Historic House Museums & Sites

Historic house museums and sites often inspire a new love for history within their visitors. To be able to see and experience what life might have been like during a certain time period is often more engaging for many people than viewing a traditional museum exhibit of historical artifacts. 

Operating an historic house or site, however, can be a challenging as well as fun experience. Luckily, several books and websites offer guidance on a variety of issues that these sites face today. See these toolkits for further resources:

• Buildings and Landscapes
• Museum and Nonprofit Administration 

General Guidance

• American Alliance of Museums: Historic Houses and Sites Network
• American Association for State and Local History: “How Sustainable is Your Historic House Museum?”
• Franklin Vagnone, et. al: Anarchist's Guide to Historic House Museums
• National Park Service: Preservation Brief 32 – “Making Historic Properties Accessible”
• Sherry Butcher-Younghans: Historic House Museums: A Practical Handbook for Their Care, Preservation, and Management
• Donna Ann Harris: New Solutions for House Museums: Ensuring the Long-Term Preservation of America's Historic Houses

Preservation & Maintenance

• Canadian Conservation Institute: “Closing a Museum for the Winter”
• Connecting to Collections Care
  • “Hibernation – Not Just for Bears: Putting your house museum ‘to bed’ for the season” Webinar (Presenters: Benjamin Haavik and Nicole Chalfant, Historic New England)
  • “Live Question and Answer Session on Housekeeping for Historic Sites” Webinar (Presenter: Brigid Sullivan, National Park Service)
• English Heritage: Practical Conservation Guidelines for Successful Hospitality Events in Historic Houses
• Historic New England: Environmental Conditions in Historic House Museums
• Minnesota Historical Society: Historic Housekeeping Handbook
• National Park Service
  • Preservation Brief 3: “Improving Energy Efficiency in Historic Buildings”
  • Preservation brief 24: “Heating, Ventilating, and Cooling Historic Buildings—Problems and Recommended Approaches”
  • Preservation Briefs: Guidance on the preservation, rehabilitation, and restoration of historic buildings.
  • Preservation Tech Notes: Guidance on a variety of topics involving the maintenance and preservation of historic materials.
  • “Weatherizing and Improving the Energy Efficiency of Historic Buildings”
• Northeast Museum Services Center: Video series – Housekeeping for Historic Sites
• Jane Merritt: Preventive Conservation for Historic House Museums

Interpretation & Exhibition

• David B. Allison: Effective Costumed Interpretation and Enactment at Museums and Historic Sites
• Jessica Foy Donnelly: Interpreting Historic House Museums
• National Park Service
  • Museum Handbook, Part III – Chapter 8: “Using Museum Collections in Historic Furnished Structures”
• William Alderson and Shirley Payne Low: Interpretation of Historic Sites

Finances & Funding

• State Historical Society of Iowa
  • Country School Grant Program
  • Historical Resource Development Program Grants
• American Association for State and Local History: “How Sustainable is Your Historic House Museum?”
• Institute of Museum and Library Services: “Apply for a Grant”
• National Endowment for the Humanities: Grant Opportunities
• National Park Service
  • Historic Preservation Fund Grants
  • Save America’s Treasures
  • State, Tribal, and Local Plans & Grants
  • Underrepresented Community Grants
• Rebekah Beaulieu: Financial Fundamentals for Historic House Museums
• Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area: “Grant Programs”