Monroe, a lovely picturesque town in Orange County, is just 1 hour from Manhattan. Named after the 5th president of the United States, James Monroe, it contains three villages: Monroe, Kiryas Joel, and the majority of Harriman.
Museum Village, located at 1010 Route 17M in Monroe, is a 19th century open-air museum that houses thousands of historic artifacts in 20 buildings. Our exhibits illustrate the transition from a rural to an industrial culture and economy in America.
Through educational programs, hands-on-exhibits, and special events, Museum Village explores and interprets 19th century rural life and how industry and technology in America evolved.
Visitors can shop in a 130 year old general store, view a real mastodont skeleton, dip a candle, step inside a 200 year old log cabin, sit in a one room schoolhouse, or watch how a broom or coverlet is made.
The Museum Village schoolhouse is a replica of the 1805 Monroe Stone Schoolhouse where students of all grades were taught together for only 12 weeks per year. The log cabin dates from the last quarter of the 18th century. Visitors can discover how a family of five lived in a small one-room building. At the candle shop, you can learn the process of creating a candle with different materials as you dip your own candle to take home. An exhibit on the evolution of lighting devices from the oil lamp to the electric light bulb will be shown.
The museum will be open on weekends from 10am – 2pm in the spring for school and tour groups. For more information, please call 845-782-8247.
