Museums
There are museums throughout Washington, DC., and you are likely to find at least one that will interest you. I have included a short description of some of the exhibits that you will find at each, along with hours of operations and admission information. For museums that specialize in art, visit the Art and Art Museums section on this site. Please use these links to find out more about museum offerings in and around D.C.
Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Museum |
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Ford's Theatre/Petersen House Ford's Theatre offers a limited number of free, same-day tickets at the Ford’s Theatre Box Office beginning at 8:30 a.m. These daily tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Advance individual tickets may be obtained $3.00 through the Ford's Theatre website. Admission charged for play performances. |
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Gadsby's Tavern Museum Hours and Admission: Closed January 1, Thanksgiving, December 25 |
 Visitors will get a “slice of life” picture of what life was like for everyday early Americans. The Gadsby’s Tavern Museum consists of two buildings, a 1785 tavern and the 1792 City Hotel. George Washington’s Birthnight Ball and an inaugural banquet for Thomas Jefferson were held at the location, which is now a National Historic Landmark in Old Town Alexandria. |
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(202) 994-5200 701 21st Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052
Hours and Admission: 11:30am-6:30pm Monday, Wednesday–Friday;
10am-5pm Saturday;
1-5pm Sunday No admission charged but donation of $8 is suggested. |
Originally established in 1925 by renowned collector George Hewitt Meyers to promote awareness and appreciation for textiles, the Textile Museum houses more than 20,000 different works spanning over five millennia and five continents. The collection, recently acquired by and moved to the George Washington University, includes pieces from the Middle East, Africa, as well as the indigenous people of the Americas. Also included in the museum is the 20,000 volume Arthur D. Jenkins Library of Textile Arts, one of the most important resources pertaining to the study of textiles. |
International Spy Museum Hours and Admission: |
 The International Spy Museum puts its visitors into the shadowy world of espionage with exhibits and programs about the role that spies have played in history. Interactive exhibits invite visitors to try their hand at spycraft; displays give context and understanding to spy activities. |
Marian Koshland Science Museum (National Academies of Science) Hours and Admission: Closed Tuesdays, Thanksgiving, December 25 |
 Museum highlights the role of science in our daily lives using interactive displays. Current exhibits include infectious diseases, global warming, scientific research and DNA sequencing. This museum is recommended for those 13 years and older. |
National Air & Space Museum on the Mall (Smithsonian) Hours and Admission: |
 With hundreds of historic aviation and space artifacts on display, including space capsules from America's first astronauts, Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, and the Wright Brothers aircraft, this museum is among the most popular in the country. You can explore the history of flight, how things fly, learn about the effort to land a human on the moon, experience a flight simulator and many other interesting subjects. The museum also has a five-story IMAX theater and two options for food service. |
National Air & Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Smithsonian) Hours and Admission: |
 One of the most recent additions to the Smithsonian museum system, this is a companion facility to the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. With the space provided in the Boeing Aviation Hanger in Chantilly, Virginia, thousands of aviation and space artifacts that could not be exhibited in the D.C. building are on display. It features three levels with aircraft hanging from an arched ceiling. Exhibits include the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the Boeing Dash 80, the Enola Gay, the Mobile Quarantine Unit used by the Apollo 11 crew, the Gemini VII space capsule and other aircraft. The space shuttle Enterpriseis the centerpiece of the museum. The museum has two options for food service, as well as several simulator rides available for an additional charge. |
National Building Museum Hours and Admission: Sunday: 11am-5pm Closed Thanksgiving, December 25 Admission charged |
 The National Building Museum opened in 1985 with a mission to celebrate architecture, design, engineering, construction and urban planning. |
National Firearms Museum |
| Located in Fairfax, Virginia, this museum is focused on America’s heritage of firearms. Its exhibits include artifacts that date back to the Pilgrims landing in America. The various galleries throughout the museum trace the history of firearms through the New World, the exploration of the West, the wars in which America has fought and modern times. |
National Geographic Museum at Explorers Hall |
The National Geographic Museum at Explorers Hall brings past and current expeditions, adventures and scientific research to life for its visitors. Exhibits cover weather, geography, astronomy, space exploration and much more. Children will enjoy a visit to this entertaining, high-tech museum. |
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Visitors Center Hours and Admission: Monday-Friday: 9 am to 5 pm No admission charged.
Note: The National Law Enforcement memorial is located three blocks from the Visitors Center on E Street between 4th and 5th Streets, NW. |
 Somber memorial that honors all of our country’s law enforcement personnel. Wall contains the names of the more than 17,500 officers who have killed in the line of duty beginning in 1792. At an annual candlelight vigil held each year during National Police Week in May, the names of officers who have fallen in the last year are added. Visitors Center highlights the Memorial and contains more than 30 exhibits and an interactive video kiosk. Also display cases with mementos left at the Memorial. |
National Museum of American History (Smithsonian)
Hours and Admission: |
 This museum, recently renovated, features a state-of-the-art gallery for viewing its most famous exhibit: the Star Spangled Banner that served as inspiration for Francis Scott Key. Among other exhibits you will find Mister Rogers' sweater, Kermit the Frog and First Ladies Exhibit. The museum explores the social, political, cultural, scientific and military history of our country. |
| National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian) (202) 633-1000 1000 Constitution Ave., NW in Washington, D.C. 20004 10th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW Hours and Admission: 10am-5:30pm daily, though hours sometimes extended during peak-summer months, check website for today's hours. No admission charged for entrance to museum, although tickets are required for IMAX theatre |
 One of the first Smithsonian Museums opened on the National Mall, it houses exhibits focused on the natural world, with more than 126 million specimens. Among the 18 exhibit halls dedicated to geology, dinosaurs, animal life, plants and insects and other subjects, you will find displayed the Hope Diamond, a T-rex dinosaur display, an Egyptian mummy and Mammal Hall. There is also an IMAX Theater, which shows some of the films in 3-D. There are several restaurants in the museum. |
| National Museum of the American Indian (Smithsonian) (202) 633-1000 4th Street and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20560 Hours and Admission: 10am-5:30pm daily, Closed December 25 No admission charged |
 One of the Smithsonian's newest museums on the Mall, this one specializes in exhibits that celebrate and commemorate the ideas and experiences in Native life and history. Its mission is to advance knowledge and understanding of the Native cultures of the Western Hemisphere. The exhibits include materials from North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, and include clothing, baskets, textiles, precious metals, featherwork, ceramics and other objects that are associated with Native life. The Native American theme carries through into the food served at the Mitsitam Cafe inside the museum. |
National Postal Museum (Smithsonian)
Hours and Admission: |
 You will find one of the world’s largest collections of stamps and philatelic materials. The museum has postal history material that pre-dates stamps, vehicles that were used to transport the mail, mailboxes and mailbags, postal uniforms and equipment. Visitors learn how the process of mail delivery has evolved and the importance of letters in our history. The museum is housed in a Beaux Arts-style building that served for more than 70 years as the Washington City Post Office. |
National Museum of the United States Navy
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 Located at the Washington Navy Yard, contains displays on Navy ships, submarines, and various wars in which the Navy has played a role. Artifacts from Admiral Richard Byrd’s Polar Expedition, uniforms and weapons. For safety reasons, please do not use public transportation to get to the Museum; plenty of parking is available inside the Navy Yard. |
Newseum
Hours and Admission: Closed January 1, Thanksgiving and December 25 |
 This 25,000 square-foot museum bills itself as the world’s most interactive museum. It focuses on news and journalism, with 14 major galleries, 15 theaters, two broadcast studios and a 4-D time-travel experience. You can view five centuries of news history with up-to-the-second technology and innovation. For an online tour, visit the Newseum’s website. |
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Hours and Admission: |
 During World War II, approximately six million Jews were murdered by Nazi Germany and its collaborators. The Holocaust Museum is America's memorial to those who were killed. Its goal is to stimulate visitors to confront hatred, prevent genocide, promote human dignity and strengthen democracy. Carefully-crafted exhibits carry stark reminders of what happened during the Holocaust. While this is a somber museum, it is an educational and personal experience that is unforgettable. Children's programs are available, along with a special exhibit directed at younger visitors. |
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Self-guided and guided tours available in this 1910 Beaux Arts building, which emphasizes the role of women throughout American history. Exhibits include everyday items out of America's past (generally up to 1840), including a four-sided mousetrap that guillotines its captures. A Touch Area is available for children. You can also tour period rooms. The DAR also has searchable databases in its library, including records of the New England Historic Genealogical Society.
The site of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln in April of 1865 has been open to the public since 1968. The building itself has a colorful history, having started as a Baptist church. After Lincoln’s assassination, the theatre was closed, but served intermittently as a museum, office space and storage facility. A restoration effort started in 1954 brought the theatre back, and theatrical events still performed on its stage. At the museum located in the theatre, you will find artifacts related to the assassination, including the gun and knife used by John Wilkes Booth in the attack.
The Petersen House, where the mortally-wounded Lincoln was taken after the attack and later died, is located directly across the street from the Theatre.
