Spring at the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton

The Bradford Pears are in full bloom as they welcome visitors on the entrance road to the Frontier Culture Museum off Richmond Road (Rt. 250) in Staunton. It's spring in the central Shenandoah Valley with blooming flowers and flowering trees and greening grass and baby animals ... the perfect time to visit this local treasure.

Be sure to join us for Wool Days to be held April 20-23 when there will be sheep shearing, wool carding, wool spinning, and the opportunity to see the baby lambs in addition to visiting the farms and enjoying warm outdoor temperatures.

Upcoming summer events will include First Friday on Friday, June 3: 6pm-8pm; Shenandoah Valley Wine & Jazz Festival on Saturday, June 18; Independence Day Celebration & Kite Flying Festival on Monday, July 4; First Friday on Friday, August 5: 6pm-8pm; Beach Party on Saturday, August 20; Blues & Craft Beer Festival on Saturday, August 27. Watch also for information about summer children's day camps, always a popular feature at the museum.

Note that First Fridays on June 3 and August 5 offer free admission from 6-8:00 pm.

From the website:

The Frontier Culture Museum tells the story of the thousands of people who migrated to colonial America, and of the life they created here for themselves and their descendants. These first pioneers came to America during the 1600s and 1700s from communities in the hinterlands of England, Germany, Ireland, and West Africa. Many were farmers and rural craftsmen set in motion by changing conditions in their homelands, and drawn to the American colonies by opportunities for a better life. Others came as unwilling captives to work on farms and plantations. Regardless of how they arrived, all became Americans, and all contributed to the success of the colonies, and of the United States.

To tell the story of these early immigrants and their American descendants, the Museum has moved or reproduced examples of traditional rural buildings from England, Germany, Ireland, West Africa, and America. The Museum engages the public at these exhibits with a combination of interpretive signage and living history demonstrations. The outdoor exhibits are located in two separate areas: the Old World and America. The Old World exhibits show rural life and culture in four homelands of early migrants to the American colonies. The American exhibits show the life these colonists and their descendants created in the colonial backcountry, how this life changed over more than a century, and how life in the United States today is shaped by its frontier past.

Come visit the English, Irish, German, and American farms and West African Igbo village and enjoy hands-on activities and farm animals in this unique outdoor museum.

With the Blue Ridge Mountains in the distance, the Frontier Culture Museum is a family destination for young and young-at-heart. There are picnic tables for lunch, and limited golf carts to rent for those who may need help on the one-mile loop. Nearby are restaurants and other attractions, and the museum's proximity to I-81 and I-64 makes it easy to reach.