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    Merced County Courthouse Museum

    4.5 (8 reviews)
    Closed 1:00 pm - 4:00 PM

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    The Gorgeous front of this italian renaissance old courthouse
    Umar R.

    I can't stress how unique this old courthouse and museum is, and the best part of it all, its FREE. There use to be seven (7) of these Italian renaissance court house in California designed to resemble a palazzo designed by A.A Bennett , now only one remains in the world and that happens to be in Merced, which makes this courthouse museum one of a kind and a must visit if your in the central valley. This museum is only one hour away from Fresno and by combining visits with other attractions such as Castle air museum, hilmar cheese factory tour, UC merced ultra modern campus, Merced mini zoo and lake Yosemite; your one day in Merced county will be time well spent, I would suggest visiting on a Saturday or Sunday because all these other attraction would be open. Parking is FREE street parking and its really easy to get. The Museum is open from 1 PM -4 PM Wednesday to Sunday, and as I mentioned it is Free of charge. The exhibits are so well kept and the size of this museum is really big, so plan to spend 20 minutes to one hour here. The courthouse style remind me of some part of harry potter movie, so for movie buffs this is amazing and a one in a lifetime experience. The exhibits contains not only the history of the courthouse but also other cultures and artifacts from Merced old golden past. The docents are really friendly, and photos are strictly not allowed in the building, although I did it sneakily, but don't do that. I wanted to just share with yelpers how amazing this building really is and why its worth visiting. Overall a must visit in the central valley. They do have a gift shop too.

    This Christmas Tree first a Grinch

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    4 years ago

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    5 years ago

    This was a really good museum. The workers were extremely passionate. They had a really good connection. I would recommend visiting here.

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    11 years ago

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    Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County - Mammoth

    Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County

    4.4(34 reviews)
    23.3 mi

    This is a really cool place to spend the day with kids. The staff was very kind and helpful. They…read moreplayed a short film for us that explained how the fossils were found in the area. There are many fossils and replica of fossils. You guide yourself on a tour, they give you a booklet to use to guide yourself. Each station has information on the fossils, history,etc. There is an outdoor area with replicas of the homes of the native Yokuts tribe that was originally in the area. There is also an outdoor pond with plaques in front of each different plant that surrounds the pond. It was a really cool learning experience. You can pay a bit extra for fossil digging. There are 19 fossils to dig up, that can take about an hour. We spent about 3 hours there. They also have a cool little gifts shop area.

    I don't know how many I've driven by this place along the 99, saying I (we) need to stop and check…read moreit out... finally! After moving out of state , made the stop. So many cool fossils!! Colombian mammoths, sloths, dire wolves, and, yes!! Even American camels.. they were here at one time. Saber tooth cats also roamed the area. Most of this and it's still an active recovery, was started with the expansion of the dump site and widening of highway 99. Once they started hitting the fossils in what used to be a ponded wetland, they've not stopped. Lots of interesting fossils and now they're adding a Mammoth Orange food site, from the golden days of traveling up and down the 99, stopping for a burger and soda coming back to life. It's all definitely worth a stop and enjoying the sight of see a huge full size Colombian Mammoth... a little secret.. they are much bigger than the more famous wooly mammoth. Stop by and enjoy.

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    Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County - Columbian Mammoth

    Columbian Mammoth

    Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County
    Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County - Working station

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    Working station

    Castle Air Museum - Museum Entrance

    Castle Air Museum

    4.6(134 reviews)
    6.5 mi

    It was pretty nostalgic coming here with my kids. I lived in Merced for a few years as a kid during…read morethe first Desert Storm War back when this was Castle Air Force Base and they were flying b-52 bombers over Merced everyday that would shake the windows of my house. We were driving up the 99 from Fresno to Manteca and I thought it would be a fun detour for my kids to see. They were pretty pumped to see the SR-71 Blackbird and one of the old old Air Force Ones. I wish there would have been more planes available on public display without having to pay to get into the museum since we were there after hours and couldn't see any of the other ones except for through a chain link fence. Still a pretty cool experience though and worth the short detour.

    As a life member and over 45 year supporter I will say this; I was embarrassed by the state of the…read moregrounds at the outside exhibit yesterday. Lots of overgrown weeds up and around the airplane displays. The walkways need tending too as well. The condition of the planes has deteriorated a bit as well. As an airplane lover I would never say don't go. The history there is considerable. The docent volunteers are devoted folks from the area and a lovable bunch at that. But present management of the overall grounds, buildings and to some degree the planes themselves REALLY needs to be addressed. I took the former chairman of the museum board with me and he was shocked at the way it looked. Come on folks. Get it together raise some funds what ever and let it shine as one of the greatest air museums on the west coast.

    Photos
    Castle Air Museum - A-4 Skyhawks

    A-4 Skyhawks

    Castle Air Museum - Former Air Force One to Carter and Reagan.

    Former Air Force One to Carter and Reagan.

    Castle Air Museum

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    Forestiere Underground Gardens - Skylight looking up from below

    Forestiere Underground Gardens

    4.8(597 reviews)
    47.9 mi

    This place blew me away. I had Rhanda (I think that's the spelling) as a guide and she was SO…read moreterrific. This is a historical landmark and she walked me through every room with great detail on the origin story and the rooms we were in. One of the best tour guides I've had. I have never experienced anything this - you have to really appreciate the amount of work, design and detail by Baldassare Forestiere - truly a feat! Very grateful the family makes this available for tours. Highly recommend if you appreciate gardening, architecture, art, engineering etc. They also did a great job of reminding me of my appointment and following up afterwards. If in Fresno area, this is a don't miss!!

    My family along with our cousins and aunt decided to tour the Forestier Underground Gardens. It was…read moresuch a gem to visit. The gardens were built in an unexpected park of Fresno and these is a lot of history behind them. Parking was somewhat difficult but once you enter, the staff were very kind, organized, and positive. Our tour guide Raul was super sweet and provided a lot of history regarding the gardens and the family who built them. Raul had my 3 young boys engaged and interested. He answered all my questions and was so open to conversation. You could tell Raul was proud to be there telling all of us how the Gardens came to be. The Gardens are very interesting. I've never seen anything quite like these. The smell of all the citrus trees combine with the natural cooling underground was amazing and made the tour comfortable. If you have any time i do recommend visiting these secret gardens.

    Photos
    Forestiere Underground Gardens - Placing a pin in home state.

    Placing a pin in home state.

    Forestiere Underground Gardens - Aquarium

    Aquarium

    Forestiere Underground Gardens - Bedroom quarters

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    Bedroom quarters

    Modesto Children's Museum - The Light Lab in action!

    Modesto Children's Museum

    4.4(38 reviews)
    36.5 mi

    I took my children here for a fun afternoon and it is a very cute place and kept the kids…read moreentertained for a while. When we arrived the street parking is sort of iffy, I believe they were doing construction but when we went inside the front desk was very welcoming and I just let my kids run around, there favorite part was the water room ( I am not sure the correct name for it ) but it was pretty cool. It's two levels so multiple things for them to do. It's is affordable and I plan to return and highly recommend if you have small kiddos

    I think this place is an awesome addition to Modesto! wish it were there when my girls were little…read more however, I get to enjoy with my grand dude now. we went when it first opened and he loved it. very clean, lots to do and explore. however, now that he is going to be a whopping (lol) 6 years old in another 2 months... I felt like it probably won't be a place he's excited to go to again. he was able to whiz around and get through everything quite fast. But maybe it's because we have many of the things the museum offers at home? like the magnets. painting, crayons, target checkout center, groceries and kitchen...etc. OFC the slide was his favorite. and the stage. we stayed for the last 10 minutes of story time that was very well done by the gal that read the shape book. I would highly recommend this for anyone with kids 6 and under. I do need to add... the unfortunate news of the paint. I specifically asked if it was water based and washable. the girl said yes. I asked because I just put his new shorts on for first time. Well ofc he dropped blue paint on them and his sock. I asked if there was water and a towel so i could get most of it off before getting in car. Came home and immediately treated. Washed in cold water. Hung dry just in case. Still there! Then.. I soaked in oxi-clean overnite. Re washed. it did not come all the way out:( I called to let them know so it doesn't happen to anyone else. She apologized but really nothing more. I think this is a non profit... so, I just let it go. so, you've been enlightened to the possibility with the paint. Wear older clothes you don't care about! I will post pics.

    Photos
    Modesto Children's Museum - The Water Table is a fan favorite! Enjoy learning how water flows through play.

    The Water Table is a fan favorite! Enjoy learning how water flows through play.

    Modesto Children's Museum - Play kitchen

    Play kitchen

    Modesto Children's Museum - A glimpse of our Powerful Pollinators Exhibit - indulge in the process of being a bee!

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    A glimpse of our Powerful Pollinators Exhibit - indulge in the process of being a bee!

    Merced County Courthouse Museum - museums - Updated May 2026

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