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 and offers something for everyone!
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. Heritage is also known for its daylily garden, located near the Flume Fountain, and the Cape Cod Hydrangea Society Garden, both of which bloom in July.
The gardens also include a labyrinth 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 are the Hart Family Maze Garden, nature trails, and more than a thousand varieties of trees, shrubs and flowers. From June 6-October 15, 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 houses Special Traveling Exhibitions and in 2015will feature The Wyeths: America Reflected (June 6-September 27), 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 Heritage’s working 1908 carousel that was manufactured by Charles Looff and features hand-carved animal figures. In addition, this gallery hosts The Heritage Collection, a large collection of New England folk art and rare artifacts – American paintings, military firearms and miniatures, weather vanes, Nantucket baskets, scrimshaw, shop signs and more. This exhibit has recently been refurbished to showcase this important collection.
The JK Lilly III Automobile Gallery
The Automobile Gallery houses Driven to Collect, which features a nationally significant collection of antique automobiles within a replica of the Shaker Round Barn in Hancock, Massachusetts.
