If you’d like to learn about history, arts and culture, Super Museum Sunday, which falls on Feb. 11 this year, gives you the chance to do it for free.
More than 100 museums and historic sites in the metro Atlanta area and throughout the state offer free admission from noon until 4 p.m. on this day, which is part of the annual Georgia History Festival.
The following are some of the sites participating. For a full list, visit georgiahistoryfestival.org.
Marietta History Center: 1 Depot St., Marietta. 770-794-5710.
Learn about the history of Marietta and Cobb County through exhibits and experiences. The museum houses the largest collection of artifacts related to these areas.
Seven Springs Museum at the Bodiford House: 4355 Marietta St., Powder Springs. 770-943-1666, Ext. 450.
The newly renovated historic Bodiford House is home to artifacts and photographs that preserve the area’s history. Current exhibits include “An Oral History Portrait of an African American Community,” which outlines information about a historical neighborhood known as the Flats.
William Root House: 80 N. Marietta Parkway NW, Marietta. 770-426-4982.
One of Marietta’s oldest buildings, the house was built in 1845 for William and Hannah Root. A visit to the home offers a look at the daily life of the family and the enslaved people who lived and worked on the property. The home’s exterior has been restored to its original appearance, and the interior is decorated with furnishings authentic to the period. A re-created cookhouse is outside the home, along with a working 1850s cookstove and a garden filled with plants that were available in Georgia during this time period.
Barrington Hall: 535 Barrington Drive, Roswell. 770-640-3855.
Barrington Hall was built in the 1830s by Barrington King, whose father, Roswell King, co-founded the colony that eventually became Roswell. You’ll be able to see furnishings and artifacts, as well as explore an antebellum garden and several original outbuildings.
Bulloch Hall: 180 Bulloch Ave., Roswell. 770-992-1731.
This Greek Revival-style home was built in 1839 by James Stephens Bulloch, whose daughter Mittie married Theodore Roosevelt Sr. here. They later became the parents of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Smith Plantation: 935 Alpharetta St., Roswell. 770-641-3978.
This graceful home was built by slave labor for the Smith family, one of Roswell’s founding families, in 1845. It was preserved by three generations and includes several outbuildings, including the servants’ quarters, smokehouse and carriage house.
Cherokee County History Center: 221 E. Marietta St., Canton. 770-345-3288.
The center focuses on the history of Cherokee County, including Americans Indians, the Civil War, moonshining, desegregation and more.
State historic sites
Georgia’s state historic sites are offering free admission on Super Museum Sunday, and many are also hosting special programs and activities. The sites include the following:
Dahlonega Gold Museum: 1 Public Square, Dahlonega. 706-864-2257.
Learn about the country’s first major gold rush, which took place in the Cherokee Nation in north Georgia. The museum, which is inside the 1836 Lumpkin County Courthouse, houses rare coins made in Dahlonega when it was a U.S. Branch Mint, a large hydraulic cannon and nozzle that were used for blasting, and more. Demonstrations about the gold mining process using Play-Doh will also be held this Sunday.
Roosevelt’s Little White House: 400 Little White House Road, Warm Springs. 706-655-5870.
Visit President Franklin Roosevelt’s home away from home in Warm Springs and see the unfinished portrait he was posing for a short time before he died, his 1938 Ford convertible with hand controls, and other exhibits. A special program also lets you take a spy mission through the museum and learn how to encrypt and decrypt a code.
Wormsloe: 7601 Skidaway Road, Savannah. 912-353-3023.
Wormsloe was the Colonial estate of Noble Jones, who arrived in Georgia along with James Oglethorpe and other settlers in 1733. The Colonial Faire and Muster held at the museum is also free on Sunday, and the living history program highlights 18th century music, dancing, crafts, military drills, tools and skills.
