high point museum

We just moved to the area. We decided to take the free tour of the museum and grounds. It was very interesting to see the history of the area and tour some of the original structures from a century ago.

I was a bit surprised that no one has reviewed the High Point Museum on TripAdvisor before, considering the list of High Point attractions currently up there the museum should certainly be on the list, probably first on the list if you're from out of town.Especially with the excellent Greensboro Historical Museum just down the road, one might expect the Third City's museum to be third-rate, but even though the exhibits are getting on a bit in years, the museum is well worth an hour or so, more if you visit on a Saturday when the living history demonstrators are about.The museum is free and staff are unobtrusive. The main floor exhibit does a fine job of tracing High Point's history from Native American days to railroad village to Furniture Capital of the World, along with some ancient but user-friendly touch screen displays on 19th century transportation and High Point native son John Coltrane. There is a room off to the side which hosts a fine display of intricate and slightly bizarre room miniatures (like doll house interiors minus the dolls) donated by a local woman who used them as a way to bond with her grandchildren. There is another room on the main floor that serves as an event space and host for rotating exhibits; as of March 2015 there was a display of photos of historic NC movie theatres. On the bottom floor there is a more in depth exploration of furniture manufacturing in High Point both as a craft and as an industry, accompanied by some interesting short films.On the grounds of the museum are some 18th century buildings (a blacksmith's shop, a planter's house, and a backcountry cabin), that comprise some of the oldest structures in the city. On Saturdays there are costumed interpreters and living history programs at these buildings.Overall, the museum does High Point proud and succeeds in giving you a sense of place that distinguishes it from its bigger, more outspoken neighbours. High Point ain't fancy and neither is this museum. But if you're a history buff who lives in the area or happens to be passing through, it's worth your while to learn the story of the town that built world's largest chest of drawers.