Location within Washington, D.C.
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Established | 1910 |
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Location | Washington, D.C. |
Coordinates | 38°53′37″N 77°02′23″W / 38.893608°N 77.039716°W |
Website | www |
The DAR Museum, run by the Daughters of the American Revolution, is an art and history museum in Washington, D.C. The museum is located in Memorial Continental Hall, just down the street from DAR Constitution Hall, where some of the museum's concerts take place.
The museum is known for its more than 30,000 examples of objects made or used in America prior to the Industrial Revolution. Items on display in the more than 30 period rooms include: furniture, silver, paintings, ceramics, and textiles.
The museum's collection also includes the New Hampshire Toy Attic where children are able to play with reproductions of historic toys; it is geared toward children aged four through ten, but offers a range of family-friendly content including its more than 30 period rooms.
The DAR Museum was founded in 1890 (the same founding year as the National Society Of Daughters of the American Revolution) as a way of depositing and displaying family heirlooms. As a part of the NSDAR, the museum sought to promote historic preservation and patriotism through collections and displays of colonial era artifacts. Thanks to several DAR organizational, member, non-member, and purchased acquisitions, the museum's collection expanded to more than 30,000 items over the years.
The museum is open to the public six days a week for unguided and guided docent tours of period rooms and other museum features, including the DAR library and Americana collection.
Located in the adjacent DAR Constitution Hall, the library is a facility for researching historical and family information. It is openly accessible to DAR members, and non-DAR members may enter the library for a fee. The library contains roughly 150,000 volumes of genealogical history.
The DAR Museum provides free programs in relevant subjects to visiting school groups. Tours focus on topics such as historical quilt making, the lives of children in colonial times, and basic facets of 19th century life. The museum also offers weekend family activities.
The museum contains over 30 rooms decorated and furnished in a colonial revival style, with a wide variety of sizes, furnishings and room types. Rooms range from men's studies to contemporary bedrooms to a large attic filled with children's toys. Each room is sponsored by a different NSDAR organization, and vary in age. Photographic tours of period rooms may be taken at the DAR Museum website