeks to preserve areas of historic value in the oldest settlement in the Louisiana Purchase Territory. The Association maintains the Melrose Plantation and the Kate Chopin House. The Melrose story begins with Marie Therese Coincoin, a slave born in 1742; she was eventually she sold to a Frenchmen, Claude Thomas Pierre Metoyer. In time, Metoyer freed Marie Therese and 10 Franco-African children. Evidence points to Metoyer as the father of these children. Marie Therese and son Louis Metoyer received large grants of land including the present Melrose Plantation. This Creole-style home celebrates its most famous resident, Kate Chopin, and its original inhabitant, Alexis Cloutier. Built by slave labor between 1805 and 1809, the structure exemplifies the early 19th-century homes of the area.

The association offers occasional recreational and educational events; the plantation offers tours; the house offers exhibits and tours.

Bourne Historical Society and Center, Aptucxet Trading Post, and Briggs-McDermott House [MA]

Description

The Society is housed in the Jonathan Bourne Historical Center, built in 1897 by Emily Howland Bourne as a town library and as a memorial to her father, Jonathan Bourne, for whom the town was named. The Society also manages the Aptucxet Trading Post and the Briggs-McDermott House. The Trading Post recreates the first trade house built in 1627, by Plymouth Colony, located on the south bank of the Manomet (Monument) River, which is now part of the Cape Cod Canal. The Pilgrims traded with the Indians and the Dutch from New Amsterdam (New York City), thus having a source of income by which their debt to the London backers of their expedition to the New World could be repaid. The Trading Post site also houses Gray Gables Railroad Station, built for the personal use of President Grover Cleveland during the years of his presidency (1893–1896). The Greek Revival-style Briggs-McDermott House has been restored and furnished to reflect the period from 1840 to 1910, an important time for the Briggs family and Bourne.

The society offers lectures and occasional recreational and educational events; the center offers tours, exhibits, and research library access; the Trading Post offers tours; the Briggs-McDermott House offers exhibits and tours.