Cherry Hill Farmhouse and Barn [VA]

Description

The Cherry Hill Farmhouse and Barn is furnished with 18th- and 19th-century decorative arts and farming tools. The Greek Revival framed home was built in 1845, while the barn dates to 1856. Both were repeatedly requisitioned by the armies of the Civil War. Other historical structures on site include a pit privy, corn crib, well house, buggy shed, and tackle barn.

The site offers tours, period rooms, lectures, concerts, readings, re-enactments, and children's teas.

Frontier Culture Museum [VA]

Description

The Frontier Culture Museum presents the story of the men and women who came to the United States prior to its existence as a country. The most common origin points of these people were England, Germany, Ireland, and West Africa. Reproductions and actual rural structures moved from these locations represent the various homelands, while another set of exhibits depicts their new life in North America in the 1740s, 1820s, and 1850s. Other topics discussed at the museum include food ways, woodworking, and fiber processing.

The museum offers exhibits, interpretive signage, hands-on activities, living history demonstrations, day camps, three outreach presentations, a teacher institute, a picnic area, a field trip grant application, and a non-lending library with more than 5,000 volumes. The website offers pre- and post-visit discussion topics. All educational programs meet state educational standards.

Agecroft Hall [VA]

Description

Agecroft Hall is a Tudor–style mansion built in Lancashire, England in the late 15th century. The mansion was relocated to Virginia circa 1925. The structure is furnished with authentic artifacts dating from 1485 to 1660, including a rare 17th–century painted wood bedstead. The site also includes a garden based on period (late Tudor and Stuart) English gardens.

The hall offers period rooms and several educational programs designed to meet state education standards.

Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park

Description

Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park contains a museum which interprets southwestern Virginia's pioneer and 1890s coal boom history. The museum is housed in the 1880s mansion of Rufus Ayers, a past Virginia attorney general; and boasts a collection of over 20,000 artifacts.

The museum offers exhibits, children's activities, workshops, educational programs, Scout programs, and picnic shelters. The grounds are largely wheelchair accessible, while the museum is not.

The Mariners' Museum [VA]

Description

The Mariner's Museum presents information and artifacts relevant to the field of maritime history. Highlights include more than 150 small vessels from over 36 countries; August F. Crabtree's miniature ships; displays on shipbuilding, cartographic, and navigational advancements between 1400 and 1700; the largest international maritime library in the western hemisphere; and the USS Monitor Center. The center includes a full-scale replica of the Monitor, the first U.S. Navy ironclad warship, used in the Civil War. The museum also owns and maintains a 550-acre park.

The museum offers exhibits, maritime science and history educational programs which complement state educational standards, scavenger hunts, distance learning programs, outreach speakers, lectures, research library access, research assistance, paddle boat rental, and fishing boat rental. Payment is required for research assistance. The website offers virtual exhibits, artifact of the month, and images for educational use.

Occoneechee State Park [VA]

Description

Occoneechee State Park contains 18.1 miles of trails which allow guests to experience the history of the Occoneechee Indians and 19th–century plantation life. The Occoneechee lived on this land between 1250 to 1676, and the visitor center displays a number of related artifacts. The landscaping of a 19–century plantation mansion (itself destroyed in a fire) can also be seen here.

The park offers a one-mile self-guided interpretive trail and exhibits.

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.

Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest [VA]

Description

Poplar Forest is one of two structures which Thomas Jefferson personally designed to serve as his own residence. Unlike Monticello, this location was designed as a retreat for his later years, beginning in 1809 when he was 66 years of age; and, as such, was created exclusively to his personal tastes. The structure is based on the Roman villa with Renaissance Palladian, 18th-century French, and contemporary British and Virginian architectural influences. The floor-to-ceiling windows, alcove beds, skylight, and indoor privy were all based on French styles which Jefferson had witnessed abroad.

The site offers exhibits; a 15-minute video on the restoration and archaeological work being conducted; guided house tours; self-guided grounds tours; an annual opportunity for students to interview Thomas Jefferson and other historical figures; and a summer archaeology, history, and restoration camp. Group tours are available by appointment. The website offers lesson plans and suggested reading for students and for teachers.

Fairfax Station Railroad Museum [VA]

Description

The Fairfax Station Railroad Museum is located in the old Fairfax Station, which played a vital role during the transportation of Union Troops during the Civil War. The station is notable for the humanitarian efforts that took place there during the second Battle of Manassas headed by Clara Barton. In addition to chronicling Clara Barton's humanitarian efforts, the museum also is home to a caboose, which visitors can tour.

The museum offers exhibits and tours regarding the Civil War and early railroad technology. The museum also offers model train exhibits and periodic tours of local Civil War sites. The website offers basic visitor information.