The old Rockdale County Jail was built in 1897 and was remained in use until 1969. Its exterior walls are three bricks thick, while interior walls are two bricks thick. The floor and ceiling of the second floor are constructed of steel with six inches of concrete above it. The main floor consisted of an office for sheriff and living quarters for his family. Five Rockdale County sheriffs and their families lived in the building between 1897 and 1969. The Rockdale County Historical Society acquired the property in 1975.
The Old Lahaina Courthouse opened in 1860 and remained in service until the 1970s when the Lahaina Civic Center was built. Architect William D’Esmond restored the courthouse in 1925. Today, the courthouse is home to a museum, art galleries, a visitor center and a community meeting room. Among the artifacts on display is the last Flag of Hawaii to fly over the courthouse.
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Sometimes it feels like the history of Dallas centers on the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Contrary to prevailing opinion, it does not. Any visitor to Dallas looking to explore more of the city’s history should begin at the Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture near Dealey Plaza in the heart of downtown Dallas. The museum, located in the historic 1892 Dallas County Courthouse, explores the fascinating history of Dallas, how the city grew into the major metropolis it is today and some of the cultural conflicts along the way.
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The Oscar Getz Museum of Bourbon History features over 1,500 rare and unique bottles of whiskey and bourbon, collected over 40 years and displayed at historic Spalding Hall. Named after Oscar Getz, born in November 1897 in Chicago, the museum highlights his journey in the whiskey industry. After Prohibition, he and his brother-in-law, Lester Abelson, re-entered the business, quickly growing their company to become the largest whiskey distributor from the Tom Moore Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, labeling their product as “Old Barton.” By 1940, Getz was a significant player in the industry, serving as the largest whiskey wholesaler in the Midwest.
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Palazzo Ducale (or the Doge’s Palace in English) is the former residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme authority in the former Venetian Republic. The old palace opened as a museum in 1923. Doge Agnello Participazio moved the seat of the Venetian government to the current location from the island of Malamocco in 810. Construction on the existing building began circa 1340.
The Museum traces its origins to October 1993. The original small museum in the city’s historic city hall has today blossomed to a more robust museum located in the same building. Open to the public without charge, the museum features a number of exhibits that interpret the city’s law enforcement history. One of the more unique exhibits is the jail rock with leg shackles attached to it. Dating to the 1860s, the jail rock was used to detain lawbreakers in the days before the city had a proper jail. Another particularly poignant display is the Memorial Room. The memorial honors the Phoenix police officers killed in the line of duty.
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The small, but packed Picton Heritage & Whaling Museum is home to more than 2,000 artifacts that help tell the area’s history, including its strong roots in the whaling industry. While the museum has been around for 60 years, its current home on London Quay was built in 1990 on the site of Waitohi Pa.
The Pima Air & Space Museum is one of the world’s largest aerospace museums. The museum, established in 1976, is home to roughly 300 aircraft and more than 125,000 artifacts displayed outdoors and in five hangars across more than 80 acres. Its collection includes an SR-71A Blackbird, an A-10 Warthog, a Boeing B-29 Superfortress and President Kennedy’s Air Force One. The museum, situated adjacent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, is the country’s third largest aviation museum and the largest privately funded aviation and aerospace museum in the world. The museum is also home to the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame.
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Quake City tackles the devastating earthquakes that struck Christchurch, their impact on the city and how the city has worked to rebuild and reinvent itself. The museum first opened as part of the Re:START container mall in February 2013 and moved to its current location in June 2017. Quake City offers a compelling and in-depth look at the earthquakes, both from a scientific standpoint and a cultural one.