My son cheered as the helium balloon — the largest either one of us had ever seen — made its ascent, lifting us up more than 350 feet in the air. The attraction at Connor Prairie, a living history museum in Fishers, Indiana, is the most popular; it was by far the most exciting attraction for my 7-year-old son.
The balloon ride commemorates a unique part of Indiana history: 68 miles northwest, in Lafayette, Indiana, aeronaut John Wise launched the first balloon to transport U.S. mail by air in 1859.
In the distance, I saw the markers of modern life — the tall buildings of Indianapolis were a few miles away. But underneath my feet were acres of mature trees, small roads, and historic buildings, preserved to teach visitors about life in Indiana two centuries earlier. Before the modern-day technologies I know of, like the cell phone video I recorded on this tethered balloon ride, there were innovative machines and practices of their day.
My son and I were at Connor Prairie to learn about how those inventions, now antiques, shaped life long before we were born. This immersive step into preserved history is what makes a family trip to a living history museum valuable.
Providing a Unique Learning Opportunity
The traditional museum experience focuses on the visitor observing what’s on display, whether it’s artwork, historical artifacts or other rare collections. This style of learning-by-viewing is fine for people with stronger attention spans, but they can be more challenging to engage younger people who tend to learn through play and exploration.
That’s what makes a visit to a living history museum ideal for younger children. The living history museum recreates a neighborhood or town from a particular historical period to allow for people of all ages to engage with it directly. Children can talk to costumed interpreters to learn about education in a 19th-century schoolhouse. They can marvel at yoked cows walking along a dirt path to begin a lesson about traditional farming techniques. These walkable museums make history accessible and experiential.
Even though I enjoy visiting museums with a traditional model, I must admit, visiting living history museums was eye-opening for me as well. The sensory-rich experience of walking through a town preserved in an old era allowed me to connect with the past in a unique way. From visiting a working farm with heritage goats, to talking to a period actor about his home apothecary, visiting living museums gives a new perspective on how people lived centuries before us.
Appreciating Technology from Every Era
In Mumford, New York, a visit to Genesee Country Village & Museum exposed both of us to ancient machinery. We’d impatiently waited for the blacksmith shop to open since my child wanted to see how a craftsman uses heat to mold metal. We gave up after about an hour — the convenience of 24/7 stores was also something we left behind when we stepped back in time.
Instead, we walked next door to learn about the 19th-century printing press. We watched intently as the interpreter, wearing a Victorian-era gown, placed individual letters on the press, explaining how long it would take to create a book. That moment stuck with my son and we later discussed the slowness of disseminating information back then, compared to the near-instantenous flow of information today, thanks to the internet.
Printing press at Genesee Country Village & Museum
Our Living History Museum Bucket List (So Far)
Although my son, an aspiring astronaut, gravitates to the futuristic exhibitions of science and space-themed museums, I’ll keep looking for opportunities to educate him on the lived experiences of yesteryear. Getting both perspectives adds a depth of comprehension, where future innovation is rooted in an appreciation of the past..
Here are some additional living history museums that are on our list:
El Rancho de las Golondrinas: Santa Fe, New Mexico
The 500-acre site at El Ranch de las Golondrinas preserves lifestyle periods from the 18th through 20th centuries. Aside from the historic buildings, there’s a preserved natural wetland on site and open to visits — a rarity for the area.
Colonial Williamsburg: Williamsburg, Virginia
The largest living history museum in the country, Colonial Williamsburg features more than 80 preserved historic buildings, all telling the story of life in the 1700s. Visitors can watch interpreters in period dress demonstrate over 20 different trades, including new demos, such as what it was like to work as a wigmaker, wheelwright and silversmith.
Freetown Village: Indianapolis, Indiana
The Freetown Village living history museum may not have the open air features of some of its counterparts, but it embraces that difference to tell the vast stories of African Americans living in free settlements across the state. It focuses on the Fourth Ward, a 19th-century Indianapolis settlement that prospered after the Civil War.
Living History Museums: A Lovely Addition to Any Family Trip
Aside from Colonial Williamsburg, which is large enough to require a full day (or two if you’re a history buff!) to see everything, I don’t intend to plan future trips around visiting a living history museum. I believe they’re best used as lively side quests for an itinerary built around other anchor experiences.
Planning a visit to the world class Children’s Museum of Indianapolis? Fill out your itinerary with a half-day stop at Freetown Village or Connor Prairie. In Rochester, New York, we spent a full day enjoying the historic Seabreeze Amusement Park before visiting Genesee Country Village & Museum the following day.
No matter how you decide to fill up your itinerary, adding time to take an experiential walk through history will make it a trip to remember.
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Sheeka Sanahori is a travel writer and video producer who writes about family travel, ancestry travel, history and the outdoors. You can follow her on Instagram @sheeka.sanahori and on TikTok @sheekajs.
