Visit & Explore
Come visit the South County Museum, where Rhode Island’s coastal legacy has been celebrated since 1933. Here you can explore a rich heritage of the local rural and coastal life. Our beautiful eight-acre campus is located on a 174-acre town park that was once the 19th-century estate of Rhode Island’s Civil War-era governor and postwar senator, William Sprague IV.
OUR HOURS
Visting hours are now closed for the 2024 season.
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Keep an eye on our workshops page for winter craft workshops.
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Contact us to book group tours and field trips or ask about scheduling tours outside of our regular operating hours. Check our calendar for special event openings.
ADMISSIONS
Adults - $12.00
Seniors - $10.00
Students - $10.00
Children (Over the age of six) - $5.00
Members - Free Admission
THE GROUNDS
Explore history in the Metz Exhibition Hall, carriage barn and carpentry shop. Watch artisans at work in the blacksmith shop, print shop, or carpentry barn. Wander through the Canonchet Estate’s stable ruins, visit our Rhode Island Red heritage flock and our other farm animals. Our grounds feature heirloom flower and herb gardens, and they are bounded by woods, meadows, and salt marshes accessible on marked walking trails.
Field Trips:
Group Tours
The museum offers a variety of engaging group opportunities.
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The South County Museum has been honoring Rhode Island’s village communities that formed around agriculture, maritime activities, and millwork for nearly 90 years. Central to our mission is encouraging curious learners of all ages to explore, engage, and experience America’s history.
We will introduce you to how SCM will connect the past to the present during your visit.
For more information or to schedule a group tour, please contact the museum at 401-786-2442 or email: info@southcountymuseum.org.
Field Trips & Kid Groups
Cost: $10/student—chaperones, organizers, bus drivers are free
Time: 90 minutes
Your group will then be divided up into groups of 8-10 that will rotate through at least 4 exhibit spaces on the museum complex, such as the print shop, blacksmith shop, the Metz Exhibit Hall, and living farm exhibit. Museum staff and volunteers will offer hands-on interpretation appropriate to the visitor’s age and interest level.
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Bring a bagged lunch to enjoy on-site before or after your tour. We have several picnic benches and can accommodate our guests inside the Metz building. As we are a campus-style museum, proper outdoor attire and insect repellant may be needed.
Group Tours:
Cost: $10/person– chaperones, organizers, bus drivers are free
Time: up to 90 minutes
Seniors and other adult groups of 12 or more, whether organized by a group of friends or an organization, are encouraged to visit SCM together. Senior and adult groups will be provided one or more tour guides, depending on group size, for the duration of their visit. The guide(s) will help bring to life the variety and depth of the museum’s campus and collections. Organizers are encouraged to discuss the group's interests and needs during the booking process so that the guides can plan which aspects of the museum to highlight during the tour and decide whether any specific accommodations are needed. There are many areas in which to sit and rest during the tour, and guides will move at the pace of the group.
Accessibility & Special Services
South County Museum has ample parking and can accommodate multiple buses. Handicap access vans/buses can pull up to the ramp of our main exhibit hall to discharge visitors if desired.
Bathroom facilities are available in the Administration Building and the Metz Exhibit Hall.
The Metz Exhibit Hall and Print Shop are wheelchair-accessible. The other buildings have step-up access. South County Museum has one wheelchair available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
A baby-changing station is available in one of the Metz’s unisex bathrooms.