Hartford Museums

(Hartford, Connecticut - CT, USA)

The Mark Twain House and Museum resides on Farmington Avenue, on the western side of downtown Hartford and within the historic neighborhood of Asylum Hill, where it remains an extremely important building. Famous American author Samuel Langhorne Clemens, who is better known by his pen name Mark Twain, commissioned the building of this house in 1871, living here between the years of 1874 and 1891.

Close to Hartford City Hall and just off Grove Street, the Connecticut Science Center is situated on the eastern side of the city center, nearby the waterfront of the Connecticut River. This museum-type attraction is perfect for families and those with curious minds, since it is packed with some 150 interactive exhibits, along with educational laboratories and a modern digital theater screening regular 3D films.

Also worth mentioning is the Connecticut Historical Society Museum and Library, which is to be found within the West End district, just down the road from the campus of the University of Connecticut School of Law. This official state society was established all the way back in 1825 and now ranks amongst the oldest societies within North America.

Mark Twain House and Museum

Address: 351 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06105, USA
Tel: +1 860 247 0998
During his time living here, Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain) wrote many of his most acclaimed bestsellers in the Billiards Room on the top floor, with some of his most notable books including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Prince and the Pauper. When Clemens left his house to move to Europe, the building was initially used as a school, before being split into apartments and then becoming a library. In the early 1960s, the house was listed as an important National Historic Landmark. It was later restored at great expense and is now dedicated to the life and works of this much-loved novelist. The building of the Visitor Center in the year 2003 further publicized this museum, although the house soon began to suffer financial difficulties, which were later revealed to be due to embezzlement by the museum director. Today, the Mark Twain House is enjoying a healthier bank balance, with record visitor numbers.
Open hours: April to December, Monday to Saturday - 09:30 to 17:30, Sunday - 12:00 to 17:30; January to March, Monday, Wednesday to Saturday - 09:30 to 17:30, Sunday - 12:00 to 17:30
Admission: charge, discounts available for children and seniors, children five years old and under are free

Connecticut Science Center

Address: 250 Columbus Boulevard, Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06103, USA
Tel: +1 860 724 3623
The exceedingly family friendly Science Center covers some nine storeys and opened its doors to the general public in the summer of 2009. This purpose-built contemporary glass structure was built at the cost of more than US$160 million, much of which was funded by the state. Themed gallery spaces are entitled Energy City, Exploring Space, Forces in Motion, Invention Dimension, KidSpace, Picture of Health, Planet Earth, River of Life, the Sight and Sound Experience and Sports Lab.
Open hours: Tuesday to Sunday - 10:00 to 17:00
Admission: charge, discounts available for children and seniors, children three years old and under are free

Museum of Connecticut History

Address: 231 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06106, USA
Tel: +1 860 757 6535
Just a few minutes from the Connecticut State Capitol Park and the Columbus Green, the Museum of Connecticut History is housed within the centrally located Connecticut State Library. There are extensive displays here that document the development and evolution of the state, from its initial steps in history to the period when it was one of America's main colonies, before becoming an important economic player in the country's huge insurance industry. You will be able to learn about the Declaration of Independence, local politics, the influential past governor Jonathan H. Trumbull (1925 to 1931) and the countless inventions of Connecticut. There is even a collection of vintage tasters, while fun activities, such as a Scavenger Hunt, add further interest.
Open hours: Monday to Friday - 09:00 to 16:00, Saturday - 09:00 to 14:00
Admission: free

Connecticut Historical Society Museum and Library

Address: 1 Elizabeth Street, Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06105, USA
Tel: +1 860 236 5621
Visitors to the Connecticut Historical Society Museum and Library will find close to 300,000 artifacts relating to books, publications, art works, period clothing, 19th-century furnishings, Native Americans and local history. The museum itself is sited within a grand Colonial Revival mansion, once owned by wealthy inventor and graduate Curtis Veeder. There is plenty here to occupy the minds of younger visitors, who can try their hand at stenciling, cooking, setting tables, working in an assembly line typical of those in the Second World War, and sewing traditional moccasins.
Open hours: museum, Tuesday to Friday - 12:00 to 17:00, Saturday - 09:00 to 17:00; library, Thursday - 12:00 to 17:00, Friday and Saturday - 09:00 to 17:00
Admission: charge, discounts available for children and seniors, children five years old and under are free

Children's Museum

Address: 950 Trout Brook Drive, West Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06119, USA
Tel: +1 860 231 2824
One of America's oldest and biggest museums of its kind, the Children's Museum was founded as long ago as 1927 and for much of its life, was known as the Science Center of Connecticut. This museum is very much geared towards stimulating the minds and imagination of younger visitors, with its fun interactive exhibits. There is a section devoted to the mysteries of Egypt, while you can also take to the sky with flight simulators, play in the science playground that is the Idea Zone, check out the collection of reptiles within Turtle Town, and climb inside the giant replica of a sperm whale named Conny. Computer workstations, the story of the exploration of Mars and a chance to try forecasting the weather are additional highlights, together with a small animal sanctuary and the modern Gengras Planetarium, home of the Travelers Science Dome and frequent astronomy themed shows.
Open hours: Tuesday to Saturday - 09:00 to 16:00, Sunday - 11:00 to 16:00
Admission: charge, discounts available for children and seniors, children one year old and under are free

Harriet Beecher Stowe Center

Address: 77 Forest Street, Hartford, Connecticut (CT), 06105, USA
Standing alongside the famous Mark Twain House and located along the Connecticut Freedom Trail, this attraction actually comprises not only the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, but also the adjacent Katharine Seymour Day House, Stowe's Nook Farm, a Visitors Center (sited within the 1873 carriage house), period Victorian-style gardens and a gift shop selling related merchandise. A trip to the Stowe Center really begins at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, an attractive Victorian house with Gothic Revival architecture that was built in the early 1870s. Harriet Stowe (1811 to 1896) moved into this house in 1873 and remains a renowned author famed for her controversial novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, remembered for its strong anti-slavery theme.
Open hours: Wednesday to Friday - 09:30 to 16:30, Saturday - 09:30 to 17:30, Sunday - 12:00 to 17:30
Admission: charge, discounts available for children and seniors, children four years old and under are free