Both a History of Benton and Franklin County History both Good and Bad Worth the entry fee.read more

This 1905 Franklin County Jail Museum is a very interesting walk through Benton's history…read more Featuring one of the last public executions in Illinois of Charlie Berger, this museum has original noose, weapons, newspaper articles and other historical documentation. When you walk into the house, you enter a beautiful, classic early 1900s home. A very welcoming home with reconstructed living room and kitchen. Prepare to be surprised! It is only when you near the back of the house that you find the white, rusted heavy iron door. Open this door and you enter a cold, dark realm that even Tim Burton couldn't recreate. Perhaps a hundred years for rusting and paint chipping contributes to the overall gloom. These are the prison cells that inspire modern day fiction. All the windows have bars. And the view from the outermost window is of the gallows. These gallows have been recreated in the position they originally stood. There are multiple rooms of cells which you can enter and take photos of. Don't use the toilets, though. They are a bit old. :) Escape back into the semblance of normalcy of the house and head upstairs to take in additional Benton history. The normal bathroom is up there: very clean. When the Beatles FIRST came to America, this is where they played. The museum curator stated that she was a young girl when they arrived: "We had no idea who they were...They weren't known in America at the time, but we all hurried to get a look. We didn't end up seeing them though." There is civil war paraphernalia and an autographed photo of town local John Malkovich. I highly recommend this location! The curator is very knowledgeable and friendly. The location is a few miles off the nearby highway.

October 23, 2021 Wow…read morethis place is so cool! What a perfect stop to let the kids run about on this rainy day. Downstairs is designed more for younger kids. Upstairs designed more for kids 8 and above. Supervision is mandatory. Lots of themed rooms for kids to learn through play. There's a garden room with big water tables. An auto shop for the car enthusiasts. A farm where you can "milk"a cow (fake cow &water). A grocery store where the kids can shop and be the cashier. A veterinarian pet shop. Fire department. Well baby check office. There are cool tubes with air that suck up handkerchiefs and tunnel above your head and shoot out from the ceiling. Musical rooms. Hair styling room. A theater room complete with a stage and curtain! There's a Lego wall. And rubber band wall to make art. A small real plane to climb in and imagine flying over fields. Really too much to list. But wow! Great entertainment for kids (and parents) of all ages. Covid19 protocol: Bathrooms were clean. Hands sanitizer was placed all over both upstairs and downstairs. Employees wore masks. Patrons were strongly recommended to wear masks, although most didn't. Staff picked up several times while we were there.. although i didn't notice any surface cleaning. Now my cooty radar was a little high, but i get that way in any type of kids play area. I made sure my kids sanitized hands after each room and we washed hands before leaving. Lots of touchable surfaces. Pre pandemic, i wouldn't think much about it, but current pandemic, I just am a little more leery. So go with that in mind. And don't come if you or anyone is sick. Above all.. ENJOY! Very cool place.

discovery is the best place a child could ask for it's so relatable to the real life just much…read morecooler I love discovery so much !

For a quick visit and to stretch your legs during a long drive, this place is great. Kids' activity…read moreroom has several hands-on ways to do art. Lego mosaics, a huge Lite-Brite type board (for those of you who remember those), and a life size horse sculpture you can reassemble. Oh, and it's free. Outdoor sculpture garden covers about an acre and has many large sculptures kids can run among. My two boys, 7 and 10, would have liked to stay longer. Permanent exhibit is small but has some notable artists, like Mary Casatt. Not sure if I was supposed to pay for going in that room? Oops. Temp exhibit for next couple months is photos of rock stars, plus autographed guitars from the collection of a local radio guy. Costs $5 and my wife opted for me not to see it. Some of the guitars are hanging in the main lobby, like Clapton's and BB King's. Not that you would drive to Mt. Vernon *just* to see it, but if you are passing thru on I-64, give it a look for an hour or so.

Well worth a visit. Frequently changing displays and great special events. Not too near the hotels,…read morebut only about a mile away. A pleasant little walk.

Very nice local museum with many items of general interest. I am very interested in George Rogers…read moreClark and William Clark so a visit to this museum was a must. They did have two small displays with some original pieces. There is much more to the museum than the Clark's though. If you love history a visit is a must.

This was a really great little find as I was exploring the downtown area near the riverfront. I was…read moreon a paddle wheeler that was docked just a little bit away. This was right across from a hop-on hop-off stop, but nobody mentioned it and I almost missed it. They have a pretty diverse array of items on display ranging from old artifacts of the civil war, old police memorabilia and clothing a furniture from the last century. Overall, a very interesting and well documented collection and deserving of more attention. The staff person was extremely welcoming and warm and made me feel right at home. If you have just a few minutes to spare or a bit more, take the opportunity to check out this little museum. It is the in the middle of the Market place and it looks for all the world like an old train station. You need to enter on the second street side.

Fantastic colors. Viewable art. Peaceful surroundings (Visited Autumn of 2023). I loved wandering…read morethrough the well set-up exhibits. I have a passion for creating, so it was enjoyable to share this joy with others. The location was phenomenal for seeing the town of Paducah and eating at a restaurant after. I enjoyed being inspired and surrounding myself with such works of art.

When deciding to visit Paducah on a recent weekend my wife was doing some research into things to…read moredo. I was surprised to find not only that the National Quilt Museum was located there, but that there was a National Quilt Museum at all. My wife does a lot of quilting so the decision to go was easy. The grounds of the National Quilt Museum are gorgeous and well kept. There's a large what I'm suddenly going to call a Grand Lawn with sidewalks and some statuary. Ticket are $15, but they do offer military/veteran discounts as well as students and seniors. The interior of the lobby is spacious with the check-in desk directly in front of you, gift shop to the left, restrooms to the right, and the entrance into the exhibit area dead ahead. By the restrooms you'll find the elusive wooden quilt. Yes, a wooden quilt. And it is bee-yoo-ti-ful. Once in the main exhibit hall you're amongst probably close to 100 quilts. To be honest, I had no idea how many types of quilts there were, so this was an education for me. The level of detail, craftsmanship, creativity, and ingenuity that went into some of these quilts is absolutely astounding. From a distance it may look like a photograph of, say, a tree, but when you get closer the details start to emerge. Some of them were absolutely awe-inspiring. Our visit, in total, came out to a little over an hour. Wifey was in her element so I wasn't going to rush her as the looked at each quilt, admiring the time and effort each one took. There were a couple docents who walk around answering questions and insight, where possible. Some of the quilts could be purchased...and I don't mean if you're on any kind of budget. One such quilt was sold for over $30,000. That's right and not a typo The gift shop is well-sized to the museum. It's well lit and has A LOT of craft/quilt items, bobbles, and trinkets. Pricing was very reasonable. I have to admit, I was surprise by this museum. I expected to be bored and wanted to get out, but I found myself interested and educated.

Not worth the money!! $22.50 Wasted!! so disorganized and not worth the trip!! Maybe children under…read more12 would enjoy. But why make parents pay!!

My granddaughter just had her 8th birthday party at the science center. She invited all her…read morefriends, their siblings (one was 3 weeks old) and parents. It was a blast and educational too. They played in the main area before going to the party room for a very entertaining science presentation. Even the adults got to take a ride on the hover board. We provided the food and the favors. It was the best birthday party ever!

The tour guide named Faith was awesome! She is very good at her job and explaining everything. She…read moredeserves a raise and a promotion. Very fun to talk to and answers questions effectively and in a way I can understand. Super cool definitely will go again!

Love this place .. have only been here once but bought several books .. one thing I'd like to see…read moreis a book on all the 200 plus structures still standing chronologically .. every time I'm here I see another I've missed just by driving around the history of this town is vastly underplayed and under appreciated by the locals .. but is understandable.. when you live with history everywhere you no longer see it..