We enjoyed the tour. Started off with an interesting video. The docent was good and knowledgeable…read more Took so see many interesting spots in and around the home, including a life size version of a wigwam that would have been in the area at the time.

Why is the Hans Herr House significant and who the hell was Hans Herr?…read more The house itself is significant as it is the last remaining structure that is still standing from the original group of Mennonites who came to the Lancaster County area to escape religious persecution from their native Switzerland. The house is also significant in that it is the oldest structure in Lancaster County and likely the oldest remaining Mennonite meetinghouse in the Western Hemisphere. The original group traveled from Switzerland to Germany to escape religious persecution then after a governmental regime change they were forced from Germany to England where they met with William Penn who allowed them to colonize a portion of what is current day Lancaster County or when they arrived in 1711, the extreme most western frontier of Pennsylvania. One interesting piece of information is that the house did not belong to Hans Herr as it was built by his son Christian which is why his initials are over the doorway along with the inscribing mark of 1719. On the tour you are told why the name remained(s) Hans Herr House versus Christian Herr House but honestly I forget why. Maybe something just deferential from Christian towards his father or because of his father's status with the original group that came to the area or maybe everyone just liked the flow of the name more so it's based on tradition? The tour itself is around 40-45 minutes and it starts in the building which houses the gift shop and you are given a brief overview of the Anabaptist faith, the Mennonites who are direct descendants of the faith and a map which shows the route the initial settlers took from Switzerland to Pennsylvania. After that you are taken over to the house where you see the three rooms which make up the first floor (kitchen, bedroom and all purpose dining room-meeting room-family room) and the second floor which is where the eight children slept and finally the basement which is accessed from a side entrance outside of the house. You learn that the key to the home's design is that they didn't believe in wasting any space so every inch served a purpose such as not having hallways so as soon as you walk in the front door you're right in the kitchen. One thing worth noting, if you are someone who is hardcore hung up on only visiting historical places if they have lots of original items then this place might not be for you. There is not a whole lot original to the house that you can see with the exception of a piece of the ceiling insulation on the first floor (rye straw + manure + ??), the wooden crossbeam over the kitchen fireplace and the steps which go from the second floor to the third floor attic (obviously you can't use them). Past that I think most everything else was changed out in the 19th century when the house was still used as a residence or in the early 70's when the initial renovation occurred to make things into a tourist destination. If you want more original take a look at the bibles on display in the gift shop which are original to Hans and Christian. I wouldn't call the Hans Herr House a must see, but it's interesting enough and the tour is the right length to keep everyone interested along with being located close enough to most of Lancaster County's tourist elements. If you go: The 1719 Hans Herr House is open April 1 through November 30, Monday-Saturday, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. Forty-five minute Herr House tours are offered at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. This is not the tour information for their reproduction Native American Longhouse. That tour is offered at 10 a.m., 12 noon and 2 p.m and has an entirely different focus. Prices are currently Adults: $8, Children 7-12: $4 and Children 6 and under: free with a slight discount if you choose to tour both structures. There are also several special events that happen throughout the year and that information is available on their website.

A great little museum ( not that little ) to spend a few hrs. enjoying . They have nice bathrooms…read moreand gift shop . The museum presents a historiclal showcase of the evolution of timekeeping . There are sections( clock) full of various timekeeping instruments . Grandfather Clocks , Asian Clocks , Nautical , Automobile , Airplane . Further on , are sections devoted to the advent of pocketwatches and wristwatches . Many countries are represented . Pocketwatches developed with the burgeoning railroad system . Wristwatches with the outbreak of the first great world war . The dawn of aviation spurred further innovation . As always ... " necessity is the mother of invention ." Highlights include the monumental "Engle" clock , which was like a vaudeville show all its own , with many miniature mechanical , performances . A staffer is there to answer questions , and a shows off all of the Engles , bells and whistles, hourly. The section dedicated to the iconic Hamilton watch factory in nearby Lancaster city ( sadly defunct and exists as Condominiums today ) and the James Bond tributes , made this a museum of interest to a diverse crowd .

Rock Out with Your Clock Out…read more The National Watch and Clock Museum houses the largest collection of timepieces in the country, with over 12,000 individual pieces. The Good: * Large, plentiful, free parking lot * Fairly inexpensive to visit at $15/adult and $10/child, plus there are additional discounts for families, vets, and senior citizens. * Research library available. * If you're into clocks, watches, and other types of timepieces, then boy howdy, is this the place for you. Lots to see and do. * Live demonstration (check schedule) The Meh: * If you're really not into timepieces then this probably isn't the place for you, but it's still an interesting place to learn history. The Ugly: * I wouldn't recommend bringing younger kids, as it's not within their attention span to enjoy these kinds of things, but I suppose it depends on the kid. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Conclusion: Fun place to check out if you're visiting Lancaster County, and especially if the weather outside isn't great.

This place is nice, but too small! You only have three rooms, so it can get boring. Also, the…read moreastronaut's left arm is coming off.

We were looking for something to do with our two five year olds and this museum came up in our…read moresearch. Even better is that it has reciprocal membership with the Carnegie museums so we were able to get in for free! First, I was impressed with their covid precautions. They temp check you before you enter. Each child is given a bag with legos, crayons, pencils and other miscellaneous items to be able to safely enjoy the various exhibits. We spent our time on the first floor. There were dinosaurs, a beehive, lizards and snakes (a python named Monty) and even a slime making. It was a great way to spend some time while the kids had some opportunities for hands on learning. The staff were all very friendly and great with the kids. There is nothing earth shattering or ground breaking at the museum. But if you have kids ten or under, it is definitely worth visiting.

Nice little museum about the history of Wrightsville. Of course the biggest of all is the Skirmish…read morebefore the Battle of Gettysburg, which resulted in the burning of the bridge. Several Civil War artifacts are on site. There's also a lot about the canals that once ran along the Susquehanna river.

My wife and I had a great time at the ROCK FORD Plantation and Barn Gallery tour. Lots of history…read morethere including the fact that George & Martha Washington were entertained on numerous occasions. The tour includes almost the entire house from the basement kitchen area to the second floor with many historical artifacts, furniture and writings. Many areas of the home and decor were painstakingly restored to original. Bryce, our docent was very informative, fun and very sociable encouraging questions of the family and the mansion. Since my wife and I were lucky enough to be the only guests for the time slot we enjoyed a private, longer than usual tour. Highly recommend a visit!

Rock Ford Plantation was the home built by General Edward Hand, a general in the U.S. Continental…read moreArmy. Gen. Hand was a close friend of George Washington and second president John Adams. The house features letters from both the first and second president. We went on a weekend when there was a Continental Army encampment and enjoyed the outdoor demonstrations and the gardens. The house itself is very enjoyable. However, I'm taking off a star because a very bossy large woman rudely announced at the top of her lungs that I was "Not allowed to take pictures all willy-nilly throughout the house." 1. She could have asked me more nicely and in a private manner. 2. No where in the house or on the porch or at the ticket table was I told not to take pictures. 3. A simple sign of "no pictures" on the back porch when you enter the house could have saved me embarrassment and saved the bossy large woman some hot air. A nice man in period dress apologized for the bossy large woman after she sailed away with her petticoats all aflutter. She soured the entire experience for me. Seriously. Post a sign "No Pictures Please". Don't needlessly embarrass your patrons. If you love history and avoid taking pictures inside the house, you will enjoy a trip to the Rock Ford Plantation.

As oxymoronic as this is going to sound, this place was educationally fun. But that's only if you…read morecan appreciate learning something that you didn't know before. As a head's up, I visited back in September and I was told that they were in the process of moving items to a new location. So my take on that is that a lot of what is here will be moved/moving very soon to a new location. Throughout my visit you would come across certain areas that were covered over in preparation for moving. Being a born and raised Pennsylvanian I had no idea how much of an impact York had on the nation in respect to advancements in industry and agriculture. To say that York played a part in a lot of things might be an understatement. When I say I learned something here, I mean it. I had no idea that York had it's own automotive manufacturing or that the huge ice machine was thought up and created in York. For this museum to focus on just the industry and agriculture, and to be able to fill three large spaces (enough to have to move) should be telling you something. York is not only known for some automotive manufacturing, but they also went back a bit further than that. Bicycles, horse carriages, to horse drawn sleds. You can throw in there some aquatic movement as well as trains and streetcars. When you enter the industry area, my best suggestion is to go up the ramp and then head down the ramp and take the stairs. You will go through eras of the area. Then you move into the agricultural side where you see many pieces of equipment that were used to farm the lands and produce the food. Also in this area you see that Rutter's (sorry, not my go to convenience store in PA) started out as a dairy farm. Who knew? Not me, but I am sure that people from York and surrounding areas knew. There is also a spot in here that you can kind of get the feel of what it would have been like to work in a barn/on a farm. As you make your way through the agricultural section you kind of go back into industry. Did you know that York made dental products. I mean like the false teeth that you might have to get one day in your mouth. Other things that I did not realize being made in York: barbells, pottery, and snowmobiles. Before heading out of this last section of this portion, be sure to stop and look at/interact with the siren. And take a good moment to play around at the telephone area. Rotary phones up to dial tones. You can call numbers that connect the phones and hear the rings of the phones. Then as you head upwards to the main level again, stop and take a gander at the 275 time capsule. The last portion of this place is gigantic in size. It has to be as they pieces in here aren't meant to be moved or displayed in low ceiling rooms. This is where you will see the ice machine, firetruck, and the huge electric sign. One last thing I want to touch on here was the staff. They were super nice and very informative of the museum itself. They were also very knowledgeable of everything else in York. I ended up chatting with the lady at the front desk for a bit. When I entered they were having a bit of trouble with their computer system and they were doing the honor system with me. I had to pay on my way out, don't worry, I checked back in and paid. It was nice of them to do that, or else I might not have had a chance to enjoy this museum.

They moved the museum into a new building a while back which greatly improved it. Clean all around,…read moretime consuming, interesting, and interactive. Would consider coming back.

I've lived in the Baltimore area for quite some time now and I can't believe I've never been to the…read moreAmerican Visionary Art Museum. I mean how can you pass by the mirrored egg or the golden hand and not think to find out what type of dope art is hidden inside. With so many unique pieces to look at I took my time leisurely strolling through the two buildings for the museum. Welcomed by a half naked mannequin with wings floating in the center of the stairs, you can't help but be intrigued to learn more about the artists work. There was so much to take in with every turn. I especially liked the homage to the staples of Baltimore's culture in the second building. And we can't forget about the gift shop that I literally could've spent hours in just rummaging through all the eclectic finds. I'm happy I finally bit the bullet to visit the American Visionary Art Musuem, and I look forward to a return visit to see all the things I missed.

I do not like art museums. I was done with The Louvre after an hour. The Met was nice for like 45…read moreminutes. I stayed at the AVAM for THREE (3) hours & only left because I was starving. I loved every single thing about this museum. The gift shop is fun, yes, but the art displays are all entirely unexpected & featuring mainly artists who are disabled/not professionals. There is art made from metal scraps, a ship built out of toothpicks, sculptures made by patients at a mental health institution. The passages to read about the pieces were delightfully detailed. It felt like ingesting the life story of dozens of strangers who turned to art at their darkest moments. Cannot recommend this museum enough. Also, the staff were so lovely. They genuinely cared about our experience too.

Hands down this was one of the best tours that I've been to! Our tour guide was amazing,she had all…read morethe history on the house as well as the beautiful antiques in the home. The tour took about an hour but what a wonderful was to spend an hour. Call find out the tour days and hours then run to be informed and impressed!

From the owner: Wright's Ferry Mansion stands as evidence of the strong rooting of the settlement made by a handful…read moreof English Quakers coming from Chester and Darby, Pennsylvania, to wild and virtually uninhabited country along the Susquehanna River. Pervaded by English Quaker elegance and simplicity, this house, built in 1738, reflects the sophisticated tastes and panoply of interests of its original owner, Susanna Wright. A dynamic force in establishing colonial self sufficiency, she encouraged industry, especially the production of silk imparted her knowledge of law and medicine by providing counseling and medical help implanted her Quaker beliefs and stimulated a literary current through her poetry and correspondence. The mansion houses a superlative collection of Philadelphia furniture, English ceramics, needlework, metals and glass, all made prior to 1750.