The museums of the Northern Neck are the caretakers of the Northern Neck's treasures. The sixteen museums represent the voices that once filled the halls of greatness, canneries long gone, steamboats plying their trades, farmers toiling in fields, and men working the menhaden fishing vessels. Each window is a reflection on a different story, time and event. Welcome to the museums of the Northern Neck and a glimpse of life as it once was and in some instances, still is.
Armstead Tasker Johnson High School Museum
One of the first African-American high schools in the Northern Neck. Serves as a depository of historical artifacts and memorabilia.
Montross, 804-493-7070
Essex County Museum and Historical Society
In Tappahannock historic district. Exhibits feature
Rappahannock Indians, Colonial and Confederate eras, African-Americans, and Rappahannock River steamboats; archives of family papers. Unique gift shop.
Tappahannock, 804-443-4690 www.essexmuseum.org/
George Washington Birthplace National Monument
The historic core of the Washington family plantation on which George Washington, our first president, was born. Administered by the National Park Service. www.nps.gov/gewa. Oak Grove, 804-224-1732
Historic Christ Church
Completed in 1735, Christ Church is one of the best preserved of Colonial Virginia’s Anglican parish churches. Features history of church and Robert “King” Carter. www.christchurch1735.org. Irvington, 804-438-6855
Kilmarnock Museum
Exhibits of business and commerce of Kilmarnock. Recalls the early days of the bustling town, first known as Steptoe’s Ordinary, settled in 1719. Open Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 11am-3pm.
Kilmarnock, 804-436-9100
King George Museum
Named for King George I, the county was split off from Richmond County and formed in 1721. Museum and research center located in old jail.
King George, 540-775-9477
Kinsale Foundation and Museum
Kinsale Museum exhibits chronicle life in a vibrant port during the Steamboat Era of the late 19th and 20th centuries. Walking tour available for the unspoiled village, now a historic district. Open Oct1-April 30 (Friday/Saturday-10-5), May 1-Sept 30 (Friday/ Satruday-10-5, Sunday 2-5). Handicapped accessible. www.kinsalefoundation.org. Kinsale, 804-472-3001
Mary Ball Washington Museum
Regional history exhibits; Lancaster House, clerk’s office, and old jail buildings; genealogy library; book and gift shop. Rt. 3 in Lancaster Courthouse historic district. www.mbwm.org.
Lancaster, 804-462-7280
Menokin
Home of Declaration of Independence signer Francis Lightfoot Lee. A partial ruin, the house provides a unique opportunity to see Òbehind the wallsÓ of an 18th century mansion. Hike trails to Cat Point Creek through wildlife refuge. www.menokin.org.
Warsaw, 804-333-1776
Morattico Waterfront Museum
Housed in 1901, Morattico General Store building with views of the Rappahannock River and Lancaster Creek. Exhibits on the cultural history of a working watermen’s village. www.morattico.org.
Morattico, 804-462-0532
Museum at Colonial Beach
Operated by Colonial Beach Historical Society. It traces the town’s history from Captain John Smith in 1608 to the present. museum@colonialbeach.com.
Colonial Beach, 804-224-3379
Northern Neck Farm Museum
From washing machines, to tractors, sawmills and windmills. It’s all at the Northern Neck Farm Museum. Open on weekends April through October and for special tours. www.thefarmmuseum.org. Burgess, 804-443-1118
Northumberland County Historical Society
Founded to preserve the 1844 Old Jail. Ball Memorial Library and Museum next door includes genealogy and local history library, meeting rooms, and upstairs museum. Heathsville, 804-580-8581
Reedville Fishermen’s Museum
The Reedville Fishermen’s Museum is dedicated to preserving the heritage of the fishermen and watermen of Virginia’s Northern Neck and the Chesapeake Bay. Sail on our historic skipjack. Visit our museum. Participate in our events. www.rfmuseum.org. Reedville, 804-453-6529
Rice’s Hotel/Hughlett’s Tavern
Restored 18th century tavern now operating as a restaurant and store. Tavern tours show how people lived and traveled in 18th and 19th century. www.rhhtfoundation.org. Heathsville, 804-580-3377
Richmond County Museum
Tells the story of rural Richmond County through exhibits, events, and school programs. Rappahannock Indians, Jones Memorial, Menokin exhibits. Hanging chamber and country store. Located in 1872 jail. www.co.richmond.va.us.
Warsaw, 804-333-3607
Steamboat Era Museum
Created to preserve, educate and interpret the era of the steamboats that plied the waters of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. Theatre, interactive video stations, dioramas, artifacts, models, paintings, photos and gift shop. Open Thurs.-Sat. 10am-4pm, Sunday 1-4. www.steamboateramuseum.org.
Irvington, 804-438-6888
Stratford Hall Plantation
Built in 1730s, Stratford Hall was the birthplace of Robert E. Lee and home of the only two brothers to sign the Declaration of Independence, Richard Henry and Francis Lightfoot Lee. Exhibit hall. www.stratfordhall.org.
Stratford Hall, 804-493-8038
Westmoreland County Museum
Oldest museum in the Northern Neck. Established as a permanent home for Charles Willson Peales’s portrait of William Pitt (1768). Home to the Northern Neck of Virginia Historical Society. www.westmoreland-county.org.
Montross, 804-493-8440
