Stuhr Museum

A huge amount of buildings and cool old things to see and touch! Our three and five year old enjoyed it and we stopped for lunch at the cafe which was very tasty. A worthwhile visit for sure! Friendly and fun workers there as well.

Pretty good at showing what early settler life in the area was like in a variety of ways. The museum exhibits -- in two separate buildings -- are slightly dated collections of objects and info about aspects of typical life.Then the Railroad Town gives depth to that experience, with relocated historic buildings staffed with living history. Considering the size of the town and daily operations, it makes sense that every building can't always be staffed -- and if they were, it'd sure take a long time to get through.The main exhibit building itself is a bit ridiculously grand: why is it surrounded by a moat and have fountains in the middle? That design would make more sense for an art museum maybe.

This place is AMAZING and a gem of a find in central Nebraska! We were traveling through the state on our way back home from Colorado and started seeing billboards for the Stuhr miles away. It looked interesting and we're both history buffs, so we decided to check it out. Boy were we glad we did!Their property spans hundreds of acres and has a ton of things to experience. The architectural centerpiece is their main building which is stunning white structure surrounded by a lovely moat! They have other buildings dedicated to Native American history and relics, along with agriculture machinery.We were a bit short on time, so we skipped right to the flagship experience . . . the 1800's Railroad Village!! This is a life-sized, interactive town full of stores, homes, and people reenacting life during that time. This is where the fun is! There are many houses to tour and learn about the history of each, old-time shops to go into, and others set up to look like what they would've been hundreds of years ago. The actors are knowledgable about their building, the town, and the life of someone in 1800's Nebraska.Be sure to head to the mercantile store. They have a great selection of antique/period looking jewelry and products. They also have big jars of candy that you can't pass up (especially the chewy sour cherry ones...one bag isn't nearly enough)! Other places to be sure and check out are the millinery (hat maker), woodworker, and general store.Also on the grounds is a nice little picnic area to rest and have lunch! Trust me, do not pass up the Stuhr Museum if you're traveling through NE. We were there for just the afternoon hours, but could've easily spent the whole day there! Enjoy it everyone!!!

We would have given it a one because only three places were open. The people were very strange.It was hard to find anybody in. There was a hat maker that seem to enjoy making hats, but they weren't very impressive. The tin man was ready to leave and go to the fair. The blacksmith, well, he was simply covered in soot . There wasn't even a fire. We did ask questions about the things that he may have made, most of which were covered in dust.We found two houses open and the women inside we're beyond bizarre. They must really be zoned into that time.The best part was leaving. I felt like I was in the bad version of invasion of the body snatchers.

Lifestyles of the Prairie's Rich and FamousThat's pretty much what this museum has to offer, a sort of quasi-revisionist history of the great plains from the first settlers from Schleswig-Holstein up until 1890 or so. The main building is pretty cool, designed by Edward Durrell Stone and built in a modernist style during the LBJ administration. But everything went downhill from there. There is a "railroad town" where you can see a working blacksmith and Henry Fonda's house where he was born, but no bars or whorehouses (a vigorous trade which went on in town 'til the early 1950's). I never went to Sturbridge Village in Mass cos I don't care how they made butter 200 years ago, and I don't want to spend all day looking at 130 year-old farm implements either. If that's your jones, fine, but it gets damn boring soon.

Family was really disappointed, we paid almost $70 to come tour the houses and the museum. Came in from Alaska and wanted to explore. No one told us everything was closed to get ready for spring. We weren't able to see any thing.

Impressive and rather majestic main building surrounded by lush lawns and a water-filled moat. The "dirty thirties" exhibit was great in a Nebraska context and the living history was sprawling, detailed and informative. Even late on a Monday afternoon we talked to the plane miller, tinsmoth, blacksmith, milliner, doctor's office assistant, etc. Many buildings were open even if unattended, and the displays were complete with antique machinery, parts, signs, etc. A wonderful stop! Worth at least a 2-hour visit.

Nice exhibit on the Great Gatsby time period in the main building. They also have a cute cafe and the panini was very good. Because the kids are back at school a lot of the buildings you could not go in. Lack of help. It was nice to see the really old structures back to life. We understand it's a great place to visit during the holidays. They really dress the place up.

The Stuhr museum was a very interesting and delightful stop on our travels through Nebraska. The staff was helpful and considerate. The "village" was expansive and informative. We regret not having more time to appreciate all that is included at the center.

I have been visiting the Stuhr Museum for years. I am please by the efforts to make a visit to historic Railroad Town more interactive between the visitors and townspeople (historical interpreters/trades).Today my mother and I visited the "New in Town" exhibit in the main Stuhr Building. People connected to Hall County (Cairo, Wood River, Doniphan, and Grand Island) need to visit this exhibit! It has excellent historical value for the communities with a great combination of photographs and artifacts. We lived in Cairo for 13 years and were surprised by many things we didn't know about the town. People connected to Hall County need to visit this exhibit!