In our Museum Shop we feature items from the Civil War and the Victorian eras, including 19th century hats, jewelry, classic toys, linens, stationery, candy, greeting cards, books, CDs, candles, soaps, fans, puppets, and cookbooks, as well as Kentucky made foods and crafts. Feel free to stop by and shop anytime during our regular business hours (Tues- Saturday 10am to 4pm and Sunday 1pm to 4pm).

Victorian Holiday Tours: From the Tuesday before Thanksgiving until the Friday before Christmas, visitors to Riverview are transported back in time to Christmas 1890 in the setting of Atwood and Julia Hobson’s three-story Italianate home. Inside the doors, one can visually take in the natural and hand-made decorations and the aroma of Christmases past. The parlor is outfitted with the 19th century holiday rage: the quaint and breath-taking Christmas tree, complete with antique decorations and toys. A sumptuous table is set for holiday guests in the elegant Dining Room where dramatic decorations will surprise even the repeat visitor.

Victorian Antique and Garden Festival; Stroll the lawn and enjoy the beautiful flowers in May by attending the Victorian Antique and Garden Festival on the grounds of the historic house museum. Shoppers will be able to visit an eclectic variety of booths displaying unique accessories for home and garden, seasonal plants, annuals, and perennials, and Kentucky primitives and antiques. In addition to visiting the booths, free lectures are held throughout the day. Admission to the event is free and open to the public. The house is also open for tours during the day.

Riverview, like all old houses, has stories to tell. Construction on the house started in the 1850s', but was halted due to the outbreak of the Civil War. During the conflict, the incomplete house was used as a munitions magazine during the winter of 1861-1862, when Bowling Green was the Confederate capital of Kentucky.

Riverview was opened to the public for tours in 1972. The house and grounds are open six days a week, and can be toured for a small fee. The museum is closed on Mondays, in January and on all major holidays. Riverview hosts various events throughout the year including teas, luncheons, an Easter Egg Hunt, Garden and Antique Show, Tea with Mrs. Claus, Candlelight Tours and other themed programs and events.

Riverview was built as the home of Atwood Gaines Hobson and his wife Juliet "Julia" van Meter Hobson on a small promontory near the Barren River. Construction on the house started in the 1850s, but was halted due to the outbreak of the Civil War. During the conflict, the basement of the incomplete house was used as a munitions magazine during the winter of 1861-1862, when Bowling Green was the Confederate capital of Kentucky. Riverview was finally completed in 1872. Riverview is a classic example of Italianate architecture with arched windows, deep eaves with ornamental brackets, and a cupola. The two parlors have painted ceilings. The Hobson family and their descendants lived in the house until 1952. After a string of various successive tenants and being damaged by fire, the structure was abandoned and condemned in 1965. The city of Bowling Green purchased the property with the intent of demolishing the house and building a golf course. The house was saved when a non-profit organization, the Hobson House Association, was formed the next year, restoring the dwelling in Victorian style. The proposed golf course was built nearby and can be viewed from the hill upon which Riverview sits.