Housed within a beautiful Colonial Revival-style building, the New Haven Museum is dedicated to preserving the rich past of the region. Visitors at the museum will be able to trace the region's origins as a sleepy seafaring village and its subsequent transformation into a thriving industrial and residential community through a diverse range of artifacts and exhibits. From local art, photographs and other extensive collections sourced from historic families and ancient New Haven homes, to vintage furniture and 18th and 19th-century artworks, the museum presents a comprehensive catalog of the city's heritage. The New Haven Museum is also home to the Whitney Research Library, which comprises of priceless manuscripts, rare books and other archival collections from the city's early settlement era.
Named after the fraternal brotherhood, the Knights of Columbus museum is one of the finest religiously themed museums in America. Situated beside the Supreme Council office, the museum strives to put the various activities of the Knights of Columbus fraternity into the forefront of the world. The numerous material sources and artifacts pertaining to the fraternity are on show in this Columbus Plaza museum.
Housed in two buildings at Southern Connecticut State University, the Ethnic Heritage Center houses exhibits, archives and educational programs throughout the year. Exhibits, artifacts and programs are possible through associations with other ethnic historical societies in New Haven and Connecticut. If you are interested in learning about the different cultures and people who make up the area, a trip to the Ethnic Heritage Center is the perfect way to do so.
Eli Whitney was an idealist and visionary who has been forgiven the unwitting consequences of his brilliant inventions; the cotton gin turned slavery from a tottering institution into a thriving business, and the milling machine gave rise to the horrific abuses of American industry. The museum occupies several buildings erected by Whitney as a model for a factory town, and preserves the roots of the industrial revolution that changed the country and the world.
Pardee-Morris House—beautifully restored and preserved home near Lighthouse Point Park shows you what life was like for a prominent New Haven family in the 1700s. The home is maintained and run by the New Haven Colony Historical Society, and is open weekends June through August. After your tour of the museum, walk around the park to enjoy a panorama of Long Island Sound.