I was last there in 2005, a sad fact because many happenings have taken place since then. The…read moreDowning House is only a part of the museum complex, which has so many amazing exhibits and interesting features. It is in a small town with diligent volunteers who were able to host a 2026 spring presentation featuring Ella Ewing, a resident of the area, known as the Missouri Giantess. She died long ago, but her fascinating life is well remembered at the Downing House. A visit to the museum is worth the trip just to learn about her, but there is much more. Make sure to plan ahead to a time when the museum will be open!

For the fans of art, history, architecture, or roadside attractions, this is a spot to stop for!…read moreThere's a museum ($5/person) that's full of information about the artist and the painting. The museum details the artwork and life of Grant Wood. There's learning activities for kids throughout, an opportunity to put costumes over your clothes as a photo opportunity in front of the house, and a neat little gift shop. I don't know if it's a place you visit more than once, but I'm so glad to have been! The $5 was worth it in my opinion and visiting in the spring was great as the have an extensive native plant garden that was in full bloom when we were there.

The American Gothic House and Museum in Eldon, Iowa was still a really cool stop even though I…read morearrived too late to tour the museum itself. Seeing the actual house from such an iconic painting in person was surprisingly special and instantly recognizable. It is one of those places where you feel the weight of art history just standing there, even without going inside. I loved being able to walk around the exterior, take photos, and appreciate how such a simple house became so famous. If you have better timing than I did, I'm sure it would be worth planning ahead to see the museum too.

Always a good thing! The museum preserves and displays historical memorabilia, photos, and stories…read morefrom Wapello County, Iowa. I appreciate the grand effort made by the society to preserve and share information. My grandparents lived in Wapello County their entire lives and I grew up spending summers at the farm. I would love to see the Military Room receive a renovation with greater emphasis on Wapello County veterans.

From the owner: The Iowa Heartland History Connection is a southeastern Iowa history museum with so much to offer!…read more- museum exhibits that rotate regularly with new things to see - view items from our own collection, from private collections, and other museums - dedicated kids room for learning and exploration - gift shop that features Iowa themed gifts and hand-made goods from local small businesses - rooms for rent for meetings, classes, lectures, presentations, and parties - a research library for National History Day research and genealogy - you can also ask a volunteer here to do research for you (for a fee)

Love, love, love this museum. Nestled right on the Pentacrest of The University of Iowa campus, we…read morereally do have an amazing resource in our own backyard (for those of us who live in the Eastern Iowa corridor area, at least). The museum hasn't changed much since I last visited 10+ years ago, but that's okay. Rusty the Sloth and the polar bear in the gift shop are staples. Macbride Hall houses the Department of Anthropology at U of I. Wouldn't it be cool to see these artifacts every day as a student? The pair of lions in Mammal Hall were placed in an enclosed case in 202 (previously not enclosed) and a nice mural was painted behind them. From what I could tell, that's the most recent update to one of the museum's exhibits. Museum is free, but a donation is suggested. Please don't skip the donation box located near the guestbook in the gift shop. As indicated in a previous review, some of the exhibits have become quite 'well-loved.' Interactive features no longer work, particularly in the Hall of Birds. Mammal Hall is my most favorite, but there's so much to learn from each area of the museum. The museum covers 3 floors of Macbride Hall. Take the stairs and work those quads! Elevator available as well. Due to the summer season museum hours are a little different, so I'd call ahead or check the website for details. Parking during the summer on the street is easy to find. $1.50/hour. Highly recommend!

Great spot to walk around and explore with kids. Staff was friendly, fun scavenger hunt.read more

Gorgeous mansion in a section of Quincy where you see a few blocks of absolutely gorgeous mansion-…read moretype homes that are amazingly maintained! Beautiful woodwork and furnishings. Some docent provided information, as well as self guided tour .

Beautiful place! Some original furniture & clothing pieces, other period pieces donated from…read morenearby. Very nice place to stop and learn some local history.

Museum was closed when we were driving through but what was available outside was fun to see and…read moreread about the Doodlebug.

There really is something for everyone, especially people with a fascination for trains - that…read morecovers most of the population. My favorite car has always been the caboose, love the idea of looking out the back where you are and where you've been. The museum has limited hours during the week, join the volunteers for coffee 7:00-9:00am. Merle is available to schedule personal tours. The depot has been beautifully restored and the displays are thorough and very organized. Don't miss the stroll out back to the river - gorgeous view.

Want to travel back in time? This preservation site includes historical buildings, tools, picture,…read moretoys, implements, documents and more. We are lucky enough to having loving relatives to guide us thru these olden structures that feel, at once, like they were created not that long ago and could still be utilized today.

The Dumont Museum is an amazing place! The owner, Lyle Dumont, happens to be my first cousin. In…read morespite of the fact that the museum is only about 40 miles from where I live, I'd never been there until this past spring. The collections he has amassed are mind-boggling! There is a huge collection of Roy Rogers memorabilia, the largest collection of Barbie dolls I've ever seen, and the model train setups have to be seen to be believed!

Want to learn more about this amazing state? Then plan your trip to take a tour of the exhibits at…read morethe Historical Building. Conveniently located near a free parking ramp and the State Capitol building (while you're at it, take a tour there too!). This building also hosts events. I have attended a roof top wedding reception and a day long symposium is the auditorium.

There are an excellent array of exhibits here! Ranging from early Iowa settler history, to civil…read morerights war, and everything in between until present day! It's free, and there's a good amount of info in short blurbs so it's all easy to read. There's interactive exhibits and it's all very clean. Definitely check this out to learn a lot about Iowa and US history in the context of Iowa. It's very kid friendly as well.

Herbert Hoover was our 31st president, in which he served from 1929- 1933. He served right when the…read moreUS went into the Great Depression. He only served one term and lost to Franklin D. Roosevelt when he tried to run for office a second time. Herbert Hoover was born in West Branch, Iowa. He was born into a religious Quaker family. Unfortunately he became an orphan at only 9 years old, but was raised by his uncle in Oregon. After he graduated from Stanford, he went into mining. He actually ended up becoming a mining engineer, working in Australia, where he made most of his fortune in mining. He was one of the first presidents to forgo his presidential salary and donate most of it to his charity. Herbert Hoover met his wife at Stanford, while she was perusing a teaching degree. They got married the day before they left for China. He was under contract to the Chinese government in which he investigated the conditions in Chinese mines and would make his recommendations for improvement. They ended up living in Tientsin. Lou Hoover learned how to speak and write Chinese during their stay. Over the next 14 years, they ended up traveling all over the world. Lou Hoover gave birth to two sons. This presidential library does have a national historical site, in which you can view Herbert Hoover's birthplace cottage, his school house, the blacksmith shop his father owned and worked at, and also can visit the visitor center. The historical site is free. However the presidential library, which is right around the corner, does charge for admission ($10 for adults aged 16 and older, $3 for children aged 3- 15, $5 for seniors, military and college students). After you are done visiting the library, you should head out to the gravesite of Herbert Hoover and his wife. This presidential library is my 12th of 13 libraries that I have already visited (although there are 14 presidential libraries, please note that Obama's is not currently ready and open to the public to visit yet). I really enjoy presidential history and found that this library seems to have less information than the other presidential libraries that I have visited. There is not as much about the president himself growing up and the first wife. Also there is very little information about his children. So it may not take as long to visit this library if you read everything, my husband and I were here about 90 minutes, which includes watching the introductory video near the lobby of the library. Herbert Hoover's youngest Son, Allan Hoover, purchased his father's birthplace cottage and restored it. This eventually lead to the national historical site that I had mentioned earlier and the construction of this presidential library. Overall, I really enjoyed our visit. I especially enjoyed the flour sacks exhibit. This exhibit covered Herbert Hoover's initiative to help provide food relief to children in Belgium and also aid prisoners of war. Part of this program helped to raise funds by selling empty flour sacks that were made of cotton. The flour sacks were made into clothing, accessors, pillows, bags, etc. Some had embroider, some were painted on or stenciled on the fabric. Herbert Hoover was given several hundred of these special decorated flour sacks as gifts, in which you can see some on display in this exhibit. This exhibit has one of the largest collection of WWI flour sacks in the world.

Although I haven't been here since I was a fifth grader in elementary school, when your family from…read moreNew York City comes out and wants some Iowa culture this is obvious a spot in the area after you've run out of bars, bars, and football. The museum is pretty thorough, interactive, clean, and modern and also has rotating exhibits. If you for some reason wanted to go more than once a decade. Always nice to be able to tour inside the nearby original house and other time era structures on your own, which is a very cool and trusting thing. The price is normal for Iowa. I think it was between 10 and $15 a person for entrance but these days it always changes so make sure to check if that's an issue. I do remember that they have discounts for students and children.