Museum Profile
Heritage Museums & Gardens
Heritage Museums & Gardens is comprised of three galleries and expansive gardens located in historic Sandwich, Massachusetts. It includes galleries for American Folk Art, a vintage carousel, automobiles and traveling exhibitions.
The gardens feature a collection of thousands of rhododendrons, including a collection of the world-renowned Dexter variety. Their typical bloom time is from Memorial Day Weekend to mid-June. Other horticultural areas of interest include: holly, daylily, herb, hosta, and heather gardens, as well as more than a thousand varieties of trees, shrubs and flowers.
The gardens also include the Old East Mill, a windmill built in Orleans, Massachusetts in 1800, and extensively restored in 1999-2000. In 2002, a labyrinth was also added to the gardens, designed by Marty Cain, one of the best-known labyrinth designers in North America. Hidden Hollow™, a certified Nature Explore Classroom, is a place for families to play in and explore the natural world. Also located in the gardens is the Hart Family Maze Garden and the Cape Cod Hydrangea Society Garden. In 2015, the gardens at Heritage will be populated by Secret Shelters, artistic shelters tucked around Heritage’s trees, hills and hidden spaces featuring designs by artists and architects for contemplating nature, practicing the art of meditation, writing poetry, gazing at the heavens and more.
Special Exhibitions Gallery
The Special Exhibitions Gallery is a replica of the Revolutionary War building known as The Temple of Virtue in New Windsor, New York which is known as the location where George Washington bestowed the first Purple Heart to a wounded soldier. This Gallery will host Special Traveling Exhibitions. In 2015, the featured exhibit will be The Wyeths: America Reflected, featuring paintings by three generations of America’s best known art family, the Wyeths. This is a great opportunity to see works by N.C., Andrew, and Jamie Wyeth exhibited together–many on loan from private collectors, including Andrew Wyeth’s Master Bedroom.
American Art & Carousel Gallery
The American Art & Carousel Gallery houses our working 1908 carousel that was manufactured by Charles Looff and features hand-carved animal figures including an ostrich, frog, zebra, cat and deer. In addition, this gallery hosts a large collection of New England folk art – paintings, weather vanes, Nantucket baskets, scrimshaw, shop signs and more. In 2015, the American Art Collection Exhibit will feature beloved Heritage-owned artifacts in a new display, including American paintings, rare artifacts and the famed military miniatures.
Automobile Gallery
The Automobile Gallery houses Driven to Collect, which features an impressive collection of antique automobiles within a replica of the Shaker Round Barn in Hancock, Massachusetts.
