Gen. John J. Pershing Boyhood Home State Historic Site [MO]

Description

One of America's highest ranked military officers, Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, spent most of his childhood years in the small town of Laclede. Pershing was born Sept. 13, 1860, and moved into the Gothic nine-room house in Laclede with his family at age six. He taught at Prairie Mound School, and in 1886, graduated from the U. S. Military Academy at West Point, thus beginning his military career. Between 1886 and his military retirement in 1924, Pershing fought his way up through the military ranks. In 1917, Pershing was sent to France as Commander-in-Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I and two years later was named General of the Armies of the United States by a special act of Congress. Today, visitors can tour Gen. Pershing's boyhood home. A statue of "Black Jack" stands next to the home surrounded by granite tablets naming war veterans. Inside Prairie Mound School, an exhibit gallery allows visitors to walk through the many doorways Gen. Pershing passed through during his childhood life, military career, and numerous accomplishments.

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

Campus Martius Museum [OH]

Description

The Campus Martius Museum highlights migration in Ohio's history. The museum is on the site of the fortification built by the Ohio Company of Associates, as their headquarters, in 1788 when they founded the first organized American settlement in the Northwest Territory. The restored Rufus Putnam house, part of the original fort, is now enclosed within a wing of the museum. Behind the museum is the Ohio Company's Land Office. Exhibits on the main floor of the museum focus on the early settlement of Marietta and Ohio and contain many of the original pioneer artifacts. The exhibits also explore the prehistoric Indian populations that occupied this area and relations with the historic Indians as the white settlers moved in. Other areas explore such topics as surveying of the land, early government in the old Northwest Territory, and life in early Marietta. A separate area exhibits a variety of material from the Marietta area down through the years, from items of household furnishings, to toys, to tools, to fire prevention equipment.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, and workshops and other educational programs.

Zoar Village State Memorial [OH]

Description

Founded by the German religious dissenters called the Society of Separatists of Zoar in 1817 as a communal society, Zoar today is an island of Old-World charm in east-central Ohio. Many of the German-style structures built by the Zoarites have been restored and are open to the public as Zoar Village State Memorial. Others are privately-owned, and serve as residences, shops, restaurants, and bed and breakfast inns. Visitors can experience the life of the agrarian Separatists by visiting the ten restored buildings (Number One House, Kitchen/Magazine Complex, Bimeler Museum, Garden House, Bakery, Tinshop, Dairy, Wagon Shop, Blacksmith Shop and Zoar Store), which are staffed with costumed interpreters and furnished with items made or used by the Separatists. Some buildings are staffed, others open by guided tour. Volunteers give craft demonstrations during the many yearly special events.

A second website, for the Zoar Community Association, can be found here.

The site offers exhibits, tours, demonstrations, classes and other educational programs, and recreational and educational events.

Fort Meigs [OH]

Description

William Henry Harrison built Fort Meigs on the Maumee River in 1813 to protect northwest Ohio and Indiana from British invasion. Today's reconstruction is one of the largest log forts in America. British and Canadian troops, assisted by Indians under Tecumseh, besieged the fort twice. The 10-acre log enclosure with 7 blockhouses and 5 emplacements presented a formidable defense. The first assault was in May of 1813 and the second was in July. Both failed and the British retreated after the second. The Museum and Education Center has 3,000 square feet of exhibits and artifacts—including soldiers' letters and diaries, weapons, maps, and uniforms—that describe Fort Meigs's role during the War of 1812.

A second website covering the site can be found here.

The site offers exhibits; tours; educational programs; workshops and classes; and recreational and educational events, including living history events.

Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor [OH]

Description

The Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor provides a dramatic overview of the impact of the iron and steel industry on Youngstown and other Mahoning Valley communities. The building, designed by renowned architect Michael Graves in 1986, houses the museum's permanent exhibit, "By the Sweat of Their Brow: Forging the Steel Valley," which explores labor, immigration, and urban history, using videos, artifacts, photographs, and reconstructed scenes. Objects on display range from workers' tools and clothing to "last heats," the last batches of steel produced at each of the mills before they closed. Hundreds of photographs, some more than 30 feet long, are used throughout the museum. Videos examine topics such as housing, recreation, and urban history. Life-size scenes—including a mill's locker room, part of a company-built house, and a blooming mill, where steel ingots were shaped for further processing—help visitors understand steelmaking and the lives of steelworkers.

The center offers exhibits, tours, research library access, and educational programs.

Indian Mill [OH]

Description

Indian Mill, built in 1861, is the nation's first educational museum of milling in its original structure. The restored three-story structure replaces the original one-story building that the U. S. government built in 1820 to reward the loyalty of local Wyandot Indians during the War of 1812. Many exhibits are placed around the original mill machinery. The restored miller's office displays the history of milling from prehistoric times to the present.

The mill offers exhibits and tours.

Arrow Rock State Historic Site [MO]

Description

Arrow Rock State Historic Site is an integral part of the town of Arrow Rock. The site's visitor center museum features exhibits that tell about Arrow Rock and the historic "Boone's Lick Country." The Bingham Home, built by Missouri's preeminent artist of the 1800s, George Caleb Bingham, has been restored and furnished as it might have been when he lived there. The Huston Tavern, dating back to 1834, stands ready to serve you its traditional hearty fare. The old courthouse, a town doctor's home, a stone jail and other historic buildings are part of a walking tour offered at the site.

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

Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana

Description

The Foundation saves and restores historic places. It defends Indiana's architectural heritage and promotes preservation through education, advice, advocacy, heritage tours, and events at its historic sites. It owns and operates several historic sites, including the 1841 Huddleston Farmhouse, the 1865 Morris-Butler House, the 1810 estate Veraestau, and the turn-of-the-century hotels at French Lick and West Baden Springs.

The foundation offers lectures, educational resources, educational and recreational programs, and tours; its sites offer exhibits, tours, and other educational and recreational programs and are also listed individually in the National Education Clearinghouse's database of historic sites.

National Road / Zane Grey Museum [OH]

Description

This modern museum has three major exhibit areas. First is the National Road, early America's busiest land artery to the West. The National Road stretched from Cumberland, MD, to Vandalia, IL. Begun in 1806, the "Main Street of America" was the only significant land link between east coast and western frontier in the early 19th century. A 136-foot diorama of the National Road plus many objects illustrates this theme. Second is Zane Grey, the "Father of the Adult Western." The Zanesville author wrote more than 80 books. His study is recreated plus many manuscripts and other memorabilia are displayed. Finally, a central portion of the museum is devoted to Ohio art pottery.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, and educational programs.

Schoenbrunn Village [OH]

Description

The Moravian church founded Schoenbrunn ("beautiful spring") in 1772 as a mission to the Delaware Indians. The settlement grew to include sixty dwellings and more than 300 inhabitants who drew up Ohio's first civil code and built its first Christian church and schoolhouse. Problems associated with the American Revolution prompted Schoenbrunn's closing in 1777. Schoenbrunn's story features a rare meeting of Indian and European cultures and a fascinating perspective on the American Revolution. Today the reconstructed village includes 17 log buildings, gardens, the original mission cemetery, and a museum and visitor center.

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