This was a sentimental visit for me. I've wanted to see the Little House in the Big Woods for…read moredecades. The site is open access. You park and can go right up to the house, day or night, any time of year. The door uses a rope latch system and there's a sign asking people to keep the door shut. The interior is small, but there's an information wall that's a good excuse to linger and read. The original cabin, of course, was long gone before the books were even published, and this new version was the result of a fundraising campaign in the 1970s.

Wonderful museum and super friendly staff. My mom, grandmother, and I had a wonderful timeread more

What a surprisingly nice small museum. We had a free afternoon so we checked out this place. The…read morebonus was our free admission with the NARM program. The woman at the front desk could not have been more friendly and helpful. There are many exhibits on local history, geography, culture, and industry that pack this museum. I really enjoyed the extensive displays around farming. They also had a traveling show on super hero which was OK. I could have spent more time given everything you could study. Definitely worth an hour or two of your time.

The Chippewa Valley Museum is a good place to spend an hour to get a sense for local history. It…read morestarts with the arrival of the Frenchman; continues through the logging heyday; moves to the peak days of small town factories; then into the present. There are things to read; artifacts to see; and a couple play areas for kids. Works for all ages. Takes about an hour to get through - unless you read everything. At the end, there's an ice cream parlor - for a nice treat. I found it an interesting lesson on how the locals adapted to changing conditions (forests, lumber, factories, modern times) to keep Eau Claire from becoming a ghost town.

I took my grandchildren to this museum and we loved it! 4 Floors. Lots of history. Activities for…read morethem. And affordable! The two ladies at the front desk were so friendly.

The Chippewa Falls Museum of Industry and Technology has actually been in place for several years…read morenow. It started out as the Cray Research Museum and was located in one of the Cray Research Buildings but after the company began to shrink, the museum closed up and the displays went into storage. Later on the CFMI&T moved into a building in downtown Chippewa Falls with the Cray collection. I recently made a day trip to Chippewa County from our place in Upnorth. The visit was partially inspired by John McGivern's "Around the Corner" program from Milwaukee Public Television. He did an episode in Chippewa Falls a couple of years ago that was recently rebroadcast. (You can see it online, if you look for it.) The CFMI&T was featured, which I've wanted to see since it moved out of Cray Research. To be upfront, many years ago, I did some work for Cray Research in CF and the museum is located inside the building I used to work in. Former Crayons know the building was built by the Mason Shoe Company to house their MIS department (look THAT up in your Funk & Wagnall's) with a huge, raised-floor, environmentally controlled room. When the day came that computers didn't have to live better than humans, Mason sold it to Cray Research and it became a training building. Now the shared building houses the Boys & Girls Club, using the old computer room (the raised floor is gone) and the old training rooms house the museum. As you might expect, Cray Research is the keystone of the museum. Seymour Cray was a genius's genius and the founder of the company. Born and raised in Chippewa Falls, he had a storied career. During World War II, Mr. Cray was part of the team that broke the Japanese code. After the war, he was one of the founders of Control Data Corporation and he built the world's first supercomputer, in Lake Hailie, for CDC. He left CDC to open Cray Research and in 1976, sold the first Cray-1 supercomputer, serial number 1, to the Los Alamos National Laboratory. That Cray-1 is in the museum. Sometimes it is called the "Hotel Lobby Cray" (among other nicknames) because it resembles a circular sofa. The design was the secret to its speed because the C shape shortened the distance signals had to travel. You'll find lots more examples of Cray technology here along with memorabilia and interpretive signage. Enough techno-geek talk. Chippewa Falls is also home to lots of other industry. Chippewa Falls is home of Mason Shoes that built a business by selling shoes out of catalogs. (Even Radar O'Riley sold shoes out of a catalog in an episode of M*A*S*H.) The museum houses not only a shoe making display from Mason, but also examples of fire apparatus by Darley (want to see how a fire pump works?) and a display (pun intended) of retail displays from Kell Container (now Great Northern Corporation) still rolling out miles of corrugated cardboard every year. You can play with some educational "toys" from Hubbard Scientific (you probably used some in school science class) and there is a massive display of breweriana from CF's most famous industry, Leinenkugel's Brewing Company. It's a very interesting museum that is open limited hours. (Check first to be sure.) Chippewa Falls has a lot to offer, so afterward, you can relax and have a glass of wine at a local winery or maybe before the museum you can take a tour of Leinenkugel's. Before or after, be sure to take in the Chippewa Falls Museum of Industry & Technology.

A small, quaint, but good museum to visit. Admission is only $8 but for students it is $4! They…read morehave a 10 minute video presentation on the history of logging in the area, and a small display. Outside the museum is where you get the best part of the tour- you get to go into 4 cabins, each differently depicting life during logging times. Overall, worth the price and very informative. PS- it's great for kids as well, there's a whole area for kids games featuring Paul Bunyan!

We needed a detour on our trip up to the Twin Cities so we saw this on line and stopped. Not a bad…read morelittle museum - pretty educational on the history of logging in the area. A short video is also good. The outdoor displays were also interesting and the staff was very helpful. Picnic tables are available.

A hidden gem definitely worth the scenic drive down from the Twin Cities…read more The collection of artifacts is extensive, and especially impressive when considering it was all amassed by one individual.

From the owner: Castlerock Museum has over two thousand years of history in a building that looks like a castle!…read moreSee authentic arms and armor from Romans, Dark Age Warriors, Vikings, Crusader Knights, and Renaissance "Knights in Shining Armor." New galleries cover American history from the Colonial Era through the late 1800's and include a hundred period firearms.

What I like best about this place is the cave tours they offer. The Stoppel family dug these caves…read morein the sandstone outcroppings in the 1800s. Some old dates and rather interesting graffiti inside.

My wife and I and a couple of relatives were in Rochester for a wedding and needed something to do…read morefor an afternoon. I lived here for a few years and never knew the history museum was here because I never really made it to this side of town. The museum part is pretty small but informative, but the outside features are cool. You can tour an old farm house and an old school. There is a lot of history about the Mayo Clinic, which I didn't really know about and you can do the whole thing in about an hour. We had a nice place to kill a couple of hours and I am glad we did.

Drove 20 miles to visit and although the website said it was open when we arrived it was closed.read more

Historic 1855 home in Hudson, WI, just miles from the Twin Cities. With COVID restrictions lifted,…read morethe house is back open and ready to be toured. Come learn about the history of the Moffat family that built this unique home as a group, with friends or even solo! There is something to learn for all ages. The staff is very knowledgeable and friendly. The Octagon House also serves tea. Be sure to check out their website or give them a call directly to setup tea time. There is even a gift shop on-site where you can purchase glassware, ornaments, and garden decor. My family had a magical day out of the entire experience.