This is a small museum in the small town of Mahomet. I'm not much of a museum person but this one was pretty interesting. There were many different exhibits including ones about trees/nature and ones about the lives of early americans. The one that I loved the most was the Lincoln enhibit. The exhibits gave people a tour of where Lincoln traveled to and what he did when he came to town. Many children go to this museum so bring your kids! There are some hands-on activity for kids to play with and there are many different programs for kids and there family.
To be honest I was expecting to see a huge building with all sorts of exhibitions on the history of the prairies, so when we arrived to the place I was a bit disappointed; however, I enjoyed the display of artifacts used by the settlers, and also the garden with flowers that used to grow wild in the prairies.
To start off with the name changed to Museum of the Grand Prairie. Its free.There is a museum, a very nice gardens and a forest preserve with some very nice surprises. The museum is very interactive. It is divided up so if you have little kids to teens to some one that really wants to look deep. Nicely done. Outside is a wonderful gardens. It is Aug 2012 and there is a severe drought. The gardens are hit hard but it is still OK. You can see that it is really nice during normal weather. It is still worth a look if you are stopping. There is a wonderful fish pond, and 1 room school house, greenhouse and wonderful grounds. Next to the museum is forest preserve that has a coverd bridge you can drive across, a look out tower, playland, golf course. You can spend some real time here or drive thru.
We were in the Champagne/Urbana area and decided to take a drive thru the country and saw the signs for this wonderful museum. It's really a great place to learn about various subjects. It's a must for anyone with children as it's a real learning experience for them. But even as an adult this place is super. They have a one room school house on the property and a lovely 8 acre botanical garden with picnic tables that are really nice. Quiet and peaceful and really worth a visit. There's also a golf course, walking paths, bike paths right there. It's just an idyllic setting! A really small Japanese style garden complete with waterfall and water lilies. The trees are beautiful as are the flowers. You don't have to be from the area to enjoy this wonderful GEM!
Don’t be put off by the out of the way, low key nature of this museum. A visit is really worthwhile, particularly if you have children. The museum (formerly Early American Museum) has a great collection of exhibits portraying pioneer life in Central Illinois. It covers aspects of early architecture, agriculture, trades and occupations, decorative arts, and childhood and domestic life of the time. There are some excellent hands-on experiences for children in the Discovery Room. The small gift shop has some real treasures perfect for the souvenir shoppers. Well worth a visit
I was initially disappointed by the somewhat dusty exhibits I encountered on the main floor of this museum. Then I discovered the new Lincoln exhibition on the lower level, which describes Lincoln's years as a circuit court lawyer. That may not sound too exciting, but the exhibit uses innovative media to really give a sense of what life was like for the judges and lawyers who spent months on the road dispensing justice in prairie towns. It's well worth a visit for anyone interested in Lincoln or in history.
This is a fun place to visit, especially since I grew up in Mahomet. There are many contributions from local residents that I recognized and the displays were detailed and very interesting. There is also a very nice little gift shop with some crafts by locals.
Fun to visit even though we live close. Mostly for the younger kids. Can't wait to see it after the remodel.
Visited the Early American Museum on my first visit to Mahomet - it's not very big, but a lot of pride was put into the exhibits and done very well. Great for families and anyone interested in history.
Great little museum on the prairie focuses on how life on the prairie has evolved over the centuries.