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| Field Trips |
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Below is a list of day field trips for parents of homeschooled children. If you have any questions, comments, additions, or topics that should be on this site, let us know.
Before going on your field trips, check out Virginia TimeTravelers to see if your destination is listed on the passport. Even though some places are just too hard to get to, it is possible to visit them through virtual tours.
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Amherst
Amherst County Museum & Historical Society
The Amherst County Museum & Historical Society is located in the Kearfott-Wood House, a Georgian Revival or American Four Square style house built in 1907. It was built by a local pharmacist, Dr. Kearfott. He had his business at the same location as the present-day Amherst Pharmacy on Main Street. Kearfott and his family lived in the house until 1920. Wade Wood purchased the property in 1922. He owned a grocery store in Amherst for 60 years. Wood's two daughters grew up here and the house was the scene of many activities including Sunday afternoon croquet matches. After Wood passed away in 1960, his wife, Molly, sold the property to Farmers & Merchants Bank. She lived in the house until her death in 1977. The house was then used for storage by the bank until the museum purchased the property in 1988.
Monacan Indian Museum
The Monacan Indian Nation of Virginia is a small tribe today, composed of about 1,000 people, located in the Amherst County area near Lynchburg and recognized as a tribe by the State of Virginia. Its culture in this region dates back 10,000 years, and the original territory of our tribe comprised roughly half of the state of Virginia, including most of the Piedmont region. It is one of the oldest groups of indigenous people still existing in our ancestral homeland, and it is the only group of Eastern Sioux in the state.
Chantilly
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is the companion facility to the museum on the National Mall. The building provides enough space for the Smithsonian to display the thousands of aviation and space artifacts that cannot be exhibited on the National Mall. The two sites together showcase the largest collection of aviation and space artifacts in the world.
Charlottesville
Sage Moon Gallery
Sage Moon, a salon style gallery on three levels, showcases original fine art by recognized local, regional, national, and international artists. Exhibiting oils; watercolors; acrylics; pastels; photography; hand blown glass, bronze, stone, and metal sculpture.
Virginia Discovery Museum
The Virginia Discovery Museum is a hands-on museum for young children and their families.
Forest
Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest
Thomas Jefferson designed and built one of the first octagonal homes in America. Historians have hailed the house as an architectural masterpiece, the only place where you can see an authentic restoration of a Jefferson building. Archaeologists are investigating the landscape and plantation community.
Fort Monroe
Casemate Museum
Still active, this fortress has guarded the approaches to the vital Hampton Roads since 1823. The museum on the U.S. Army post offers good interpretation of the fort and preserves the area where Confederate ex-President Jefferson Davis was imprisoned after the war.
Hampton
Civil War Cruises
The Miss Hampton II offers daily boat tours (twice a day during the summer) of Hampton Roads including Civil War history and a stop at Fort Wool. Call 888-757-BOAT. Venture Inn Charters offers a "Civil War at Sea" tour. Call 800-320-2055.
Hampton History Museum
The museum covers 400 years of Hampton history and includes inventive galleries on the Antebellum, Civil War and Reconstruction periods. Topics in the Civil War gallery include the Battle of Big Bethel, the Burning of Hampton, and the effort of Union Gen. Ben Butler to declare escaped slaves "contraband."
Virginia Air and Space Center
Dozens of hands-on air and space exhibits, a premiere interactive aviation gallery that spans 100 years of flight, more than 30 historic aircraft, unique space flight artifacts, IMAX Theater, and more!
King William
Elsing Green
The manor house is largely furnished in eighteenth-century American and English furniture. Included among the furniture is the "Surrender Table" upon which the American and French Commissioners met with English Commissioners to negotiate the terms of surrender of the British forces at Yorktown. This resulted in the conclusion of the American Revolution in 1781.
Lexington
Stonewall Jackson House
The Stonewall Jackson House, the only home that Confederate General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson ever owned, features a restored garden, a museum shop, and guided tours of the furnished period rooms highlighting Jackson's life as a private citizen and professor at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington for a decade before the war.
Lynchburg
Amazement Square
Welcome to Central Virginia's first multidisciplinary, hands-on children's museum. Climb, slide and discover as you make your way through four floors of exciting and interactive exhibits, activities, and programs.
Old City Cemetery Museums and Arboretum
Established in 1806, the cemetery is home to 20,000 citizens and 2,200 Confederate soldiers. Five museums are on the grounds, including the Stapleton Train Station, depicting railroad history, which will be the site of a special program on World War I railroad history in Lynchburg.
Martinsville
Virginia Museum of Natural History
Get face-to-face with an Allosaurus skeleton. See and hear what Virginia was like in past eras. Witness a volcanic eruption and the birth of continents. Watch the digestive process in animals. Learn how to protect wildlife habitats and natural resources. View some of the museum's 22 million items. Join researchers at work uncovering the mysteries of the past.
Mason Neck
Gunston Hall
George Mason was instrumental in the framing of the U.S. government, but he shied away from public office and preferred, instead, to manage his plantation estate, Gunston Hall. Visit this 550-acre National Historic Landmark in Fairfax County, and tour Mason's home. Constructed in the 1750s, his house is an architectural gem, featuring elaborate interior design and carvings.
Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens
The Mount Vernon Ladies Association has operated George Washington's home, Mount Vernon, since 1858. This private, non-profit organization accepts no government funds and maintains Mount Vernon through visitor's fees and private donations.
Newport News
Endview Plantation
Endview Plantation is dedicated to the restoration, preservation, and interpretation of the Endview Plantation house and grounds, and the explanation of the role of the Civil War in fundamentally altering American culture, society, and history.
James A. Fields House
James A. Fields (1844-1903) was a teacher, lawyer, and member of the Virginia House of Delegates. The house was used by Fields as his law office and primary residence from 1897 to 1903. In 1908, it housed the first Newport News hospital for blacks. Today, this restored home gives visitors a glimpse into the life of urban blacks in Newport News during the 1900s.
Lee Hall Mansion
Lee Hall Mansion is the only large antebellum plantation house remaining on the lower Virginia Peninsula. Completed in 1859, Lee Hall Mansion was home to affluent planter Richard Decauter Lee (of the York County Lee family), his wife Martha, and their children. Only three years after the house's completion, the Lees fled their home as the Peninsula became one of the first battlegrounds of the Civil War.
The Mariners' Museum
You’ll find one of the largest international maritime history museums filled to the crow’s nest with prized artifacts that celebrate the spirit of seafaring adventure. Explore over 60,000 square feet of gallery space with rare figureheads, handcrafted ship models, Civil War ironclad USS Monitor artifacts, paintings, small craft from around the world, and much more.
The Newsome House
The Newsome House honors the legacy of Joseph Thomas Newsome by engaging the public in an ongoing study and rembrance of African American history and culture.
Peninsula Fine Arts Center
Explore the arts at Pfac with an ever-changing array of exhibitions, programs, events, and studio classes. We offer a balanced and stimulating program of visual arts through dynamic exhibitions and educational programs that appeal to both children and adults.
Peninsula SPCA Petting Zoo and Exotic Animals
The Petting Zoo has chickens, goats, deer, and even a peacock! What an irresistible opportunity for great pictures. The Exotic Animal Sanctuary has an African mandrill, otters, a Siberian tiger, and a black leopard.
U.S. Army Transportation Museum
Explore the world of army transportation from steam locomotives of days past to the experimental rocket belt. Experience the history of wagons, trucks, airplanes, helicopters, locomotives, tugboats, and experimental craft such as the "flying jeep." Examine 200 years of army transportation through models, dioramas, and full-size vehicles and equipment.
Virginia Living Museum
A spectacular combination of a native wildlife park, science museum, aquarium, botanical preserve, and planetarium.
Virginia War Museum
The museum was established in 1923 by American Legion Post #25 (The Braxton/Perkins Post) as the American Legion Memorial Museum. The City of Newport News assumed administration of the museum in the 1930s. In the course of the museum's existence, it's name has changed twice. In 1948 the first name change took place when the entrance of the museum moved from the southeastern side of the building to the northwestern side of the building (its current entrance location). In 1996 the name changed from The War Memorial Museum of Virginia to The Virginia War Museum.
Norfolk
Chrysler Museum of Art
World-renowned art museum displaying over 4,000 years of art including the largest Tiffany glass gallery on the east coast.
Hampton Roads Naval Museum
The naval history museum shares a building with Nauticus and includes material on the battle of the ironclads and other Civil War action.
Nauticus
Nauticus is an exciting, interactive science and technology center that explores the naval, economic, and nautical power of the sea. Home of the Battleship Wisconsin, Nauticus features Battleship Wisconsin-related exhibits, hands-on exhibits, national-caliber traveling exhibits, HD films on a giant screen, shark petting, the Hampton Roads Naval Museum, and more!
Norfolk Botanical Garden
From the award-winning Bicentennial Rose Garden to the expanding Virginia Native Plant Garden, diverse natural beauty can be explored in many signature gardens, both cultivated and wild.
Virginia Zoo
The Virginia Zoological Park seeks to increase understanding of the world's flora and fauna and to add to the growing body of knowledge about them; to display animals respectfully, in a way that encourages their natural behavior; to conserve animals and their habitats; and to offer opportunities for learning and enjoyment to the public.
Portsmouth
Children's Museum of Virginia
With over 90 hands-on exhibits for kids of all ages, including an awesome toy train collection, a planetarium and tons more, the Children's Museum is your ticket to some truly amazing places and enlightening discoveries.
Commodore Theatre
Luxuriously restored 1945 Art Deco-style motion picture theater that shows first-run movies while serving light dinners. Among the many features: a 42-foot screen, THX Digital sound system, upholstered seating and crystal chandeliers.
Courthouse Galleries
The exhibits featured in this dramatic setting encompass Eastern, Western, multicultural, traditional and contemporary art forms that inspire interest and understanding of our rich and diverse global heritage.
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum
Lightship Museum
During the Revolutionary War, the shipyard was described by the British as “the most considerable one in America.” It’s been burned three times by retreating armies because of its strategic importance. The Lightship PORTSMOUTH was built in 1915. She served for 48 years off the coasts of Virginia, Delaware, and Massachusetts helping mariners avoid dangerous shoals or enter safely into harbors at night.
Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
Established in 1972, the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum now honors more than 200 Virginia athletes, coaches, administrators, educators, and journalists who have made a major impact on the world of sports.
Purcellville
Chicama Run
See and learn what happens on a small family farm. See the baby chicks, lambs, ducks, turkeys, and more. Add egg gathering to your tour and the kids will go into the chicken coop and gather eggs to take home! They can eat the eggs or you can create a embryology project and hatch the eggs with an incubator this summer (don't worry, if you can't keep chickens you are free to bring the baby chicks back). Reservations are required.
Richmond
Agecroft Hall
On the rolling banks of the James River stands a remarkable Tudor estate. And by Tudor, we're not simply referring to an architectural style. This manor house was actually built in Lancashire, England in the late 15th Century. For hundreds of years, Agecroft Hall was the distinguished home of England's Langley and Dauntesey families. At the end of the 19th century, however, Agecroft fell into disrepair, and in 1925 it was sold at auction.
Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia
In 1991, the Museum was opened to the public at its present location in the historic Jackson Ward district of Richmond. The house built in 1832 by German descendant Adolph Dill, incorporates both the Federal and Greek Revival architectural styles. Under the leadership of Maggie L. Walker, the country's first female and Black bank president, the Council of Colored Women purchased the house in 1922. In 1932 it became the Black branch of the Richmond Public library and was named for Rosa D. Bowser, the first Black female school teacher in Richmond.
Children's Museum of Richmond
CMoR made its debut as the Richmond Children’s Museum in 1977. An arrangement was made with the City of Richmond School Board for the museum to lease the multi-purpose Navy Hill School building in downtown Richmond. In 1981, the museum opened to the public with its premiere exhibit, Boxes, Blocks, and Blueprints. For the next 18 years, CMoR welcomed children in to its small but heroic 8,100 square foot building. Then, in 2000, the Children’s Museum of Richmond opened its 42,000-square-foot facility.
Edgar Allan Poe Museum
The Poe Museum is a retreat into the nineteenth century Richmond in which the writer Edgar Allan Poe lived and worked. The Poe Museum houses the world's finest collection of Poe artifacts and memorabilia, including the poet's boyhood bed and a lock of his hair.
Hollywood Cemetery
Hollywood Cemetery was designed in 1847 in the rural style to escape grid-like monotony of older cemeteries. Its paths wind through valleys, over hills, and beneath stately trees with natural tranquility as if they were unplanned.
John Marshall House
Marshall lived in his Richmond home for 45 years. The house was owned by the family until 1911. It was saved from demolition by public outcry. The house is an excellent example of the understated elegance of Federal-era architecture and retains most of its original features.
Lewis-Ginter Botanical Gardens
Over 30 acres of gardens, including an Asian garden and a conservatory. It includes a children’s garden with a tree house.
Maymont
A 100-acre estate with a 1893 home (with tours), carriage collection, elaborate Japanese and Italian gardens, nature center and fish exhibit, wildlife exhibits, and children’s farm.
Museum of the Confederacy
The Museum of the Confederacy’s rich collection of civilian and military Civil War artifacts relating to the Confederate States of America, as well as the post-war “Lost Cause” era, is a valuable resource for the study of the role of the Confederacy in the War and in our society.
National Battlefield Park
Richmond's story is not just the tale of one large Civil War battle, nor even one important campaign. Instead, the park's resources include a naval battle, a key industrial complex, the Confederacy's largest hospital, dozens of miles of elaborate original fortifications, and the evocative spots where determined soldiers stood paces apart and fought with rifles, reaping a staggering human cost.
Science Museum of Virginia
On January 6, 1977, Governor Mills E. Godwin passed his hand through a laser beam tripping a switch which set a "Rube Goldberg" apparatus into motion. That apparatus cut a ribbon opening the Science Museum of Virginia's first permanent exhibit gallery, the Discovery Room. On that same day, fifty-eight years earlier, a very different switch had been thrown near that same spot allowing the first passenger train to depart what eventually became known as Broad Street Station. Each event was hailed as the beginning of a new age for Richmond and Virginia, and each was a long time coming.
St. John's Church
St. John's Episcopal Church is the oldest church in Richmond, Virginia. St. John's hosted the Second Virginia Convention in 1775. It was at this meeting that Patrick Henry challenged his comrades with, "Give me Liberty or give me Death." Includes tours, reenactments, and a cemetery where numerous prominent people are buried.
Tuckahoe Plantation
Built on a bluff overlooking the James River valley, the plantation and its collection of historic out buildings are in a setting that remains remarkably untouched by the passage of time. The mansions "H" shape plan is unique among frame buildings. Flanking the mansion is a pair of out buildings, one of which served as the plantation dairy and office, and the other the schoolhouse where Thomas Jefferson first attended classes.
University of Richmond Museums
The University of Richmond Museums comprises the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art, the Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center, and the Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature.
Virginia Aviation Museum
The Virginia Aviation Museum features the spectacular SR-71 Blackbird; 30 historic, vintage aircraft; reproductions of the Wright brothers' kite, gliders and famous 1903 Flyer; early flight memorabilia; a World War II diorama that includes the Tuskegee Airmen and Women's Airforce Service Pilots; and the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame.
Virginia Historical Society
The Virginia Historical Society, founded in 1831, has always been a private organization; one that derives virtually all its support from membership and endowment. At the organizational meeting in 1831, Chief Justice John Marshall was elected its first president, and former president James Madison was elected its first honorary member.
Virginia Holocaust Museum
The Virginia Holocaust Museum offers docent-led tours to groups as well as individual self-guided tours on a daily basis. In addition, the museum offers lectures, film series, and rotating exhibits. From scenes and information about forced labor and The Final Solution's gas-chamber horrors, a trip to the museum will drive home the grim realities of the Nazi rampage.
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The idea of a state-operated art museum in Richmond, and the beginnings of an unusual partnership between private donors and state legislators, actually surfaced long before the new museum was built. In 1919, Judge John Barton Payne, a prominent Virginian who held high offices in law and national politics, donated his entire collection of 50 paintings to the commonwealth. Gifts of art to the state from other donors soon followed, and in 1932 Judge Payne proposed a $100,000 challenge grant to build a museum for this burgeoning public art collection.
Wilton House Museum
Wilton, an authentic lower James River plantation house, is an impressive example of eighteenth century architecture. This five bay, double pile brick mansion adapts the English Georgian style into a gracious architectural statement that is distinctly American and Virginian. Completed in 1753 by William Randolph III, Wilton was the centerpiece of a 2,000-acre tobacco plantation and home to the Randolph family for more than a century.
Suffolk
Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
This Nature preserve encompasses over 111,000 acres where visitors enjoy wildlife observation, history, mystery and lore. Fishing and boating are permitted year round on the waters of Lake Drummond, a 3,100 acre natural lake in the heart of the swamp. A favorite destination for hikers and birdwatchers.
Riddick's Folly
During the Civil War, this 21-room, 1837 Greek-Revival style home served as headquarters for the Union, featuring period furnishings, artwork and other historical artifacts. This most impressive structure on Main Street in Suffolk features striking architectural details. The five frieze band windows across the front of the house are rarely seen in eastern Virginia. The front of the mansion is bricked in Flemish bond, and double chimneys rise from both ends of the stately historic landmark. Slender columns of the Greek Revival period frame the main entrance. The interior showcases intricately carved moldings and elaborate ceiling medallions throughout the house.
Shooting Star Gallery
The Shooting Star Art Gallery hosts a variety of changing exhibits highlighting everything from photography and painting to crafts and beadwork.
Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts
From 1922 – 1990 the old Suffolk High School was a place where memories were made. Following eight years of planning and lots of hard work, this architecturally beautiful building has been reborn as the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts. The Center provides a creative outlet for students of all ages and a venue to host a variety of performances. The Center features dance, pottery, drama and art classes along with film festivals and matinees, theatrical and musical performances.
Suffolk Museum
From traditional artistic concepts to wild, funky modern art, the changing exhibits at the Suffolk Museum are fun for the whole family. The Museum hosts a concert series, artists' demonstrations and an array of art classes.
Suffolk Seaboard Station Railroad Museum
The restored Main Street Station displays a two-room HO-scale model of Suffolk in 1907.
Suffolk Visitor Center at the Historic Prentis House
One of the oldest standing homes in Suffolk, the three-story structure has undergone an extensive restoration in compliance with the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.
Virginia Beach
Contemporary Art Center of Virginia
CAC has something for everyone. By balancing its four primary activities--gallery exhibitions, studio art classes, educational outreach programs and outdoor art shows (including the Boardwalk Art Show & Festival)--the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia seeks to involve a diverse regional public in the rich and active language of contemporary visual art.
Virginia Marine Science Museum
More than 800,000 gallons of aquariums, live animal habitats, more than 300 hands-on exhibits, a 1/3-mile nature trail, a 1/2-acre aviary, and an IMAX movie theatre.
Washington, DC
American Art Museum
The Smithsonian American Art Museum is America's first federal art collection, dedicated to the enjoyment and understanding of American art. The museum celebrates the extraordinary creativity of our country's artists, whose works are windows on the American experience.
Anacostia Community Museum
As the Smithsonian Institution's museum of African American history and culture, the Museum explores American history, society, and creative expression from an African American perspective.
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is the second largest national cemetery in the United States. Over four million people a year travel to Arlington to pay their respects to the more than 260,000 service men and women laid to rest here. Arlington is also home to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Three soldiers, one each from WWI, WWII, and the Korean War, are interred here. An unknown soldier from the Vietnam War was also interred here, but later exhumed after DNA testing determined his identity. The Tomb is guarded 24 hours a day, 365 days a year by the U.S. Army.
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing, also known as the Mint, produces over 70 billion dollars in cash every year. In addition to U.S. money, the Bureau has also printed stamps, International Monetary Fund notes and currency for other countries. Tours of the Bureau of Printing and Engraving allow visitors to view money being printed.
The Capitol
The Capitol Building first opened to the public in 1800. Gallery passes for the Senate and House allow constituents to view the Senate or House from the Visitor's Gallery when Congress is in session.
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The FBI tour is a one hour, guided, walking tour taken by almost 500,000 people a year. The tour includes exhibits on the workings of the FBI, information on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted List," and a firearms demonstration.
Ford's Theatre
Ford's Theatre is a live, working theatre located in downtown Washington, DC. As a national historic and cultural site welcoming visitors from across the nation, Ford's Theatre blends its rich history with performance excellence in serving as a living tribute to President Lincoln's love of the performing arts. When Ford's Theatre re-opened its doors in 1968 - after having been closed 103 years - it truly was reclaimed as a national treasure for all Americans, and those of us who work here are mindful of that legacy and grateful that Ford's Theatre once again is a vibrant showcase for the performing arts that President Lincoln so appreciated.
Freer & Sackler Galleries
The Freer and the neighboring Arthur M. Sackler Gallery together form the national museum of Asian art for the United States. Besides Asian art, the Freer houses a collection of 19th- and early 20th-century American art, including the world's largest number of works by James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903).
Hishhorn Museum and Sculpture Farden
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is one of the world's leading museums of international modern and contemporary art.
Holocaust Memorial Museum
The museum is dedicated to "presenting the history of the persecution and murder of six million Jews and millions of other victims of Nazi tyranny from 1933 to 1945." The Museum houses a permanent exhibit, as well as a children's exhibit, and regular special exhibitions.
Kennedy Center
Guided tours of the Kennedy Center take visitors through the Hall of States and Hall of Nations, and the Center's main theaters. Kennedy Center tours are available in many languages.
Library of Congress
The Library was founded in 1800 and was originally housed in the Capitol Building. In 1814, much of the collection was destroyed when the British burned the Capitol. In 1815, Congress authorized the purchase of Thomas Jefferson's personal library of 6,000 books to supplement the holdings of the Library of Congress. Since then the Library of Congress has become the largest library in the world housing nearly 119 million items.
National Air and Space Museum
The National Air and Space Museum has 23 main exhibits as well as many smaller, temporary exhibits. The museum houses the world's largest collection of historic air and spacecraft, including the original Wright 1903 Flyer, the "Spirit of St. Louis," Apollo 11 command module, and a Lunar rock sample that visitors can touch. In addition to its exhibitions, the museum offers daily IMAX movie screenings and daily tours.
National Archives and Records Administration
The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency that helps document and preserve our country's history by managing all federal records. The National Archives houses the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
National Building Museum
Created by an act of Congress in 1980, the National Building Museum is America's premier cultural institution dedicated to exploring and celebrating architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning. Since opening its doors in 1985, the Museum has become a vital forum for exchanging ideas and information about such topical issues as managing suburban growth, preserving landmarks and communities, and revitalizing urban centers.
National Gallery of Art
In 1928, Secretary of the Treasury, Andrew Mellon, introduced the concept of a National Art Gallery. Upon his death in 1937, Secretary Mellon left his art collection to the United States, along with funding for the construction of the National Gallery of Art. Soon after this, Congress passed legislation authorizing the establishment of the National Gallery of Art as an independent branch of the Smithsonian Institution. Since then the National Gallery has grown into one of the world's finest art galleries, with exhibitions ranging from Raphael to Alfred Stieglitz.
National Museum of African Art
The collection of the National Museum of African Art embraces the diverse artistic expressions found throughout Africa, from ancient to contemporary times. Collection objects range from ceramics, textiles, furniture and tools to masks, figures and musical instruments. The arts of painting, printmaking, sculpture and other media are well represented by living artists whose works highlight individual creativity, address global and local art trends and innovatively transform artistic traditions into modern idioms.
National Museum of American History
In 1964, the Museum of History and Technology first opened its doors to the public. The museum was created in 1955 by President Eisenhower and was renamed the National Museum of American History in 1980. The museum is responsible for the preservation and display of over 17 million artifacts, including priceless stamps in the National Postal Museum. The National Museum of American History takes visitors on a trip through American history.
National Museum of Natural History
The National Museum of Natural History houses a variety of exhibits on the history and development of our world. Permanent exhibits range from Dinosaurs to African Culture to Gems and Minerals. The Museum of Natural History also offers IMAX movies as well as daily educational events.
National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is the sixteenth museum of the Smithsonian Institution. It is the first national museum dedicated to the preservation, study, and exhibition of the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of Native Americans. Established by an act of Congress in 1989, the museum works in collaboration with the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere to protect and foster their cultures by reaffirming traditions and beliefs, encouraging contemporary artistic expression, and empowering the Indian voice.
National Portrait Gallery
The National Portrait Gallery shares with the Smithsonian American Art Museum one of Washington's oldest public buildings, a National Historic Landmark that was begun in 1836 to house the U.S. Patent Office. One of the nation's finest examples of Greek Revival architecture, the building has undergone an extensive renovation that showcases its most dramatic architectural features, including skylights, a curving double staircase, porticos, and vaulted galleries illuminated by natural light.
National Postal Museum
The National Postal Museum, a Smithsonian Institution museum, is located in the old Post Office building next to Union Station in Washington, D.C. The Museum was created by an agreement between the Smithsonian Institution and the United States Postal Service in 1990 and opened to the public in 1993.
National Zoo
The National Zoo is home to many interesting and exotic animals. The National Zoo sponsors weekly seminars which can be attended in person or online. In addition, the zoo offers many online opportunities to view the animals. The National Zoo's website offers daily live viewing of kiwis, elephants, komodo dragons and 11 other animals.
Pentagon
The Pentagon is one of the world's largest office buildings. Approximately 23,000 Department of Defense staff work at the Pentagon every day. The Pentagon began its tour program as a special part of the Nation's Bicentennial celebration in 1976. Demand for these tours was so high that they were continued.
Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle
Completed in 1855, the original Smithsonian Institution Building was designed by architect James Renwick Jr., whose other works include St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City and the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C. This Washington landmark is constructed of red sandstone from Seneca Creek, Maryland, in the Norman style (a 12th-century combination of late Romanesque and early Gothic motifs).
Smithsonian American Art Museum
The Smithsonian American Art Museum is America's first federal art collection, dedicated to the enjoyment and understanding of American art. The museum celebrates the extraordinary creativity of our country's artists, whose works are windows on the American experience.
State Department
Tours of the State Department take visitors through the Diplomatic Reception Rooms. These rooms are used by the Secretary of State, the Vice President and Cabinet members for meeting and entertaining both foreign and domestic dignitaries. The Diplomatic Reception Rooms are furnished with historic American furniture, all provided through donations from private citizens.
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States held its first session on February 1, 1790, in New York City, then the capital of the United States. Currently the Court begins session the first Monday in October and hears cases until late June or early July. Over 7,000 cases are on the Court's docket per session. Of these, only 100 are granted plenary review with oral arguments. The Justices issue formal written opinions on approximately 80-90 of the cases.
Washington Monument
Though authorized by Congress in 1833, the Washington Monument was not fully completed until 1888. The 555 foot tall monument has 897 steps. These steps are now closed to the public except for guided tours. Today's visitors reach the 500 foot landing via a 70 second elevator ride. From this landing, visitors have a clear view of Washington, DC.
White House
The White House is one of the most visited places in Washington, DC. Tours of the White House take visitors through the East, Green, Blue, Red and State Dining rooms.
Williamsburg
Williamsburg Botanical Garden
The Williamsburg Botanical Garden, comprised of dedicated citizens from the City of Williamsburg, James City County, and York County, have been working since 2000 to establish a botanical garden in Williamsburg, Virginia. The Williamsburg Botanical Garden is a 501-(c)(3) non-profit corporation. As we continue our planning efforts to select and develop a permanent location for the Garden, we welcome new members and new ideas.
Winchester
Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum
Our mission at the Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum is to ignite creativity, spark curiosity and inspire learning in visitors of all ages by providing a rich variety of interactive, hands-on exhibits and programs that focus on the sciences and mathematics, the humanities, and the arts.
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