Location: Hartford
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The 10 Best Museums in Hartford, Connecticut (CT)
From its origins as a Connecticut River trading post in 1633, Hartford has become not only the state capital but also the insurance capital of the world, with a slew of historical attractions, a thriving arts and entertainment center, a revitalized riverfront and beautiful parks and public gardens. It was here that the lovable Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer were born in the imagination of celebrated author Mark Twain and immortalized on paper during the writer's Hartford years. Twain's home and those of fellow literary figures Harriet Beecher Stowe and Noah Webster are open to the public. The Wadsworth Atheneum, the oldest public art museum in the U.S., houses Pilgrim-Century furniture, the Amistad collection and a special treasure hunt system to entice kids to explore the museum's works. If your timing is right (end of June, beginning of July), you'll catch the Elizabeth Park rose gardens in bloom, but fall is also great for brilliant leaf colors, and spring yields colorful gardens and blossoming trees. For a bird's-eye view of the city, visit the observation deck of Travelers Tower, where you might also spot two resident falcons.
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1. Connecticut Historical Society
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 60 reviews
Founded in 1825, the Connecticut Historical Society (CHS) is a non-profit museum, library, research and education center that strives to inspire and foster a life-long interest in history through research assistance, exhibitions, tours and programs for all ages. The colorful and interactive "Making Connecticut" exhibit is filled with more than 500 historic objects, images, and documents telling the story of Connecticut from the 1500s through today.
Reviewed By kzsull01 - Windsor, United States
We have visited the Connecticut Historical Society (CHS) Museum in Hartford, Connecticut multiple times, most recently on Saturday, December 28, 2019 and have always enjoyed it. Both the permanent and special exhibits in this museum have consistently been nice representations of Connecticut’s history. This time we particularly liked the special exhibits. Although we only were able to spend about an hour and a half at the museum this time, we estimate that it would take at least three hours to see this museum and appreciate all that it has to offer. Admission into this museum is free on the first Saturday of the month but museum passes may be available at your local library for free admission on other days. Special Exhibits: ‘War/Maps Mystery: Dutch Mapmaker Bernard Romans and the American Revolution’. This exhibit is relatively small, being in one gallery, but gives a very interesting story about Bernard Romans, a surveyor, cartographer, engineer and naturalist, whose maps contributed significantly to European exploration and Colonial settlement. It reveals much about life in America, the printing business, slave ownership and the upheaval of revolution. His life has many different facets, being a Dutchman who explores North America, who works for the British in the French and Indian War. British officers use his maps while fighting in the American Revolution but he joins the Patriots and is captured by the British and disappears at sea while being a prisoner of war. Multiple topics are very nicely illustrated including his Dutch exploration, surveying for the British, mapping the Floridas, maps for the Revolution, his service in the Continental Army and proposing an attack on Fort Ticonderoga as well as information on Connecticut and the new United States. This exhibit was definitely quite interesting and worth seeing. The maps in this exhibit are of historical significance and are nicely preserved. ‘Pieces of American History – Connecticut Quilts’: This exhibit was well laid out and nicely presented how quilts reveal pieces of history, changes in the global and local economy, education and politics and the bonds of family, community and memory. Beautifully well preserved quilts, textiles, and articles of clothing with nicely documented detailed write-ups descripting them are on display in multiple galleries and provide a nice representation of quilts and textiles in general. The exhibit showed the practical household need that quilts fulfill but also how they express personal artistry, emotion and belief, representing many aspects of American home life. The question: ‘What is a quilt? Is addressed and several different topics are nicely presented depicting the history of quilts over different timeframes. These topics include quilts in the New Republic (1790 – 1825) showing the connections between family histories; the impact of the Industrial Revolution (1780 -1860) and the Cotton Gin (1794) on quilt making; and ‘Romanticism and Quilts’ (1825 – 1860), embracing imagination, emotion, nature, religion and an idealized vision of history with details on historic revivalism, fancy and sentimentality with respect to quilts. Also, the period of the Civil War (1861 – 1865), which showed how women expressed patriotism in the quilts that they made; and the quilts with respect to Post-Civil War Industrialization (1865 – 1900) and the Gilded Age, the Centennial (1876) and the 20th Century (1900s) were illustrated. This was an excellent exhibit, definitely educational and worth seeing. There were some very beautiful well preserved quilts and articles of clothing on display. The exhibit reveals many different interesting aspects of the history of quilts and we highly recommend it. Permanent Exhibits: The permanent exhibit, ‘Making Connecticut’, took a broad look at Connecticut’s history including its people, their lives and work, and changes in the world around them. It gave a comprehensive history of Connecticut starting from the native Quinnetukut settlers, whom Connecticut was named after, through to the present time. The ‘Making Connecticut’ Exhibit was broken down into multiple sections based on time period which included several smaller exhibits with many objects and other artifacts on display with very informative supporting write-ups, interactives and videos explaining them. The time periods included Colonial Life (1687 – 1774), the American Revolution (1775 – 1783), the Civil War, WWI and WWII and the building of modern life (1945 to today). The exhibits included items made in Connecticut and details about the factors impacting technological advances in Connecticut within each time period. The permanent collection of American Inn and Tavern Signs was also very interesting and unique. The outside grounds of the museum were well maintained, beautifully landscaped and nice for picnicking when the weather gets warmer. There was also plenty of free parking on the museum’s grounds. This museum was worth visiting for a very comprehensive history of Connecticut. There was a lot to see in this museum and it may take more than one visit to absorb and appreciate all it has to offer, including enjoying the changing special exhibits and changes in the permanent exhibits.
2. Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 573 reviews
The first public art museum in the United States features 50,000 pieces ranging from ancient to contemporary, the largest collection of Hudson River School paintings in the world, an impressive array of Pilgrim-era furnishings and European and American art.
Reviewed By kzsull01 - Windsor, United States
My husband and I have visited the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut, multiple times, most recently on Sunday, April 18th, 2021. This museum, which is definitely worth visiting, is highly recommended and a great value, being free at the time of our visit and I believe will be free until sometime in July, based on what I read in the newspaper. The way this write-up is structured is that I first provide ‘General Information About Our Visit’ including Some Minor Issues. Then I talk about the Special Exhibits and then the Permanent Collection, in particular, the parts of the Permanent Collection that we enjoy the most. General Information About Our Visit Including Some Minor Issues: The museum has a great mixture of various types of artwork, addressing art from multiple perspectives, including cultural, historical and political, depending upon what is applicable. Our primary focus this time was on the multiple special exhibits, especially, ‘Paul Manship: Ancient Made Modern’. We also enjoyed the permanent collection, in particular, the Hudson River School/Landscape paintings, which are all very beautiful, as well as the other paintings/artwork that I mention later in this write-up. All the art throughout this museum is nicely curated with very good write-ups providing excellent supporting background information with great details, including time period of the artwork and cultural, historical and political impact. . We always enjoy this museum and hope that you have the opportunity to enjoy it as well. We only wish we had more time to see all this museum has to offer, which definitely is quite a bit!! We thank the museum for offering free admission at this point in time. It is definitely a great value. However, we can’t wait until when the museum starts to be open for more days a week and not just for their reduced hours. In addition, we would like more flexibility in terms of the time we arrive at the museum, than with needing to have timed tickets. Our visit to the museum took about an hour and a half, based on the amount of time available to us. However, it could easily have taken more than four hours to really see and absorb all the artwork that was on display. We parked on the street on the side of the Hartford Public Library for this visit. This parking was free on Sunday there, and was a short walk to and from the museum. There was also validated parking for a $3 flat rate for museum visitors with ticket validation based on the museum’s website, which is the Preferred Parking, located at the Connecticut Convention Center Garage. 100 Columbus Boulevard, Hartford CT, 06109. The website provides directions to this parking. Some Minor Issues: Although the museum provides a good map, we often go to the museum to view the Special Exhibits, but they are usually hard to find due to the way the museum is laid out. So I bring a list of the exhibits with me to the museum and ask for directions to each Special Exhibit as we enter the museum. However, it would be helpful for the museum to provide a list of the Special Exhibits as you enter the museum along with the directions to each. That way you won’t miss any of the current Special Exhibits and you will know where they are located. The other thing that we have experienced is that it was not easy to navigate from gallery to galley, based on how the museum is laid out and how the traffic flow is being controlled due to COVID-19. You feel like you are going in circles and you have to go up and down from the same floor multiple times to get to different galleries on it. It is definitely more walking than expected or even necessary. Special Exhibits: ‘Paul Manship: Ancient Made Modern’’: This exhibit is well done and is located on the third floor, 3R of the Avery Building, based on my notes. It is nicely laid out with a lot of space between the various pieces on display. Paul Manship’s approach to his artwork is interesting, unique, and nicely depicted throughout the exhibit where he modernized mythology by introducing a distant sense of motion to his sculpture and emphasizing surface detail. He blended styles from diverse places and time periods into a ‘mixed style”. He melded antiquity with modernism with his classical and ancient sources giving an allure of antiquity in the modern urban life experience, in particular in New York, where he provided cultural inspiration through his famous pieces of artwork in Rockefeller Center and the Bronx Zoo. . He blended iconography from multiple sources adding complexity to their meaning and storylines using different sources both distant and immediate. Native American Imagery reflected on the complicated representation of Indigenous people at the turn of the 20th century by non-Native artists. His imagery of ‘Indian and Pronghorn Antelope’, depicts the mythical idea prevalent in American visual culture, but also challenges it by referencing other cultures, blending native imagery with visuals from Greek and Egyptian sources. This definitely was an interesting approach!! The ‘Discovery, Change, and Innovation: Major Events in Manship’s Era’ provided an interesting timeline and good context. We recommend this exhibit, including reading the write-ups that provide good background information. ‘Todd Gray/MATRIX 185’: This is a very unique exhibit, located on the first floor off of Avery Court. It addresses the enduring impact of European colonialism, slavery and the American diaspora through photography using imagery of African people and landscapes with European imperial gardens and monuments and constellation images taken with the Hubble Telescope. The concept of the exhibit, which uses a collage of photographs to take us on a complex journey across time and space about history, identity and politics through Africa, Europe and the cosmos, is definitely thought-provoking, interesting and unique, but not really our type of art. We definitely had to read the write-up about this exhibit to understand what it represents. ‘The Dance on the Volcano: German Expressionism at the Wadsworth Atheneum’: This exhibit is located off of the Great Hall on the first floor of the Morgan Building near the Antiquity to the Renaissance Section of the museum. It depicts a timeframe of daring themes in art, using strong colors, flattened forms and distorted perspectives, artwork tied to Expressionism. Although this exhibit was relatively small it was interesting from the perspective of its historical significance, including Georg Tappert’s Geisha-Revue , which memorializes the feverish artist life in Berlin, Germany on the brink of World War I. . ‘A Love of Wood: Chaim Gross’s I Love My Baby’: This was the last day for this exhibit which was small with a very unique wood-carving. It had interesting write-ups providing good context to what was on display. On-Going Exhibits: ‘Design in the American Home, 1650 to 1850’: This exhibit is located on the first floor off of Avery Court. We have seen this exhibit multiple times in the past and have always enjoyed it. On display is beautiful well restored/preserved furniture, always worth seeing. The exhibit is like a walk back through time. The write-ups provide great historical context and are quite educational. . Permanent Collection – The Parts We Enjoy the Most: During our visit, as we have done in the past, we also enjoyed the permanent exhibits. The European and American paintings displayed in Salon Style in the Great Hall on the first floor of the Morgan Building, off of Avery Court, are beautiful and always nice to see. Also, off the Great Hall, is the Antiquity to the Renaissance Section of the museum, which includes: East Asian Antiquities, Egyptian, Greek and Roman artwork and, Medieval and Renaissance Europe artwork. The artwork in this section is nicely laid out, quite interesting, and very nicely preserved, being very impressive with historical significance. The write-ups within these exhibits are very educational and make you feel like you are taking a nice walk back through ancient time. These write-ups include: ‘Arts of China: the Qing Dynasty’; ‘Renaissance Art’; ‘Medieval Art’; ‘Early Christian and Byzantine Art’; ‘Living in the Ancient World’; and ‘Greek Colonization and Trade’. Before we leave the first floor of the Morgan Building we also like to take a look into the Victorian ‘Goodwin Parlor’, which is beautifully furnished. We always enjoy seeing the very exquisite Hudson River School landscape paintings located on Level 3 of the Avery Building in the American Art Section of the museum which has pieces from the time period of 1700s – 1950. The Hudson River School paintings include multiple impressive landscape paintings by world-renowned artists who followed the unique Hudson River School approach, which has always been one of our favorites. Also in this section of American Art is Early American and Late 19th Century Art and Design, which we enjoy. The second floor of the Avery Building includes the impressive Samuel Colt Collection as well as the Wetmore Parlor in the American Decorative Arts Section of the Museum, which has pieces from the 1600s – 1865. The second Floor of the Morgan Building includes European Art including the interesting and unique Cabinet of Art and Curiosity as well as the large collection of Baroque Art from multiple time periods and art tied to the French Revolution and Neoclassical, Romanticism, Impressionist and Post-Impressionist movements. . Again, we recommend this museum and hope that you have the opportunity to enjoy it as much as we have for a great mixture of various types of artwork.
3. The Mark Twain House & Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,622 reviews
The Mark Twain House & Museum, a National Historic Landmark in Hartford, Connecticut, was the home of America's greatest author, Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) and his family from 1874 to 1891. It is also where Twain lived when he wrote his most important works, including Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Prince and The Pauper and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. A stunning example of Picturesque Gothic architecture, the 25-room home features a dramatic grand hall, a lush glass conservatory, a grand library and the handsome billiard room where Twain wrote his famous books. The Webster Bank Museum Center at The Mark Twain House & Museum offers visitors an opportunity to learn more about Mark Twain, his family, the historic house, and the author's legacy. This state-of-the-art facility houses our ticket desk; the Aetna Gallery with a permanent exhibition on Twain's life and work; a rotating exhibition hall, The Hartford Financial Services Theatre, showing a Ken Burns mini-documentary on Twain; classroom space; the lecture hall-style Lincoln Financial Auditorium; The Mark Twain Store; entertaining spaces like the soaring Hal Holbrook and the sunny second floor cafe/patio area.
Reviewed By christinerH1415MU
Located right in Hartford, but tucked away in it's own little area, the Mark Twain house is a must see if you are in the area. It's available only by prebooked tour, and they do book up ahead of time so purchase tickets before driving out there. The cost of an adult ticket is $20, which seemed a little pricey until we were on the tour, and it quickly became apparent the price is worth it. Our tour guide Brendan was phenomenal, his knowledge of the history of both Mark Twain and the house itself was unmatched. The house is rich in history and was very advanced for its time, including having one of the first residential telephones which is still there today. The tour takes about 60-90 minutes, and then plan an extra 20-30 for time at the museum and gift shop.
4. Real Art Ways
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 47 reviews
Real Art Ways is one of the leading contemporary arts organizations in the United States, with a record of linking artists, innovation and community. Programs include visual arts, with exhibitions, public art projects, and artist presentations; cinema, with independent and international films 7 nights a week; music; performance; literary events; community and educational programming.
Reviewed By mollys180 - New Britain, United States
My husband and I were impressed with all that RAW has to offer, and charmed by the small scale and neighborhood feel of the place when we came to see Loving Vincent. Lots of people came early to enjoy the cafe and several art exhibits before the movie. Do choose your seat carefully, as there is not a lot of slope to the theatre floor and your view could be blocked by someone taller sitting in front of you. Clean bathrooms, plenty of free parking.
5. Connecticut Science Center
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 403 reviews
Reviewed By LindaL739 - Meriden, United States
Something for all ages. There is a room specifically for little kids under the age of 5. The temporary exhibits may be of interest to older kids and adults. I went to see the 'Bodies' exhibit and will try to get back for the "Maya' exhibit when it opens. The different areas are divided up into Space, Health, Sports, Inventions, Energy, Earth (includes Geology and a few live creatures), including a neat section on Robotics. Best of all? Everything is interactive! I waited for my turn with the rest of the kids (I'm a Sr. Citizen) and tried out all kinds of fun (and educational) interactive exhibits. There are elevators to get between the floors for folks with strollers or mobility issues. Elevators have a glass wall so face the front if you are afraid of heights. The views of the Ct. river are great from the top floors. There are plenty of restrooms and there is a Subway shop and also a couple of kiosks for snacks. There is a frozen yogurt shop too. There is a 'community room' on the first floor if a group comes and prefers to bring their own food. The rooftop garden wasn't open due to rain. There is a butterfly exhibit and a theater that entail additional charges. My small group took a 'highlights' tour with Patty. She is an ambassador for Hartford - full of info about the history of the area and pointed out many of the innovations the city is making as a 'destination' city. There is a hotel next door for visitors from farther away and a parking garage on site. Great place for kids - all the ones I saw were really 'into' whatever they were doing.
6. Harriet Beecher Stowe Center
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 295 reviews
Harriet Beecher Stowe was the best-selling author of the anti-slavery novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin." A 21st-century museum and program center, the Stowe Center offers interactive and engaging tours and programs designed to inspire action on social justice issues. Specialized tour experiences and discussion-based contemporary issue programs regularly offered.
Reviewed By lindao637 - Cranford, United States
This tour is on the same grounds at the Mark Twain house, although they are separate entities. This event offers a ticket discount if you purchase a ticket for the Mark Twain house. This event starts in the welcome center asking the visitors about other controversial books that they may have read. The tour then leads into the house (approx. 7 rooms on 2 floors). At each room, the docent encourages discussion about society and the impact of "Uncle Tom's Cabin " then and now. I was skeptical, but once we got into it, it was quite the amazing and unique tour. I would recommend it to everyone...and, it will only be great is you open up and participate.
7. Hartford Armory
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 6 reviews
Completed in 1909, this 165,000-square-foot building served as the headquarters of the Connecticut Military Department.
8. Museum Of Connecticut History
9. Pump House Gallery
Overall Ratings
2.0 based on 1 reviews
Reminiscent of an English, Tudor-style cottage, this building serves both as a functioning pump house and a quaint gallery featuring exhibits by local artists.
10. Hartford Police Museum
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 1 reviews
