List of museums in Rhode Island explained

This list of museums in Rhode Island encompasses museums defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and care for objects of cultural, artistic, scientific, or historical interest and make their collections or related exhibits available for public viewing. Museums that exist only in cyberspace (i.e., virtual museums) are not included. Defunct museums are listed in a separate section.

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ImageNameTown/CityCountyTypeSummary
Annmary Brown MemorialProvidenceProvidenceArtPart of Brown University, collection includes European and American paintings from the 17th through the 20th centuries and swords
Artillery Company of NewportNewportNewportMilitaryUniforms, weapons, military artifacts and memorabilia
Audrain Automobile MuseumNewportNewportAutomobilePreserves and presents automobile history.
Barrington Preservation SocietyBarringtonBristolHistory Local Includes household items, brick industry, fishing industry, historical houses.
Beavertail Lighthouse MuseumJamestownNewportLighthouseLocated in the assistant keeper's house, includes models of many Rhode Island lighthouses
Belcourt CastleNewportNewport1890s summer cottage estate with furnishings, art and artifacts from 33 European and Oriental countries and 37 other Newport mansions
Blithewold Mansion, Gardens and ArboretumBristolBristolHistoric house 45-room English-style manor mansion, 32 acres of gardens & arboretum
Block Island Historical Society MuseumBlock IslandBlock IslandHistory - localIncludes household items, maritime and farming artifacts
Block Island Southeast LightBlock IslandBlock IslandLighthouseOpen in summer
Boyd's Wind Grist MillMiddletownNewportMillEarly 19th-century smock mill, open to the public on Sunday afternoons in July, August and September, operated by the Middletown Historical Society
The BreakersNewportNewportHistoric house1890s Vanderbilt family mansion
Bristol Historical and Preservation Society Museum and LibraryBristolBristolPrison19th century jail and keeper's house
Bristol Train of Artillery MuseumBristolBristolMilitaryOpen by appointment only
Cape Verdean Museum ExhibitEast ProvidenceProvidenceEthnic history and culture of Cape Verde and Cape Verdean Americans[1]
Chateau-sur-MerNewportNewportHistoric houseGilded Age mansion
ChepstowNewportNewportHistoric house19th century period mansion
Clemence-Irons HouseJohnstonProvidenceHistoric houseOperated by Historic New England, late 17th-century house
Clouds Hill Victorian House MuseumWarwickKentHistoric houseLate 19th-century Victorian period house
Coggeshall Farm MuseumBristolBristolLiving historyLate 18th-century period farm with living history re-enactors
Culinary Arts MuseumProvidenceProvidenceFoodPart of Johnson & Wales University, history and culture of food, cooking and cuisine[2]
David Winton Bell GalleryProvidenceProvidenceArtpart of the List Art Center at Brown University[3]
Eleazer Arnold HouseLincolnProvidenceHistoric houseOperated by Historic New England, 17th century period house
The ElmsNewportNewportHistoric houseEarly 20th-century mansion
Firemen's MuseumWarrenBristolFirefightersOpen by appointment only[4]
Fort AdamsNewportNewportFortTours of historic fort, located in Fort Adams State Park
General Nathanael Greene HomesteadCoventryKentHistoric house 18th century home of Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene, also known as Spell Hall
Gilbert Stuart BirthplaceSaunderstownHistoric house 18th century Colonial house and museum about portraitist Gilbert Stuart
Governor Henry Lippitt HouseProvidenceProvidenceHistoric house 19th century period Victorian 20 room home
Governor Sprague MansionCranstonProvidenceHistoric house Operated by the Cranston Historical Society, mid 19th century period mansion
Governor Stephen Hopkins HouseProvidenceProvidenceHistoric houseOperated by Society of Colonial Dames of America, 18th-century home of Stephen Hopkins
Great Friends Meeting HouseNewportNewportReligiousHistoric Quaker meeting house, operated by the Newport Historical Society
Green Animals Topiary GardenPortsmouthNewportHistoric house 80 topiary animals and an 1859 Victorian house museum with displays of vintage toys & furnishings
Haffenreffer Museum of AnthropologyProvidenceProvidenceAnthropologyPart of Brown University
HearthsideLincolnProvidenceHistoric houseEarly 19th century stone mansion
Hera GalleryWakefieldWashingtonArtContemporary art
Herreshoff Marine MuseumBristolBristolMaritimeIncludes America's Cup Hall of Fame
Hunter HouseNewportNewportHistoric house18th century period house
International Tennis Hall of FameNewportNewportSportsLocated at the Newport Casino
Isaac Bell HouseNewportNewportHistoric house1880s Shingle-Style house
Jamestown Arts CenterJamestownNewportArtArt museum and teaching space. Also host to multiple film festivals
Jamestown Fire MuseumJamestownNewportFirefightingOperated by the Jamestown Fire Department and volunteers, located next door to the main station[5]
Jamestown MuseumJamestownNewportLocal historyOperated by the Jamestown Historical Society, open seasonally
John Brown HouseProvidenceProvidenceHistoric house18th century period mansion, operated by the Rhode Island Historical Society
John Hunt HouseEast ProvidenceProvidenceHistoric house18th-century house and museum operated by the East Providence Historical Society
John Waterman Arnold HouseWarwickKent Historic houseLate 18th-century house, home of the Warwick Historical Society
Joy HomesteadCranstonProvidenceHistoric houseOperated by the Cranston Historical Society, 18th-century Colonial period house
KingscoteNewportNewportHistoric house 19th-century Gothic Revival house
Linden PlaceBristolBristolHistoric house19th century estate and gardens
Marble HouseNewportNewportHistoric house Gilded Age Vanderbilt family mansion
Mount Hope FarmBristolBristolHistoric house18th century period mansion and farm grounds
Musée PatamécaniqueBristolBristolPatamechanics Private museum containing works representing the field of Patamechanics
Museum of Natural History and PlanetariumProvidenceProvidenceNatural historyLocated in Roger Williams Park
Museum of Newport HistoryNewportNewportLocal historyOperated by the Newport Historical Society
Museum of Primitive Art and CultureSouth KingstownWashingtonArchaeology / AnthropologyChanging exhibits of archaeological and ethnological objects from around the world, including Native American
Museum of Work and CultureWoonsocketProvidenceIndustryTextile industry, operated by the Rhode Island Historical Society
Museum of YachtingNewportNewportMaritimeArt, photographs and history of yachting, sailing, and boatbuilding
National Museum of American IllustrationNewportNewportArtAmerican illustrative art, located at Vernon Court, a Gilded Age mansion
Naval War College MuseumNewportNewportMilitaryHistory of the Naval War College, area naval activities and science of naval warfare
Nelson W. Aldrich HouseProvidenceProvidenceLocal historyHome of the Rhode Island Historical Society, changing exhibits on Rhode Island history
New England Wireless and Steam MuseumEast GreenwichKentTechnology Includes the Massie Wireless Station PJ station, antique radio equipment, locally manufactured steam engines, steam turbines, and technical artifacts.
Newport Art MuseumNewportNewportArtIncludes notable works from Rhode Island and New England artists, mid-19th century period rooms in the John N. A. Griswold House
Newport Car MuseumPortsmouthNewportAutomobile75+ cars from the 50s through to current models, in six galleries: World Cars, Corvettes, Ford/Shelby, Fin Cars, American Muscle, Mopar
Newport Colony HouseNewportNewportHistoryMeeting place for the Colonial legislature and alternative State House, operated by the Newport Historical Society
Norman Bird SanctuaryMiddletownNewportNatural history300acres wildlife refuge with trailside museum
Paine House MuseumCoventryKentHistoric houseColonial period house
Paradise SchoolPortsmouthNewportSchoolOne room schoolhouse
Pettaquamscutt Historical Society MuseumKingstonWashingtonLocal historyHoused in a former jail building
Portsmouth Historical SocietyPortsmouthNewportLocal historyHouses the majority of its collection in the former Portsmouth Christian Union Church, includes Julia Ward Howe Room
Prescott FarmMiddletownNewportMillIncludes windmill, Revolutionary War guard house, and historic gardens
Providence Children's MuseumProvidenceProvidenceChildren's
Quonset Air MuseumNorth KingstownWashingtonAviationState's aviation heritage, includes military vehicles, missiles, aircraft and aviation artifacts
Redwood Library and AthenaeumNewportNewportArtLibrary with changing exhibitions of art and history from its collections, also sculpture, furniture, gardens & special book collections
Rhode Island Computer MuseumNorth KingstownWashingtonTechnologyA very large collection of vintage computers, many are operational, and include interactive demonstrations. The RICM recently merged with RIMOSA and offers STEM/STEAM classes.
Rhode Island Museum of Science and Art (RIMOSA)ProvidenceProvidenceScience / ArtHands-on exhibits, experiences, portable outreach programs, and creative resources for multi-generational learners. RIMOSA has recently merged with the Rhode Island Computer Museum
Rhode Island School of Design MuseumProvidenceProvidenceArtCollection includes art from Egypt, Asia, Africa, ancient Greece and Rome, Europe, and the Americas, decorative arts, costumes and textiles
Rhode Island Radio MuseumNorth ProvidenceProvidenceHistoric TechnologyPrivate Collection of Radio and Wireless Equipment and Parts produced in Rhode Island during the 1920s.
Rhode Island Railroad MuseumKingstonWashingtonRailroadLocated in southern half of Kingston Railroad Station
Roger Williams National MemorialProvidenceProvidenceBiographicalLife of Roger Williams, co-founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and a champion of the ideal of religious freedom
RosecliffNewportNewportHistoric house Gilded Age mansion modeled after the Grand Trianon
Rough PointNewportNewportHistoric houseEstate of Doris Duke, includes large art collection and
Samuel Whitehorne HouseNewportNewportHistoric house19th century brick townhouse with examples of Newport and Rhode Island furniture from the late 18th century
Seabee Museum and Memorial ParkDavisvilleWashingtonMilitaryIncludes the former U.S. Navy concrete chapel, seven vintage Quonset huts and a Seabee statue[6]
Slater MillPawtucketProvidenceIndustryTextile mill industry
Smith-Appleby HouseSmithfieldProvidenceHistoric house18th century period house
Smith's CastleWickfordWashingtonHistoric houseLate 17th century period house
South County MuseumNarragansettWashingtonLiving historyIncludes farm and agriculture exhibits, Victorian kitchen, general store display, maritime gallery, print shop, carpentry shop, blacksmith shop, one-room schoolhouse, carriage barn, early vehicles
Sydney L. Wright MuseumJamestownNewportArchaeologicalAncient and Colonial period Narragansett Indian artifacts, European artifacts from the 1600s, photos and maps[7]
Tomaquag Indian Memorial MuseumExeterWashingtonNative AmericanMuseum of the Narragansett
Touro SynagogueNewportNewportHistoric siteColonial-era synagogue
Varnum House MuseumEast GreenwichKentHistoric house1773 house built by James Mitchell Varnum, furnished with period furniture and features many historic artifacts. Owned and operated by the Varnum Continentals.
Varnum Memorial Armory Military MuseumEast GreenwichKentMilitarywebsite, operated by the Varnum Continentals in the former Varnum Memorial Armory, includes weaponry, uniforms and artifacts dating from colonial America and through the 20th century
Wanton-Lyman-Hazard HouseNewportNewportHistoric houseColonial era period house, operated by the Newport Historical Society
Warwick Museum of ArtWarwickKentArtChanging exhibits of fine and decorative art
Watson FarmJamestownNewportHistoric house1796 house is not open to the public but visitors can explore the farmland on their own.
Westerly Armory MuseumWesterlyWashingtonMilitaryLocal military memorabilia
Whitehall Museum HouseMiddletownNewportHistoric house18th century period house
Wilbor House, Barn and Quaker Meeting HouseLittle ComptonNewportHistoric houseOperated by the Little Compton Historical Society, late 17th-century house and early 19th-century meeting house

Defunct

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Home. Cape Verdean Museum Exhibit.
  2. Web site: Home. Culinary Arts Museum.
  3. Web site: Home. David Winton Bell Gallery.
  4. Web site: Firemen's Museum. Visit Rhode Island. 30 August 2015.
  5. Web site: Fire Museum. Jamestown Fire Department. 30 August 2015.
  6. Web site: Seabee Museum & Memorial Park. Seabee Museum and Memorial Park.
  7. Web site: Jamestown and Newport, Rhode Island Interesting and Useful Information. Jamestown Information. 30 August 2015.
  8. Web site: Astors Beechwood mansion in Newport may be sold for $10.5 million . . 2010-01-01 . 2010-12-27.
  9. http://dollmuseum.com/aboutus.htm The Museum Doll Shop Web site

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