Sandusky is known for its collection of limestone buildings, including this Greek Revival. The three-story mansion features a ruby and cranberry glass collection, antique furnishings, greenhouse, and souvenirs. Site managed by the Old House Guild of Sandusky. To arrange tours for other days or times than listed below in the schedule, please call the site manager, Ed: 419.357.7473.

Schedule: April 19-Oct 28, Weds-Fri 11 am-3 pm; or by appt.

Rates: Free; donations accepted

Enjoy a guided wine-tasting tour of the Valentine Doller Mansion and experience island life as it was in the 1800s. Sample regional island wines while relaxing in the wine garden or enjoying the harbor view from the front lawn. Accessible.

Schedule: See website for schedule

Rates: Tour and Wine Tasting: $10, Tour Only: $9; entrance to winery is free

Visit the early boyhood home of Thomas Edison in Milan, Ohio. The museum features a collection of rare early inventions, documents, and family mementos.

Schedule: Hours vary. Please call for hours. Online tour reservations available. Closed major holidays. Open Feb. 11 for Edison’s birthday.

Rates: Adult: $17, Senior (60 yrs. and older), Child (5-17 yrs.), & Student: $12, Child (5 yrs. and under): Free

Features several historic walking tours including
Underground Railroad (Sandusky), Downtown Sandusky, Milan, Vermilion Sea Captains, Downtown Vermilion, Kelleys Island, and more. Each is accessible through the website and functions on mobile devices and PCs. Use the website to also find more than 60 historical markers, including a photo and location/directions. See website for dates of special events.

Schedule: Year-round

Rates: Free. Some guided tours require a fee; see website for details.

Ohio's oldest museum features 200 yrs. of Firelands history, including an extensive gun collection from Pre-Revolutionary War through WWII and a Native American collection. Separate research library available by appt.

Schedule: Jun-Aug Thurs-Sun 11 am-3 pm; Sept-Oct, Sat-Sun 11 am-3 pm

Rates: Adult: $5, Senior: $4, Youth (13-18 yrs.): $3,
Child (12 yrs. and under): Free

Experience Sandusky's history from before the War of 1812, through the Civil War era, and to the present. Four floors of exhibits include business, industry, Johnson's Island Prison information and artifacts, and more.

Schedule: Apr-May, Sat 12-4pm; June-Sept 4, Thurs-Sat 12-4 pm; Sept 19-Dec, Sat 12-4 pm. Tours by appt after Labor Day.

Rates: Free; donations accepted

Featuring the 140-year history of Lakeside Chautauqua and the surrounding area.

Schedule: Memorial Day-Labor Day, Tue-Sat 10 am-4:30 pm, Sun 1-4:30 pm. Archives open limited hours from Sept-May, or by appt. For more information and most up-to-date hours please visit the website.

Rates: Free admission (Lakeside Chautauqua gate fee applies)

Experience the past as you tour the 16 buildings of this 19th century village. Tours include an 1880s Victorian mansion, an 1836 farm home, log homes, barns, a one-room school, a general store, and more. The museum gift shop is located in the visitors center. Located four miles south of Ohio Turnpike (I-80/90) exit 110.

Schedule: June-Aug, Wed-Sat 11 am-5 pm (last tour at 4 pm). Special events scheduled throughout the year.

Rates: Adult: $15 Senior (60 yrs. and older): $13,
Child (6-12 yrs.): $6, Child (5 yrs. and under): Free. Groups (12 or more): $12 each (with a week’s notice)

Displays include over 65 ship models, the South Bass Island Lighthouse Fresnel lens, island life, Ford Tri-Motor, great hotel eras, and the Battle of Lake Erie. Theatre, research library, and bookstore on site.

Schedule: May-Oct Mon-Fri 11 am-4:30 pm, Sat-Sun 11 am-5 pm: Nov-Apr: Call for current hours.

Rates: Adult: $7, Senior: $6, Child (5 yrs. and under): Free

Showcasing operational, historical aircraft and vehicles, including "Georgie's Gal", a WWII B-25 Mitchell Bomber, U.S. Navy WWII TBM Avenger, PT-boat, and more. Witness the restoration of a 1929 Ford Tri-Motor and dine in the 1950s-era Tin Goose Diner.

Schedule: Hours vary by season. Visit Facebook page for seasonal hours.

Rates: Adult: $14, Child (6 yrs. and older): $8, Child (5 yrs. and younger): Free

Opened in 1976, the Mad River and NKP Railroad Museum is a lasting bicentennial project and a tribute to the transportation industry that helped to mold our country. Ohio’s largest railroad museum showcases several engines, buildings, freight and passenger cars, and cabooses. Many of the cars are filled with displays that await you.

Schedule: Memorial Day-Labor Day, daily 12-4 pm; May, Sept, Oct Sat-Sun 12-4 pm

Rates: Adult (13 yrs and older): $10, Senior (60 yrs. and older): $9, Child (6-12 yrs): $5, Child (5 yrs. and under): Free

Located on the grounds of the Marblehead Lighthouse in the former keepers house. The museum displays artifacts, historical photos, and other materials which represent the rich and colorful history of the Lighthouse and the Marblehead area. A replica of the lifesaving station features an authentic lifesaving boat and additional exhibits.

Schedule: May 27-Sept 2, 12-4 pm. Call or check website to confirm hours

Rates: Free

Dive into maritime history of the Sandusky Bay
area. Through interactive exhibits and educational
programs the whole family can have a boatload of fun learning about ice harvesting, shipwrecks, boat building, the wetlands, passenger boats, Sandusky's Underground Railroad history, and more. Special events throughout the year.

Schedule: Jan-May, Fri-Sun 10 am-4 pm; June-Aug,
Tues-Sun 10 am-4 pm; Sept-Dec, Fri-Sun 10 am-4 pm.
Closed major holidays.

Rates: Adult: $8, Senior (60 yrs. and older) and
Child (4-12 yrs.): $7. Family and group rates available.

Enjoy the sights and sounds of yesterday at the Merry-Go-Round Museum! Take a carousel ride, hear the happiest music on earth, and watch wood carvers create new carousel animals. Accessible.

Schedule: Feb, Sat 11am-4pm, Sun 12-4pm; Mar-May, Wed-Sat 11am-4pm, Sun 12-4pm; Memorial Day-Labor Day, Tues-Sat 10 am-4 pm, Sun 12-4 pm; Sept-Dec, Wed-Sat 11 am-4 pm, Sun 12-4 pm

Rates: Adult: $8, Senior (60 yrs. and older): $7,
Child (4-14 yrs.): $6

Small museum with exhibits on the history of Ottawa County including the Battle of Lake Erie, boat building, nature, agriculture, commercial fishing, early settlers, Native Americans, early clothing, and children's toys. Accessible.

Schedule: Memorial Day-Labor Day, Tues-Thurs 12-3 pm; Labor Day-Memorial Day, Wed 12-3 pm. Other times by Appt; call: 419.732.2237

Rates: Free

Visit Spiegel Grove, the wooded estate of President Rutherford B. Hayes, home of America's first presidential library. Tour the president's 31-room Victorian mansion, see his tomb, visit the newly-renovated museum, explore the library, and walk the mile of paved trails.

Schedule: Apr-Sept, Mon-Sat 9 am-5 pm, Sun 12-5pm; Sept-Apr, Tues, Thurs-Sat 9 am-5 pm, Sun 12-5 pm. Closed major holidays.

Rates: Site Pass (Home and Museum): Adult: $20; Senior (65 yrs. and older), Military, and AAA: $18; Teen (13-18 yrs.): $10; Child (6-12 yrs.): $5. One-Day Museum-only Adult: $13

Visitors to the Milan Museum learn a history rich in
progress and creativity along with the important contributions made in Milan. Milestones in invention and inventors, a renowned glass collection, and folk-art displays are seen throughout the many historical buildings, artifacts, and galleries.

Schedule: Mar-May, Oct-Dec Fri-Sun 12-5 pm; June-Sept, Tues-Sun 12-5 pm.

Rates: Adult: $12, Senior: $10, Child (5-17 yrs.): $8,
Children (4 yrs. and under): Free, Family passes available.

Because of its location on Lake Erie, the number of railroad lines, the Huron and Vermilion rivers, and the Milan Canal, Erie County was a leading Great Lakes Port and a major terminal on the Underground Railroad. Since historic records on this topic are rare and many sites have been destroyed, only a few of the remaining sites and people influential in this movement have been highlighted in a brochure that offers a narrative as you take the self-driving tour throughout Erie County. Brochures and maps can be obtained from the Shores & Islands Ohio welcome centers. Call 800.255.3743 or 800.441.1271 to request a copy.

From 1905-1964, a weekly newspaper was composed and printed here. All types of books, magazines, and signs were printed with its presses which are still on display today. Vermilion photographs and original printed materials, two small linotypes, and four-letter presses are also on display.

Schedule: Year-round; Mon-Sat 11 am-2 pm. Other times by appt.

Rates: Adult: $5, Senior/Veteran: $4, Child (10 yrs. and under): Free. Group rates available.