Search Results for: art museum

Charlottesville | Presidential Sites | presidents | Virginia
James Monroe’s Highland in Charlottesville, Virginia
ByJennRecord August 29, 2023November 7, 2023
Highland, a 535 acre former plantation resting in the hills of Charlottesville, Virginia, was the home of America’s fifth president, James Monroe. While Monroe never lived at Highland full time, he spent significant time (sometimes for months at one time) from 1799-1826 with his wife and three children. The main house was built in 1799 and the guesthouse was added in 1818. Monroe hosted several guests, including John Quincy Adams and many political figures and dignitaries over the years. There were also dozens of enslaved men, women, and children who worked at Highland for over 150 years and historians are currently conducting ongoing research and restoration to uncover the true story behind the people who lived and worked at Highland.
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Charlottesville | Presidential Sites | presidents | Virginia
10 Places to Explore at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello in Charlottesville, VA
ByJennRecord August 15, 2023November 7, 2023
In addition to being America’s 3rd President (from 1801-1809) Thomas Jefferson is also known for prestigious roles include Governor of Virginia, writer of the Declaration of Independence, the first Secretary of State, the second Vice President, and the founder of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. Jefferson’s Monticello (pronounced “ch-ello” not “cell-o”) is Italian for “Little Mountain” and is celebrating it’s centennial anniversary of being open to the public since 1923. Over the past 100 years, the main house has been restored and the property has been expanded to include several museum exhibits, outdoor gardens and vineyards, a restaurant, expansive gift shop, and daily programs and events to engage the entire family.
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Concord | family travel | New England | New Hampshire | science center
10 Ways to Explore the McAuliffe Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, N.H.
ByJennRecord July 25, 2023July 24, 2023
The McAuliffe Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, New Hampshire is a science museum and planetarium that honors the life’s work and legacy of the first American in space and Derry, New Hampshire native, Alan Shepard, and Concord High School social studies teacher and the first teacher in space, Christa McAuliffe. Opened as a stand alone planetarium and memorial to Christa McAuliffe in 1990, the center added Alan Shepard to its honorees, and then expanded to include a full science museum in 2009. The 45,000 square foot center one of the most popular attractions in the capital city of Concord, New Hampshire, just hour north of Boston. There are dozens of interactive STEM exhibits that will engage the whole family.
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Concord | family travel | New Hampshire | New Hampshire | Presidential Sites | presidents
Playing “I Spy” At the Pierce Manse in Concord, NH
ByJennRecord July 18, 2023September 3, 2023
On a recent visit to New Hampshire’s state Capital of Concord, we wanted to learn more about the only US President to come from New Hampshire: Franklin Pierce and his estate, the Pierce Manse. America’s 14th president, serving one term from 1853 to 1857, Franklin Pierce was born in Hillsboro, New Hampshire and later served as a lawyer in Hillsboro. The seventh of nine children, Pierce’s father was a two time New Hampshire Governor in the 1820s. Pierce graduated from Maine’s Bowdoin College, where he met lifelong good friend, author Nathaniel Hawthorne.
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living history | New England | New Hampshire | New Hampshire
Playing “I Spy” at Canterbury Shaker Village in New Hampshire
ByJennRecord June 26, 2023September 3, 2023
On a recent trip to beautiful Concord, New Hampshire we stopped at nearby Canterbury Shaker Village for an afternoon of exploration and learning about the history and lifestyle of the Shakers.
The Shakers first formed in the early 1700s in England. Known as “Shaking Quakers” because of their erratic dancing during worship, the founders were previously members of other religious groups, including English Quakers and Methodists. A group of nine people, led by Mother Ann Lee, came to New York in 1774 to build “Heaven on Earth” and eventually made their way to Canterbury, New Hampshire, just north of Concord, in the early 1790s.
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family travel | Massachusetts | Springfield | Springfield | Zoo
Eight Ways to Have Fun at the Lupa Zoo in Springfield, MA
ByJennRecord June 6, 2023February 19, 2026
The 20 acre Lupa Zoo in Ludlow, Massachusetts (just 15 minutes from downtown Springfield, Massachusetts) is home to over 500 animals, including everything from bobcats, zebras, bears, and donkeys to camels, antelope, goats, ostriches and emus. Polish immigrants Henry and Joan Lupa owned a landscaping and construction business in the 1960s and 1970s and later grew such a large collection of farm animals that locals began visiting. The Lupas decided to open a zoo to the general public in 1996. Today, there are additions that include ponds with several species of birds, a critter garden, and an indoor habitat for sloths, lizards, snakes, and more! Kids of all ages will enjoy learning about, and seeing up close, over 100 species of animals.
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