The on-going restoration of Beech Grove, an 1852 Italianate antebellum residence and gardens, once a ‘country seat’ on the old road between Portland and Louisville, serves to tell the story of William and Mary Skene whose family lived here for eight decades.

Portland Museum was founded in 1978 by area school teachers, it grew from a single classroom to its location today at Beech Grove.

In a modern addition, the Portland Museum uses various exhibits to tell the story of Portland, a neighborhood rich with history and folk life.

A letterpress studio here is equipped with Chandler & Price presses, foundry type, and bookbinding equipment. As funding permits, children and adults learn and practice book making arts.

The Portland Museum’s Squire Earick House (c. 1819), an American treasure, may be the oldest house in Portland, and when its restoration is complete will tell important stories about life on the river’s edge, flatboats, steamboats, and the Underground Railroad.

Wednesday – Friday: 12:00pm – 5:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm – 4:00pm
Closed Sunday – Tuesday
Admission: Free

Portland Museum
2308 Portland Avenue
www,portlandky.org

The last remaining Victorian mansion along what was once a residential street downtown dates to 1868, and features original interior finishes, lighting and furnishings from the Brennan family. This authentic historical home reflects the grace and style of wealthy urban families in the late 19th century.

Built by tobacco wholesaler and purchased in 1884 by Thomas Brennan, a native of Ireland and prominent inventor. He and his wife, Anna, had eight children who occupied the home through 1969.

The three-story Italianate townhouse has 16-foot ceilings, a library, six bedrooms, stained-glass windows, expansive veranda, hand-carved marble and slate mantels, crystal chandeliers, and walls lined with personal family items and portraits.

Rooms are decorated with the original Brennan family collection including hand-carved dining room & bedroom furniture, an ornate silver service, and steamer trunks with memorabilia from world travels.

One son, Dr. J.A.O. Brennan, added an office, waiting room and exam room to the north wing of the house in 1912 which remains intact, including exam table, equipment and medical volumes dating to the early 20th century.

Today, it houses Vital Sites, a new organization focused on revitalizing Louisville through strategic redevelopment of abandoned or neglected spaces.

The Brennan House Historic Home is not open for daily public tours. The mansion and garden is available for group tours, rentals and special events by appointment.

The Brennan House
631 S 5th St
The Brennan House

Just after the Civil War, a 19-year old Thomas Edison is thought to have rented a room in this building during part of the 1 1/2 years he worked in Louisville as a telegrapher for Western Union on Main St. This small brick duplex was built in the 1850s, and is one of the few remaining shotgun duplexes in the area. Many of Edison’s inventions, including cylinder and disc phonographs, incandescent bulbs and motion picture artifacts are on exhibit.

Located in the Butchertown Preservation District neighborhood, just east of downtown and just north of Main St.

Museum is open for guided tours Tuesday – Saturday from 10 am – 2 pm.
$5/adults; $4/seniors 60+; $3/students; children 5- free
729 E. Washington St.,
502-585-5247

www.historichomes.org/thomas-edison-house

Finest example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Louisville, built in 1893 on St. James Court in the Old Louisville neighborhood, which features the largest collection of Victorian homes in the U.S.

“Conrad’s Castle” featured all the latest innovations of its day, including interior plumbing and electric lighting. This massive Bedford, Indiana limestone home, is covered with gargoyles, archways, and elaborate stone designs. The interior features beautiful woodwork, parquet floors and magnificent stained glass windows, making it one of the most stunning homes in Old Louisville.

The museum’s interior is decorated in the Edwardian Age style, housing a massive collection of period items including many original pieces while showing-off the abundant lifestyles of the prominent businessmen and entrepreneurs who once lived in the neighborhood.

The only home in Old Louisville open for tours.

1.5 miles south of downtown Louisville.

Museum is open for tours.
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Sunday
1 & 3 PM
Saturday
11 AM, 1 & 3 PM
Twilight Tours
April – September every 3rd Thursday
5 PM & 7 PM
$10, seniors $7, students $5

www.conrad-caldwell.org

The finest example of Parisian Beaux Arts architecture in Louisville, now the home of Kentucky’s oldest privately supported historical society, founded in 1884, collecting and preserving Kentucky and the Ohio Valley region’s significant stories.

Designed by William J. Dodd, who also designed the Seelbach Hotel, began in 1901 and was completed in 1905. The interior features the use of wood and damask paneling along with sculpted marble and bronze mantelpieces. The second floor features a set of Tiffany lamps in the form of dragonflies.

Around the turn of the century in Louisville, when the average mansion cost about ten thousand dollars this home was considered one of the most expensive, at about one hundred thousand dollars. Ferguson was able to build his lavish residence because he was a successful entrepreneur and the founder of the Kentucky Refining Company. Ferguson sold the mansion in 1924 to the Pearson Funeral Home. The Pearsons kept the mansion in its original condition, with the exception of the removal of the grand staircase. In 1984 The Filson Club purchased the mansion at auction along with some of its original furnishings and décor.

The attached Owsley Brown II History Center opened in the Fall 2016.

Due to campus expansion, as of summer 2016, the Ferguson Mansion is currently not open for tours.

Research hours remain 9 am – 5 pm, Monday – Friday.

www.filsonhistorical.org