Hood River County Historical Museum [OR]

Description

Hood River County Historical Museum presents the socio-cultural history of Hood River County, Oregon. Topics addressed within permanent exhibits include the daily lives of pioneer, Native American, and area ethnic groups, as well as Japanese Internment after Pearl Harbor.

The museum offers exhibits, guided tours, self-guided tours, activity tours, research assistance, a traveling trunk on the local fruit industry, and several school tour options. All guided tours are customized to group needs. Payment is required for research assistance.

Museum of Work and Culture [RI]

Description

"This interactive museum presents story of immigrants who came to find a better life in the mill towns along the Blackstone River. The exhibits also recreate their life at home, at church, at school, and present the unique Woonsocket labor story of the rise of the Independent Textile Union, which grew to dominate every aspect of city life." -http://www.rihs.org/Museums.html

School tours are available and include a guided tour of the museum, living history presentations, and a Blackstone River cruise.

Fort Bend Museum Complex [TX]

Description

The Fort Bend Museum Complex presents the local history of the Brazos River and Fort Bend County, Texas. The complex includes the Long-Smith Cottage, the 1883 John M. Moore Home, the McFarlane House, and a history museum. The 1840 Greek Revival Long-Smith Cottage was once the residence of Jane Long (1798-1880), known as the "Mother of Texas." She is thought to be the first English-speaking woman to give birth to a baby in Texas. Today, the cottage is styled to depict 1840s and 1860's middle-class life in Richmond, Texas. The neoclassical 1883 John M. Moore Home belonged to a prominent area rancher and politician, John M. Moore. The house holds period rooms, meeting rooms, and exhibits. The museum offers dioramas of key historical periods, including the 1821 settlement, the Texas Revolution (1835-1836), the plantation period, and the Civil War.

The museum offers period rooms, exhibits, tours, school tours, school walking tours, school outreach programs, a traveling trunk, Scout programs, junior docent positions, and summer activities. The website offers activities, extra information, and suggested reading lists for teachers.

State Historical Society of North Dakota and North Dakota Heritage Center

Description

The State Historical Society of North Dakota preserves and presents the history of the state of North Dakota. To this end, the society operates extensive archives and a heritage center. The Main Gallery offers an overview of North Dakota history from the Late Cretaceous (circa 65 million years ago) to the 1930s. A number of temporary exhibits are also on view at any given time.

The society offers exhibits, a children's area, school tours, archival and genealogical library access, and research assistance. A fee is charged for research assistance. The website offers online archival materials, lesson plans, and virtual exhibits.

Onondaga Historical Association Museum and Research Center [NY]

Description

The Onondaga Historical Association Museum and Research Center presents the history of Syracuse and Onondaga County, New York. Museum permanent exhibits cover the Franklin Automobile; historic brewing; pottery manufacturing; the Underground Railroad; and county trades, transportation, architecture, settlement, and immigration. Collections include textiles, artwork, decorative arts, Native American artifacts, toys, and locally made commercial products.

The museum offers exhibits, research center access, research assistance, outreach presentations, and educational programs. Note that both research center usage and research assistance require payment. The website offers featured artifact information, a research library catalog, videos on topics of historical interest, children's activities, and an image database. The society also offers educator workshops.

Susquehanna State Park [MD]

Description

Susquehanna State Park preserves the history of the Susquehanna River area—from the native Susquehannocks and circa 1622 settlement to modern day. Key sights include an operational 1794 grist mill; a portion of the 1836 Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal; two canal locks; a historic toll house; the 1804 Rock Run House; and the Steppingstone Museum. The Rock Run House was built as the home of John Carter, a partner in the operation of the Rock Run Mill; and today it contains period furnishings. The Steppingstone Museum is furnished to circa-1900 rural style, and demonstrates art and craft skills used between 1880 and 1920.

The site offers grist mill demonstrations, art and craft demonstrations, self-guided walking tours, mansion tours, museum tours, and period rooms.

Cokato Historical Society and Museum[MN]

Description

The Cokato Historical Society seeks to preserve both the social and the Swedish and Finnish cultural history of Cokato, Minnesota and the surrounding area. To this end, the society supports a local history museum. Collection highlights include a 1922 snowmobile.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, and research assistance. Tours are available by appointment. Please call ahead if you wish to see the snowmobile, as it is not on display on a daily basis. Payment is required for research assistance.

Bishop Hill State Historic Site

Description

Bishop Hill was the site of a utopian religious community founded in 1846 by Swedish pietist Eric Janson (1808–1850) and his followers. A number of historically significant buildings have survived and are scattered throughout the village, four of which are owned by the state and managed as part of the Bishop Hill State Historic Site. The 1848 Colony Church is a two-story frame building. The three-story stuccoed-brick 1850s Colony Hotel served commercial travelers and provided a link to the outside world. The 1850 "Boys' Dormitory" is a small two-story frame structure believed to have provided housing for boys making the transition to working adulthood. An 1850s Colony barn was relocated behind the Hotel to the site of the original Hotel stable. In addition to the historic structures, the state owns the village park with a gazebo and memorials to the town's early settlers and Civil War soldiers. The brick museum building houses a valuable collection of primitivist paintings by colonist Olof Krans (1838–1916).

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

Slater Mill Historic Site [RI]

Description

Slater Mill is a museum complex dedicated to bringing one of the most exciting and significant periods of American history to life. Visitors to the site experience a time when an America of small farmers and craftsmen was poised to become the industrial leader of the world. In the Slater Mill itself, visitors are surrounded by vintage textile machinery bathed in the light of large windows. With expert commentary from costumed interpreters they can imagine the lives of the people—many of them children—who made the early mills come alive.

In the nearby Wilkinson Mill they can feel the throb of the great 16,000-pound mill wheel, a replica of the original wheel that harnessed the power of the Blackstone River to make the era's finest tools. Children get up close and personal with early production processes as they provide the power and operate miniature machinery in the Apprentice Alcove. In the Sylvanus Brown House they can look back to a time when spinning, weaving, cooking, and quilting were the stuff of everyday life.

The site offers a short film, exhibits, tours, demonstrations, workshops, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events (including living history events).

Sutter's Fort State Historic Park [CA]

Description

In 1839 a Swiss immigrant named John Sutter received a land grant in the Sacramento Valley from the Mexican government. He used the land to create a flourishing agricultural empire and named it New Helvetia (New Switzerland.) This empire established Sacramento's earliest settlement and the first non-Indian settlement in California's Central Valley. In 1847, Sutter sent aid to the Donner Party, a group of immigrants trapped in a winter storm in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Word spread and Sutter became known for his hospitality and for providing temporary refuge to travelers. This reputation made New Helvetia the destination for early immigrants to California. Less than a decade after they were established, Sutter's properties were overrun by gold seekers and the fort is all that remains of New Helvetia. It has been restored to its former state based on an 1847 map published in Darmstadt, Germany and is open daily for tours.

The park offers exhibits; tours; and recreational and educational events, including living history events.