The Heritage Farmstead Museum Plano, Texas

Mailing Address

1900 W. 15th Street
Plano, TX 75075

Street Address

1900 W. 15th Street
Plano, TX 75075

Phone: 972-881-0140
Fax: 972-422-6481
Email:
Web: www.heritagefarmstead.org

Museum Hours

Our Business hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 10 to 4:30

Tours are once a day at 1:30 (Tuesday to Sunday), year round

Admissions

We ask for a $2.00 donation to walk the grounds. $5.00 for the 1:30 tour.

Childrens program range from $3.50 to $8.00 depending on the program.

Please check out our website for more pricing.

** Prices are subject to change.

Description

The Heritage Farmstead Museum consists of an authentically restored fourteen room 1895 Victorian farmshouse complete with all of its original outbuildings. The Museum is located in the very center of Plano, Texas corporate home of some of the nation's most high tech multinational corporations. Truly a "community museum" the four acre site underwent a million dollar restoration paid for by local citizens in 1986. During 1996 nearly four hundred volunteers invested over 10, 000 hours of volunteer time in various Museum programs.

The museum is open seven days a week and sponsors many educational and special interest programs as well as tours for a variety of groups such as seniors, special education, and civic tour groups. Two of the most popular programs during 1997 was the production of "Charlotte's Web" which was attended by over 1400 local children and the annual Scout Day which had 1200 in attendance. Last year the Museum had over 20,000 visitors from almost every state and fourteen foreign countries.

The Farmstead is in the final stages of completion of a professionally conducted long range site plan which will be a road map for both programs and facilities for the institution's next ten years.

The museum has received full accrediation from the American Association of Museums.

History

Built in 1891 in a region of rich Blackland Prairie soil by Hunter Farrell for his wife Mary Alice and daughter Ammie, what is now known as the Heritage Farmstead Museum was a pretentious, yet practical, farmhouse. Its elaborate jigsaw trim was characteristic of the time; wrap-around porches and north-south orientation with opposing doorways satisfied the need for shade and cross-ventilation in a period before air conditioning. Together with three barns and several outbuildings on a 365 acre spread, this homestead was definitely a showplace.

Hunter Farrell was a successful businessman in Collin County whose expanding business often took him away from home. Over time, Mary Alice Farrell took on full management of the sizable wheat farm operation. After the Farrell’s' divorce in 1928, Mary Alice and daughter Ammie retained ownership of the homeplace, which one or both of them ran as a farm until 1972.

At age twenty, "Miss Ammie" married Dr. Woods Lynch and had a son George, her only child, before divorcing a few years later. Her subsequent marriage to Dudley Wilson lasted 53 years. Miss Ammie is best known as a champion sheep breeder. Up until her death in 1972, she consistently won prizes for her animals at major stock shows. Ammie Wilson was a successful woman in a male-dominated business - a true pioneer.

Soon after Miss Ammie's passing, the Plano Heritage Museum was formed to preserve the home and grounds. After a seven-year, 1.2 million dollar restoration, the Heritage Farmstead Museum opened its gates to the public. The Heritage Farmstead Association works to preserve, teach, and demonstrate the past to more than 30,000 visitors annually. Transformed into a living museum of agricultural history, this 4.5 acre historic farm complex has been awarded designation by the Plano Landmark Association, a State of Texas Historical marker, and a listing in the National Register of Historic Places.

Artifacts Collections

The collection period for the museum is 1880-1920. Collection includes: Restored 1891 Victorian house and seven restored original outbuildings dating from 1897-1910, including a potting shed, blacksmith shop, smokehouse, sheep and ram barns, and pole barn.

Objects include: In the house - large furniture pieces, small decorative objects, books, and other illustrations which furnish fourteen period rooms in the house. Outside buildings - farm implements, equipment, and large machinery dating 1890-1910. Blacksmith metal tools and forge.

Live animals: mule, donkey, sheep, rabbits, chickens, ducks, a goat, and pig.

Library

Access: General Public, Students, Scholars, Members
Appointment required: False

Services




Publications

Website, Newspaper articles, internet articles, internet websites.

·	quartery newsletter for members

Facilities

4-acre historic site; 1891, 14-room Victorian farm house; 1891 historic pole barn (open on one side) used for events/educational programs; bottom floor wheelchair-accessible; other services for people with disabilities available upon request.

Programs

The Heritage Farmstead offers comprehensive docent training; holiday special events; extensive, multi-level school programs; teacher workshops and in-services; costumed, docent-led tours of the house and site; pre-school public programs; family Saturday series; adult history programs; summer camp programs; exhibitions; and Scout programs and events.

Educational kits and accompanying materials could travel now with some adjustments. Kits include objects, games and questions related to historical subjects. "Victorian Woman: Attitudes and Stereotypes"; "What are all those farm animals?"; "Figuring out Perspective: A study of farm architecture"; "Materials workshop"

In borrowing these kits, cost would be estimated at the cost of materials included in the kit, postage, insurance, etc.

Staff

Angie Carroll, Director of Marketing/Volunteer Director
Email:

Kathy Strobel, Education Director
Email:

Michelle Prengle, Manager of Business Operations
Email:


Museum Type

Children's
History
Historic House
Historical Society
Specialized

Governance

Type: 501 (c) (3)



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