Great spot for a free indoor adventure…read more Right in the heart of OEC this museum is a great spot for a quick dose of history. The displays are great and who can beat the model train garden! You can also get inside a train car and experience what it was like to ride the oldest continuously running rail line.

Want a nice distraction from reality, one that is free? Then make yourself a detour and come to…read morethis nice little museum in historic Ellicot City. I had no idea that this museum existed until I was already in town. I parked my car near the top of town in one of the many free parking lots and started down the hill. I figured if I started at the bottom and made my way up, it would feel less of a tiring task heading back up. By heading to the bottom of the hill I found this gem. Like I said at the beginning, this is a free museum to attend (donations are welcome to help maintain the place). When you visit, you are transported back in time to when the railroads ruled the country. What you will come to find out is that this is the oldest railroad station still standing in the nation (that is how they bill it). When you start to traverse the museum you learn more and more about the history of this particular train station. You learn that it was first used with horse and carriage, then converted into a freight train station, and finally to a freight/passenger station before it was essentially decommissioned. Making your way through the museum you discover that you can see the working parts of it all. You go through the room that was the living quarters of the man that ran the station. You make your way upstairs and through the areas that was basically the central nervous system of the building. You pass by the ticket booth which tells you that back then there was separate entrances for men and women. Showing you that back then the railroad was a male dominated industry. You even get a glimpse of some very old graffiti. Make your way through what was the freight house and continue out into where they used to work on the trains. Once you are finished inside you can head outside onto what was once the passenger platform. Hang a right and head past the turntable to the external exhibit spaces. In what I am guessing is another freight house you will find a model of the railroad of the immediate and nearby area. Take a seat in here and you can watch a short documentary detailing the railroad in the area. After, or even before, the show, you can interact with the railroad model. Push a button and you will see how the railroad worked. Look closely and you will see the detail of each area. All the intricate little pieces of this model comes to life. Once you have fulfilled your inner child, you can then head outside once again and see the last piece of this museum. A caboose. You get to actually climb up into the caboose and see how one was used. Take a seat and take it in. You can take as much time as you want here, or run through it and get it completely out the way quickly. I'm sure you could even revisit this place and discover something new you overlooked on your prior visit.

I admit, I came here for the instagram photos. I didn't get exactly what I came for because you…read moreonly see a limited number of rooms in the house and you can't take photos on the first floor (to protect the artifacts) . . . but it was still a worthwhile trip! First, call ahead (there is no online system so you do actually have to call) to make sure they are giving tours and at what times (only certain days of the week, last tour usually starts at 1 PM). This mansion is another relic from the gilded age, however this one isn't completely stuck in the past and is a living, breathing arts venue. The last residents (she died in 1956 I think) had no children and left it to Johns Hopkins University with the specification it be used as an art museum. And there is a lot of interesting and attractive art, though it's mostly art by European white men. That's just what the owners collected . . . but our docent told us they are trying to diversify the collection by purchasing pieces by artists of color. The libraries are actually part of the Johns Hopkins collection and students can make appointments to come read them or use them for research. There are some nature books and some Audubon books that are so large that they require two people to move and turn the pages. There is also a reading room for students. It was previously their bedroom, which they didn't want displayed. There are some fun little quirky rich people things (if you dissociate from today's capitalistic hell). A 23K gold bathroom. The second wife who lived in the residence was obsessed with herself and had multiple paintings and busts of herself around the home. And her bathtub was surrounded by mirrors, including a mirror on the ceiling. A bowling alley that was turned into a display space for all their expensive artificacts. A lot of Tiffany glass. Antiquities. My admission was 10 dollars with a AAA discount. I think regular admission is 12 dollars.

I do recommend calling to confirm when a docent is available, but if one is, it is definitely worth…read morecoming. There is plenty of parking as it's a bit away from the main Johns Hopkins campus. Our tour guide was really knowledgeable and explained a lot about each room and answered all of our questions. There are a lot of beautiful and unique objects, even though unfortunately photograph isn't allowed in the good rooms. The sheer amount of books they owned and how they present them is pretty inspiring. The Garrett's having their own performance/stage area is pretty unique, and you can even rent the space out if desired. At the end, there's a great display of their Asian art collection, and then suddenly you are back in the gift shop where you started, which has some good items. The tour was more than an hour, but it was really interesting, and all the employees were excited to answer questions, so you could see their passion. It's a great tour and worth doing if in Baltimore.

Bottom Line: A small museum but worth a stop if riding on a streetcar sounds like fun…read more I think vintage streetcars are neat and I'm always intrigued by off-the-beaten-path museums so the Baltimore Streetcar Museum was a perfect stop for me this past weekend. Even better, they were having "dollar days" so admission was only $1. The museum is small and underwhelming but the ride on a historic streetcar was super fun! Actually, the museum has three streetcars from different eras and you can ride all of them if you'd like. The conductor on our streetcar was knowledgeable and entertaining. I liked that he rang the bell every time someone boarded just as the conductor would have done back in the day. Even better, after we rode out to the turnaround point he stopped the streetcar and without saying anything, got up from his seat and switched the signs on the front and sides of the car that stated the route/destination. This was funny because the streetcar rides on a closed track and it probably only goes about one mile before turning around. It was at this point in our journey that he also told us the history of streetcars. This museum is small but it is a neat experience and it represents the dedication of many volunteers so I must give a shout out to those who make this place possible. Thanks for keeping history alive in Bal'mor.

Hidden gem preserving a piece of bygone Baltimore history and you can ride multiple 100+ year old…read morestreetcars too. The exhibit is quite interesting and shows how Baltimore's long-defunct streetcar system helped shape the city into what it is today. They offer frequent rides on multiple streetcars throughout the day on their 3/4 mile track that are included in the $10 admission. The day I visited there were 3 streetcars operating, one about 75 years old, another about 115, and another almost 125 years old. One of the streetcars broke down en route (ironically the ~75 year old PCC which was relatively the newest) but to the staff's credit they were able to improvise a clever solution involving sticking a screwdriver into the gear box to get it running again so we didn't have to walk back to the museum. The people working here really know their stuff about these machines! Overall highly recommend, it's very friendly for both adults and kids. Only thing to note is it's only open on Sundays from noon-5PM

Overall: great museum, super inclusive restrooms, lots to do and learn for all ages, lots of indoor…read moreand outdoor spaces, worth the price, kind employees My 1 year old was free. We went on a day with a Lego event and paid $20 per adult and $12 for our 4 year old and I found there was plenty to do for a morning and it felt worth the cost. We had been to a Trolley Museum and the B&O Museum in old Ellicott City and this was way better than either of those. There was plenty to explore for at least half of a day. For super young kids there was a kids indoor area and a small outdoor playground. There were tons of model trains, small and medium, indoor and outdoor. I would definitely go to this museum on days where it isn't raining because there is just as much to do outside as there is inside. They have tons of full size trains. You can explore the inside of some of them and they have different themes and things you can learn about. The Lego event we went to was super simple and run really well. All the kids were being super creative and persistent and having a blast building cars and racing them down a large ramp. We will definitely be back at some point.

The museum itself was really amazing. I thought the inside of the museum was beautifully maintained…read morewith great attention to detail. The admission price was very reasonable, and my young kids really enjoyed the time we spent there. This museum is connected to the Smithsonian, though you wouldn't know it. It's very quietly stated on one of their signs, but not many other places. Some things that weren't as positive were that the website is out of date. The website said there were rides outside for kids. Which there was technically one ride. But it hasn't been in operation for quite some time. The other ride wasn't there. The other bummer was that I left an item behind at the museum. Even though I called the museum the week after our visit 3 times, left voicemails every time, and emailed, no one has ever gotten back to me. It really disappointed me that they have no one to help customers. Even when we were there, staff was minimal. Museum cutbacks I assume. Still, I would go back.

WHAT A TREAT, to have caught the entire Amy Sherald exhibit and BAM! I loved this museum, and this…read moreexhibit specifically! My college campus and myself took a trip here for this, and 5/5 would recommend! So enlightening, so thought-provoking, so CHROME. ;) I'm also especially thankful for the guides that walked our group through Amy's pieces, who then were able to describe and confirm the emotions and response she wanted her audience to receive! Love love love this museum, and thank you to my campus for coordinating this.

My very first visit to the BMA will definitely not be the last. The collection in the museum is…read morehuge! It's definitely a great way to spend your day. I came here specifically for the Amy Sherald collection and was not disappointed. There is plenty of street parking and it doesn't cost much. They also have parking lots in case street parking is hard to find (I'm pretty sure it's hard to find street parking during weekdays because its in the JHU area). Check in was super easy. I was lucky enough to secure a free Thursday ticket, otherwise, there is an admission fee for the exhibit. Finding it was super easy because the staff gave great directions. It was crowded but the flow of the space made it not so overwhelming. All of her paintings were beautiful and meaningful. I loved that they included information about the pieces, what made her choose certain colors, how she chose what height the paintings should be placed and a short video of how she started her career and her process of creating. After leaving her exhibit, I wandered off to see other portions of the museum. The collections were beautiful. I didn't get to see everything because it was getting late but I look forward to visiting again soon.

The Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse is located on Pier 5 of Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Built in 1856, it…read moreis one of the oldest Chesapeake lighthouses still in existence. It initially stood on Seven Foot Knoll in the mouth of the Patapsco River, but it was transferred to Baltimore Maritime Museum (now the Historic Ships of Baltimore) in 1997 and was installed at its current location on the pier. It's worth walking over to see the lighthouse if you're wandering around the Inner Harbor (or visiting the Historic Ships of Baltimore), but you'd be lucky to find it open. It's open seasonally to begin with, but the website currently has a note about restoration ("An update on the Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse will be coming soon.") and no opening hours. If you are lucky enough to get inside, the website refers to artifacts in its collection? That sounds exciting. But I personally have never seen it open! Still, its size, color, shape, and location make it worth a visit just for photographs if you're in the area.

How did I not see this when visiting the Inner Harbor??!…read more There's a set of tall stairs that lead you up so if you're scared of heights, watch out. You can walk around the lighthouse for a free scenic view or go inside where you'll meet a worker. The worker was super informative and nice. He told me and my friend that we could do a self guided tour of the lighthouse for $3/per person or there was another rate for the tour + seeing 4 ships. This time, we ended up just doing the self guided tour. When having conversations between me and my friend, the worker actually chimed in here and there. It was interesting to read up on the previous keepers and their lives. One thing I loved about the lighthouse was that there's a map that lights up to show diff locations of other lighthouses.

We arrived in Ellicott City on a beautiful windy winter day. I think you need a lot of patience…read moredriving around cause it's a small area and parking is as precious as gold. If you find a spot, take it. We meandered into HorseSpirit Gallery and just spent an hour overwhelmed by the talent of the work by different artists. They have fabulous jewelry, to die for wind chime sculptures and some art pieces that make you do a double take. I would definitely put this on my list of places to go if you are in the area. For this shop as well as all the others along the strip.

Beautifully curated gallery focusing on Maryland artists. Great location at Savage Mill. Robin,…read morethe owner, works so well with artists and clients. Highly recommended.

Sykesville The Gate House Museum of History…read more 7282 Cooper Dr, Sykesville, MD 21784 Open Tue, Fri 10am-4pm and Sun noon-5pm a restroom inside the building not accessible for strollers and wheelchairs Free! open parking spot at the lot next to the museum or street parking under the trees. ℹ thegatehousemuseum.com 410.549.5150 * Research assistance and private tour are available by appointment. While you visit @townofsykesville, stop by at The Gate House Museum and check it out how it is restored today. We were warmly guided by Ms. Adrian, the curator of the Gate House Museum, during our visit. It was a remarkable experience to see all the exhibits in person. Cool for little friends: ** Experience how the cashier machine worked back in that time. ** You can try to call from an antique landline phone and flash back on how it was working back then. About the Gate House: (from thegatehousemuseum.com) William Shipley, the hospital's chief of purchasing, lived in the Gate House from 1913 to 1954. When Route 32 was constructed, it cut the town off from the hospital, and the house gradually fell into disrepair. Eventually, the Town of Sykesville purchased the house from the state for just $100. Today, the Gate House has been beautifully restored and transformed into a museum, thanks to a dedicated group of volunteers. They've spent countless hours collecting artifacts, analyzing historic paint layers, fighting off termite damage, arranging exhibits, and preserving the building's rich history. Due to the building's limited space, research appointments and private tours are available by appointment only. To schedule a group tour or research visit, please contact the curator at (410) 549-5150. #thegatehousemuseum #sykesville #millarcooperpark #playgroundsinmaryland #preservefootprints