This house is grand with all the wood work, flooring and the details on the walls. They also used the second and third floor to highlight other "Museum" items that are "native" to St. Joe. It was very educational during my day trip to St. Joe from Kansas City.
Great show of how rich people lived in the late 19th century.a lot of interesting things from that time..the house has incredible wood floors designs. And great history behind it. For the cost you must see if you like history
Don't waste your time just to see a bunch of stuffed dead animals & dust. There are much better things in town worth seeing. Nothing memorable from this site.
Couldn't get in because it is being renovated. Can't wait until it is finished. Heard the main floor is good but they need to finish and open up the other floors. Great building to drive by and appreciate what it was in its day!
This place has a lot of potential but the lack of description leaves you feeling empty. There is no real attempt to give you a historical grounding to the exhibits or the rooms. A few well placed placards describing what the rooms were used for, how much things cost to build or maintain, or other tidbits would have helped improve this place. The third floor is mainly a taxidermy exhibit that is not well lit or explained. The woodwork through out the mansion is an outstanding example of craftsmanship but there is no context to view it from. A small, easily overlooked display, shows some examples of the town's wonderful architecture.
This is a wonderful building with a lot of history around it. It seems to be a work in progress and I hope it gets better. The main level is by far the best part of the mansion showcasing the wood work and elegant dinning room. I didn't find a lot of description on the displays, there is an area dedicated to the architect. The third floor is more of a wildlife exhibit with lots of stuffed wildlife, it doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the building. There is an area about Jesse James, the Civil War, and artifacts from local businesses in St. Joe. If you really like old buildings this is a very good one but I don't think you'll get a lot of history about the building or information from the time period. Check hours before you visit and enjoy a tour of an impressive mansion.
Mansion was not open....being renovated.....will return to St. Jo and take the tour. Looked up history on the mansion and was very interested in the family(s) that made the house their home.
The set up of this museum is wonderful! My six year old loved it as well. Something for all ages here. We had family from Ohio with us that have been to many before and say hands down this is the best one the have seen! We thought it was cool that American Pickers had even toured this one. Lots of history in St Jo, please come check it out.
It's worth a visit for those who appreciate restoration of homes. The top floor is not decorated like the bottom two floors but the whole house is worth the visit.
Please don't drive by this museum based on negative comments. There's much more to this museum than meets the eye- lots of history and incredible information about a part of society that's mostly misunderstood. Curious? Go by, donate to their cause, then look at the plans they have for a major expansion project that will propel it into the "Big Deal" world of museums. Great people there, too.