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Providence/Warwick museums and galleries offer a rich cultural history of RI

Rhode Island > Providence Warwick > Indoor Activities > Museums and Galleries
Steamship Historical Society - Warwick, RI
Steamship Historical Society of America

2500 Post Road Warwick, RI, 02886 Phone: 401-463-3570

Society celebrates history of steam-powered vessels with artifacts, artwork

At the Steamship Historical Society of America, the world’s leading organization dedicated to preserving and sharing history of steam engine-powered vessels, they would like to take you on a trip through history. Go to the society’s website and enter a virtual museum. Archives go back to 1807 with the first commercially viable American steam engines successfully powered ships and include thousands of photos, ship plans and blueprints, brochures, newspaper clippings, tickets, advertisements, iconic posters, video and audio recordings, ship logs and other amazing artifacts. See the first-class deck plan of the Titanic and a brochure from a cruise down the Amazon. You can visit and see the society’s building and archives by making an appointment through its website.
Clouds Hill Museum - Warwick, RI
Clouds Hill Museum

4157 Post Road Warwick, RI, 02886 Phone: 401-884-9490

Gothic Revival home, carriage house, grounds invite visitors to step into 19th century

Built as a wedding present for Elizabeth Ives Slater, the daughter of William Smith Slater, the House at Clouds Hill is the stately centerpiece of the Clouds Hill Museum, where visitors can experience life in the late 19th century. In addition to the Gothic Revival-style home, with its original interiors and furnishings as well as fine porcelain, textile and glass collections, the museum includes a carriage house with over a dozen carriages (including a “gypsy wagon”), and a Center for the Outdoors. The grounds are home to 70 species of trees and shrubs. Call to arrange a tour or check the website for a prescheduled opening. No reservations are required. The home is decorated for the holidays starting in early December.
Warwick Center for the Arts - Warwick, RI
Warwick Center for the Arts

3259 Boston Post Road Warwick, RI, 02886 Phone: 401-737-0010

Arts center, site of former armory, a hub for area artists, performers and their audiences

A welcoming gathering place for artists, artisans and performers and those who appreciate their work, the Warwick Center for the Arts showcases a rotating art exhibit in its main gallery that features the work of emerging and established artists. In addition to exhibits from student art to juried plain-air paintings, the center offers art demonstrations, gallery talks and classes for children and adults. There are two improv club sessions on Friday nights, and cultural experiences include concerts, poetry readings and dance troupe performances. The center’s stately brick building, a National Historic Landmark, is on the former site of a 19th century armory and houses replicas of two Revolutionary War cannons. An annual winter market sells the work of local artists.
Clouds Hill Museum Closeup View - Warwick, RI
Warwick Office of Tourism

3275 Post Road Warwick, RI, 02886 Phone:

Warwick showcases its rich history, celebrates the work of area’s many artists

With its rich variety of museums and art galleries, Warwick celebrates its past and looks to its creative future. Today’s art scene is the focus of YJ Contemporary, and the Warwick Center for the Arts features the work of local artists. The Victorian Era comes to life at the magnificent Clouds Hill Victorian House Museum, and visitors who schedule a trip to the Steamship Historical Society of America will feel a new appreciation for the grand age of those vessels. You can also tour Warwick City Hall, built in 1894 and featuring a six-story clock tower. The Warwick Historical Society offers several public open house exhibits and tours where you can step inside the village’s oldest house or ring the bell at the Old School Baptist Meeting House.
Planetarium - Roger Williams Museum of Natural History & Planetarium - Providence, RI
Go Providence

1 Sabin Street Providence, RI, 02903 Phone: 401-751-1177

Providence’s many museums open their doors to lovers of art, science, history, nature

From natural history to the history of Rhode Island, the Providence, RI area offers visitors a variety of fascinating museums. At the Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, you can learn about urban wildlife; at the Providence Children’s Museum kids can play in the innovation lab. The John Brown House Museum allows visitors to step into the world of 18th century wealth and power. The Woonsocket Museum of Work & Culture tells the story of immigrants who settled in 19th century mill towns. The Governor Henry Lippit House Museum’s Victorian interior and original furnishings reflect the city’s Golden Age. Art aficionados will appreciate exhibits and programs at the RISD Museum, and Gallery Night on the third Thursday of the month, with a free bus stopping at galleries, art shops and museums. For more info, visit GoProvidence.com
Museum of Art at Rhode Island School of Design

224 Benefit Street and 20 North Main Street Providence, RI, 02903 Phone: 401-454-6500

The exhibits at this Rhode Island museum focus on historic art and design. About 86,000 works of art include items and exhibits from ancient Greece and Rome, 18th-century Europe, ancient Egypt, the Middle Ages and 19th-century American decorative art.
Admission: Adults, $12; seniors over age 62, $10; college students, $5; youth aged 5-18, $3. Free admission third Thursday of the month, 5-9 p.m.; every Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Museum of Natural History and Cormack Planetarium

Roger Williams Park, 1000 Elmwood Avenue Providence, RI, 02907 Phone: 401-680-7221

Rhode Island's only natural history museum and home to the state's only planetarium make this a great place to visit and thing to do, especially on your next family vacation with children. The museum offers regular exhibits, events, and attractions. The Planetarium features a state-of-the-art Zeiss star projector and an enlarged domed ceiling on which the stars are projected. Children under age 4 are not permitted into the planetarium.
Hours: Museum open Friday - Monday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., with last admission at 3:30 p.m. The planetarium is open on Saturdays and Sundays, and the show is at 2 p.m.
Admission: Museum admission is $2 (does not include planetarium; free for members and children under age 4); planetarium tickets are $5 and must be purchased online (ticket sales are final and ticketholders cannot enter the planetarium once the show has begun).
Information: www.providenceri.com/museum.
John Brown House Museum

52 Power Street Providence, RI, 02906 Phone: 401-273-7507

One of America's grandest mansions when completed in 1788, the house at 52 Power Street was home first to John Brown, a businessman, patriot, politician, China trade pioneer, and slave trader who participated in the debates and practices that shaped the new nation. Group, school, and special tours are available by appointment when you decide to visit this Rhode Island museum on your next vacation or getaway. .
Hours: December 1-March 31, Friday and Saturday, 10:30 a.m., noon, 1:30 and 3 p.m.; April 1-November 30, Tuesday-Friday, 1:30 and 3 p.m.; Saturdays, 10:30 a.m., noon, 1:30 and 3 p.m.
Admission: Adults, $10; seniors and students, $8; children age 7-17, $6.
Information: rihs.org/museums_jbh.html