I went to this Kids Museum with the family and I was impressed. It's a great place to take your…read morekids of all ages. I have a 5 and 3 year old that are very active. The variety of activities they have and the simplicity of most of the play areas is what makes it such a good spot for the kids. Highly recommend if you're looking for something to get out and do with the kids. The place is huge and has 3 floors

Great hands on play for kids!…read more This place was a great experience for my kids aged 5 to 8. The free parking lot is right across the street from the entrance making it easy to navigate. After entering the main floor has a few small hands on art based activities. I highly recommend starting on the top floor and working your way down. The top floor has so much to do and we ran out of time before we could check everything out. The museum was clean and well organized. Lots of hands on activities for all age levels. Every kid will find something to enjoy. The shopping experience was one of their favorites. We spent about two hours but could have easily stayed longer.

Stunning building surrounded by nature and a must see for any nature enthusiast. I visited during…read moreDoors Open Jamestown and was really impressed with the friendly staff and how beautifully the collections were displayed. RTPI is a museum, and also has a gift shop and looks like it could be used for special events too. The museum is home to the largest collection of Roger Tory Peterson's work. Roger Tory Peterson illustrated field guides on identifying birds. He was also a talented photographer. The majority of the museum featured nature photography by Thomas D. Mangelsen which were very interesting to look at as well. The upstairs is accessible by stairs and elevator, and there was an interesting video playing about spiny soft shell turtles living in the Chadakoin River in Jamestown. Overall I really enjoyed the 40 minutes we spent here, and I would love to come back again one day!

If you have a thirst for knowledge of the outdoors, nature, wildlife, the flora, fauna or…read moreparticularly of birds, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute is the place. Not only does it store a wealth of information, it's one of the most drop dead gorgeous of structures both in design as well as in décor. Named after world famed ornithologist, author and naturalist, Roger Tory Peterson, a native of Jamestown, New York, it is this institute that personifies his life's work in which he not only won every major award in his field but also furthered it with such striking innovations as the Peterson Identification System, known for its clarity with specific delineations of bird markings. In my mind, Roger Tory Peterson was the greatest, most gifted ornithologist and naturalist ever and, just one heck of a nice guy; a perfect gentlemen in the most classical sense of the term who I was fortunate enough to have personally known and spoken with on numerous occasions as we both resided not that far from each other and shared similar heritages as well as interests. The displays and art work layouts of this institute couldn't have been better done, many of which are in fact breath taking and others mentally impacting such as a display of the once thriving passenger pigeon that were so numerous in numbers their flights blackened the skies but now, as a result of what was actually commercial hunting and conservational ignorance, now totally extinct. So, if you have any naturalist or ornithological interests, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute is a must.

The Erie Maritime Museum was a fun activity and am glad we checked it out. We were lucky to catch…read morethe last tour of the day for the US Brig Niagara which was definitely the highlight for me. It's impressive to see such a historic ship up close and learn about the sails and pulley system . Inside the main museum, be sure to set aside time for the theater video, which provides great context, and don't miss the upstairs exhibits--they're well worth exploring. The museum does a great job showcasing maritime history, and I would recommend it to anyone visiting the area.

Erie, PA ~. Awesome display and well worth seeing the Museum. BUT..... the Flagship Niagara is…read moreunder wraps and closed for touring. Looks like it's going to take some time before if completed.

Great for anyone that grew up with Lucy. The museum is amazing and enlightening…read more The Tropicana is opening soon, even as a rental venue (I believe). Her career before and after l love Lucy is incredible.

So neat and informative! They have a lot of props, costumes, photos and videos of Lucy and Desi's…read morehistory. The employees were friendly and the gift shop was nice!

The Wilder Museum is one of the very best little local types of museums I've ever seen. It has over…read more3,000 exhibits, most of local interest but others that would score international interest such as the Joseph DeFrees antique gun collection. It's no ordinary collection. The guns of this collection are striking examples of the exceptionally rare and ultimate works of gunsmithing and metal engraving. Besides the 1963 Mercedes favorite car of National Forge owner Robert Wilder, there are all sorts of examples of the works and products of national forge. Then there are Indian artifacts and histories covering nearly 8,000 years of the county bordering Seneca Indian Nation. There is a good history of Seneca Chief Cornplanter along with the monument dedicated to his memory. With so many significant things you should at least plan upon a 3 hour visit as the war or military not only takes some time but contains exhibits that are real eye openers as to the history of the many military engagements depicted. I found the antique medical area, much of which I remember to be downright frightening. It's unbelievable how primitive our medical sciences were only as far back as the 40's and 50's. Overall it's a great museum, well worth seeing and a Yelp Five Stars with me.

Community gem. If local history is interesting to you, it's…read morea fantastic place to spend a few hours.

We took a quick (2 hour) road trip to Salamanca to see this smallish collection of Seneca art and…read morehistory. It was well lit, clean, and interesting. Nice staff person.

Amazing experience and would love to return . Found the experience valuable and educationalread more

I did not know much about Robert H Jackson. However I really enjoyed learning about his legacy when…read moreI visited during Open Doors Jamestown! In a nutshell, he served on the Supreme Court and was part of landmark decisions including Brown v Board of Education. He also was the Chief U.S. Prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials. His views on human and civil rights, constitutional law, and international law are still very relevant today. During the first part of our visit, a friendly and informative docent guided us around the mansion. Then we explored the remainder of the Robert H Jackson Center which covers his life and legacy. There was a film playing in the theatre and we sat down to watch the last 15 minutes of it. There was also a lower level which had an art exhibit on Nazi perpetrators. I really enjoyed the museum and found the exhibits thought provoking. I would love to attend an event here in the future.

We arrived after closing, but we were allowed to enter and the building. Our host, Marion, was…read morevery gracious to let us in, personable and knowledgeable. We learned a lot about Jackson and his importance in American history and tremendous importance in legal cases.

I stopped at the Hagen History Center on my way through Erie since I wanted to check out the Frank…read moreLloyd Wright office that they have on exhibit. The Hagen is located in a couple of buildings near Gannon University. Fairly recently the Hagen acquired the FLW office that he used in San Fransico near the end of his career; the Hagen built a special building to house the office along with other exhibits. While the FLW office has been on display other places, at the Hagen you are actually able to go into the office and look around, which is a real treat. To start the Hagen has a number of displays before you enter the office giving information on Frank Lloyd Wright, his designs and even identifies the buildings in the region that you can tour. The office itself is relatively small, just a compact reception area, 3 workstations and a small office that Wright used to meet with clients. The office has the feeling of being a Wright design, clean lines, natural materials, and innovation. An interesting element of the installation is that the Hagen has placed photos of what the office looked out to in the windows so you get an idea of how it looked in San Francisco. The Wright office is less spectacular than most Wright designs, it had to fit into a commercial building and was more of a satellite office for work in California. It is a nice visit if you are in the area or are a Wright completist. I did check out some of the Erie history exhibits on the second floor of the building, they seemed to be well presented and a nice look at various elements of Erie history. I was happy I stopped and checked out the Wright office at the Hagen, but it is not worth a special trip and there are much better examples of Wright buildings in the Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York that I would recommend you tour. This might be a great start if you are taking a trip through Erie to see Fallingwater, Kentuck Knob or doing the Buffalo Wright tour.

OH what fun ! stumbled upon this place right next to the Erie Art Museum - the place i never got…read moreinto beyond the front door( -see my other reviews ) The historical Society is on the top floor and looks a bit like a cluttered library stuffed full of books and, well, stuff ! The people inside saw me browsing and quickly came to ask if they could help and explained their hours etc they were very nice to me ! the Cashier's House is also in this building and even though it was in the middle of "moving within the building" they let me tour on my own anyways LOL it is a three story house and i accidentally went to the third floor unattended to have a look around no one seemed bothered by that even tho sightseers were supposedly not to go there the elevator took me right up there so...why not look around LOL ! ? not that security is lax cause there appeared to be cameras all about and on each floor - i wonder if anyone noticed me ? LOL LOTS of fun artifacts in the Cashier's House Victorian stuff to make is appear like a lived in home of that time period .... beside that there is a small Maritime museum of shipwrecks and an interesting but small room of Telephone history in Erie LOL LOTS of stuff in there it seemed well organised lots of old phones and phone books switchboards and wires and cables and insulators what a delight ! all in all a great visit for me even if i was the only one there for a good hour and oh yes .... the front desk guy let me in for free cause they were renovating the Cashier's House - i bet i never get THAT price again ! LOL !

"those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." -George Santayana…read more This is a museum in the tiny town of Eldred Pa, right along the new york - pennsylvania state line. Its dedicated to the history of WWII and the collection of artifacts and materials from that time period. They do have large collection of badges, insignias and uniforms from all combatants during the war. Eldred was the site of a munitions factory that ran non-stop from 1942 to mid-1945 that produced bombs and shell casings that were used in the war on the Allied side. It has a library where you can go around and check out books and maps if you're really interested in a certain topic. It is a great place to go if you have a Social Studies project to do and you want to go check it out. plus theres a cool tank half-bursting out of the wall, haha.

We were very surprised to find this gem of a museum when visiting family in the area, who had never…read morebeen there. Much larger than expected, the collection includes somewhere between 60,000 and 70,000 artifacts from World War II, all donated or on loan. Obviously focusing on military history, the museum is comprehensive, well thought out, and displays are well-presented. highlights include vehicles and a submarine periscope from World War II, many displays honoring locals who served (putting a human face on the conflict, uniforms, weapons, and other memorabilia. The Holocaust room is separated, so parents could make a decision as to when their children are ready to see it, and is very thorough and well done. The associate curator and the two volunteers present were super friendly, helpful, and informative. At a time when those who fought this war are passing on, the events are an abstraction to many children, and anti-Semitic, fascist or neofascist elements are once again on the rise in Hungary, Western Europe, and even our own United States, this museum does important work.