This Museum was very nice filled with John Wayne memorabilia and artifacts. The John Wayne statue…read moreright outside the museum and birth house of John Wayne around the corner within a short walking distance. Great place to visit and take some pictures or video. There is a $20 ticket fee.

Fabulous, in-depth museum of a great American hero .. .. Learn all about him in multiple rooms…read moreincluding a small theatre with original rows of seats from the Chinese Theatre in LA .. .. His birthplace and family home is right next door and a docent is there to explain everything .. .. And, do yourself a favor, come in/out of WINTERSET on the 169 for one of the loveliest drives you can take in America!

This was a fantastic museum! Small but mighty…read more The grounds are kept so well and I loved being able to walk the prairie landscape park by Jens Jensen. There was a lot of good information inside, of course with artwork, to artifacts and even some props brought over from Denmark. My favorite was the small photo album from the 1970's when they brought over the Danish windmill from Denmark and it shows the complete transformation. The staff was SO kind and helpful and just really eager for us to ask questions and have a great experience and visit. As someone who adores everything Danish I loved this exhibit! Their gift shop was so well done and I walked away with some local honey and Bjorn Wiinblad wall hanging to add to my collection. I would definitely recommend this place if you're visiting the area, and I so hope to be back one day!

Stop in here on a little road trip back home. I thought this place was really cool. It's in what…read moreI'm pretty sure is an actual Danish village. A lot of the people living near by are Danish I'm pretty sure. The museum building itself is beautiful then add in all the art and culture it's even more amazing. I brought my kids with me and I feel like they didn't appreciate it as much as I did but we were at the tail end of the trip and they wanted to be home. There were so many cool artifacts to look at that I wasn't able to see all of them because my kids were afraid being on the 3rd level . The woman working the front desk was so kind and lovely. I wish I would have gotten her name. It was peaceful and cool in here too. It was a fun stop in and learning experience!

This house is very well maintained and taken care of, the attic is very small and very creepy…read more There were plenty of pictures on the wall and axe makings on the walls in certain areas of the house. The tour of the house was definitely nice and I recommend it to people who are very interested or adventurous.

We booked an overnight stay at the Villisca Axe Murder House with a group of coworker friends,…read morewhich was super odd to begin with. But with all its ups and downs, we had a ton of fun overall. We were to meet our guide at the museum in town, but arrived a little early and had a bit of time to look around at the exhibits. The museum had a lot of items from the period when the murders took place - things like old Coke and Pepsi bottles, but none of which were used in any of the murders so we just took a passing glance. We came upon a bucket of old shingle scraps from the original murder house (free for the taking) so that was an interesting piece of the history. We did not take any of these shingle chips, lest we bring something more than memories home with us. Once we met our guide, she was to take us around the area and to the cemetery where the victims are buried, and then to the Axe Murder House where we would spend the night. Since we had a big group and she drove a small Sedan, she just said to follow her in our car and she would point out her window at a few things along the way and then tell us what the pointed-at things meant when we arrived at the cemetery. However, she also had a cigarette she ashed out the window so we weren't sure what was pointing and what was ashing. Just to be clear, I'm not complaining about this - it was hilarious. Our guide imparted to us that she had heard weed-whacking sounds at the cemetery earlier that week, but when she looked around, there was no weed-whacking landscaper to be seen. Needless to say, we were on the lookout for this phantom weed whacker the rest of the experience. We arrived at the main event, and got a quick tour of the barn, cellar, and the house. Inside the house there were a few historical pieces from the Moore family (the victims) such as some clothing laid out on the beds and photos on the walls. Once we were on our own, we ventured into the cellar first. After looking around a bit, a mouse or maybe a stick touched my friend's foot and she screamed, which caused us all to scream. When we found out it was just a mouse/stick, we told her to save her screams for actual ghosts or supernatural sightings. We next went to check out the barn a little closer, and saw that there were some semi-unflattering paintings of the victim's on the wall, along with a previous visitor's warning: "Sh*t went down!" We strolled around the rest of the grounds, which included an outhouse, a little gazebo style pair of benches, and a few other outbuildings. One thing to note here is that this house is not in the middle of nowhere out in a cornfield where you feel isolated and instantly eery - it's in the middle of a neighborhood with neighbors' yards all around, including playsets and bicycles, etc. If you can ignore those, the grounds do feel a little creepy as you walk through them. After our little stroll of the surrounding area, we headed into the house. We sort of just waited around for nightfall and chatted a bit about what we thought we might see once it got dark. We had Casey's Pizza and wine coolers, so we were having a good time while we waited, don't worry. Once night fell, we did walk around the house a little more (with flashlights) to see if any spooky things happened now that it was dark. We did hear a slight tapping/humming noise, but when we went to investigate, it ended up being the old window air conditioner. At this point, we thought we may need to delve deeper to get these spirits to haunt us. Luckily, one of my coworkers brought a crystal which we used to ask the spirits questions (yes or no questions). We decided the crystal swinging one way meant yes and the other way being no. I feel that was kind of arbitrary since we made up the rules of the answering format, but we did get it swinging a little bit to get some possible answers out of those dang ghosts. My other coworker brought an EVP reader and we asked the spirits a few questions (but we didn't get to hear the recordings until the next week, and there were a few little spooky things there, if you increased the volume a ton and could hear a muffled voice kind of saying a few of our names). A handful in our group were getting tired and did not want to sleep in the house, so they headed to their van at this point to hit the hay. The true ghost hunters (me and a few others) stayed up the rest of the night so we didn't miss anything spooky that may pop up. We didn't see anything creepy beyond a wasp's nest in the attic and a suspicious doll we found in one of the bedrooms. The morning came, and even though we didn't have any specific haunting experiences, we did have a ton of fun and did freak each other out a few times, so it was all in all a pretty good time. I would recommend this experience if you have a good group to go with, and a light spirit to not take it too seriously and expect to see Ghostbusters-like apparitions (who knows, maybe YOU will!)

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.

If you want to be remembered or leave a legacy, support the work of this museum. They need more…read morespace for exhibitions, a proper store for merchandising, climate-controlled space, in an extraordinary building. Surely, those whose families have built and sustained this community can come forth and donate the resources to make this the kind of place residents can be proud of. Currently housed in the Ames Cultural District next to an historic landmark and across the street from the Octagon Center for the arts, this wonderful museum is packed with historical items waiting to be displayed, used for research and exhibits worthy of this fine city. They need more volunteers, donors, members, and storage in order to stage the kind of exhibits that do justice to those who grew up here, studied here, and conducted business here. New exhibits on the craft beer industry and education are currently in process. How do you want to be remembered?

A long time in the making, the Ames Historical society has worked hard to assemble the history of…read morethe city. The pictures and story are presented in a very compelling way. Stop in and enjoy!

This was a great little museum with many interesting historical items from the entire area. The…read morecurator, Trisha, was fabulous!!! She was so thoughtful and helpful. Made you feel right at home. A real local treasure and great person.

Had my wedding here and it was the perfect setting for a midwest/retro wedding. They were very kind…read morehere and allowed me to be there the day before to decorate for a very nominal fee.

A really nice cultural experience in the heart of Des Moines. The series of buildings includes the…read moreonly I M Pei design (same architect of the glass pyramid in the heart of the Paris Louvre). Iowa the Des Moines Art Center is a nice way to spend a few hours. Complementary admission and free parking is an added bonus and a fantastic value. And impressive selection of old world and modern art, including some more well-known artists such as Picasso, Goya, Cezanne, Miro, Lichtenstein, and an impressive selection of newer artists that definitely leave a lasting impression. I recommend that you stop, and even if only to see a few of the artists and a little bit of the architecture. Great gift shop too!

Spent an afternoon with artists Picasso, Hopper, Warhol, Matisse, Miro, Chagall, Klee, Monet, and…read moreothers...at the fabulous Des Moines Art Center! I did not expect to see some of the world's greatest artists in Des Moines. Instead, it was an elite venue at an incredible price point. Located in Ingersoll Park, 20 minutes from Ankeny and 10 minutes from the State Capitol, the Art Center is a must-see, beautiful venue with spectacular works, considerable spaces, and gorgeous grounds. Amazingly, it is free. Loved the Samantha Box "Caribbean Dreams" exhibit, a fantastic collection of photography and art. I also loved works by Stella ("Interlagos"), Kiefer ("untitled"), Francis ("Summer #2"), and Schnabel. We also liked the postcard exhibit. The building has an awesome vibe and incredible visuals throughout its spectacular architecture. There is a great gift shop and discounted items near the entrance. Sensational guidance and kindness from the museum's docents, notably Loretta, Issac, and Gabby.

I was a here 30 years ago, so much has changed in that time. They have gotten better with age…read more We drove up from the St. Louis area for the Valentine's Day dinner train. It is a throwback to earlier times being able to have a nice meal on vintage railway equipment. My wife enjoyed the shrimp and linguine and I had beef with noodles. Both were very good. The ride itself winds its way along the river and over a couple of bridges. The stop and allow everyone to go to the observation car to enjoy the view from the High Bridge. Dinner is a leisurely affair so that you can enjoy each others company while the scenery slides by. Because it was February, the sun sets early and the ride home was in darkness, the have lights on the exterior of the cars that illuminate the right of way as you head back to the station. I am glad that my wife knows how much I enjoy riding the rails, and indulges me with great times like this.

We had tickets for an open car on what turned out to be a hot day. The crew offered us to seat in a…read morecar with shade. The railroad is the main attraction. The view is ok with a couple of highlights. We originally wanted to be on the pedaled carts but they were sold out. They certainly looked like fun. A good attraction for kids and seniors.

So I came here on a day they were closed. The hours are very short and it makes it hard for people…read moreto visit this museum. I am a lover trains and train history. I do enjoy the location because it is a very short drive from the center of town. It's also perched on a hill and the outside of the building looks very cute. I hope the hours are a little better when I come to Iowa next because I would love to see the inside. The outside was incredible and made me smile! The three stars is because of the hours being so short and during the middle of the week. I wish I could have seen the inside of this place on a Saturday. Next time I will try to visit during your business hours!

From the owner: The Restored Burlington Northern Depot and WWII Memorial Museum, built in 1903 and restored in…read more2003, is now a beautiful restored railroad depot and memorial military museum. Exhibits, library, theatre for viewing railroad and military related videos, all adjacent to the BNSF mainline between Chicago and Denver. Facilities for receptions, seminars, meeting of all kinds, and catering services, including an on-site kitchen. Usual OPEN hours: 10 am to 12 noon, Monday thru Friday, March thru December. OPEN by appointment anytime. t 712.621.9099 museum@depothill.net