I discovered a hidden gem in Palo Alto today
The Museum of American Heritage is a fantastic independent museum in Palo Alto, California. We needed a short activity to pass the time (we were in Palo Alto for coding lessons for one of our boys) and I discovered this place online. What a find it is!
The museum is a collection of artifacts from the 1800s and early 1900s, mostly gadgets of various sorts. It has a “general store” that uses the artifacts from one of the founders (whose parents owned a general store in the area until 1965). Some familiar brands are there if you look closely.
Our boys had a go at dialing my phone number on an old rotary phone (they needed a hint).
They had a real ice box! The big block of ice went in the upper left hand compartment and a bucket to catch melting water was in the lower right. Food went into the right hand compartment. Note the thickness of the doors. Well insulated!
They also had an early 1900s fridge. Apparently it used freon and needed that big condenser on top. The compartment wasn’t very big, maybe 1.5 feet x 3 feet by 1 feet deep, if that. Also note the tiny freezer.
For the kid set, the best features were the erector sets (not featured, but a source of endless fun) and the working old-style pinball machine.
We also saw a cool bacon cooker! The fat drips off the rounded metal into the platter below. This looks like a gadget someone should make a modern version of now.
Finally, we showed up on the same day as the Palo Alto “Repair Cafe” in which experts with tools help people who bring in their old appliances to get fixed up. It was quite a scene. It happens quarterly.
This little museum vastly exceeded our expectations. If you are in the area, by all means give it a go.
Here are the details:
Museum of American Heritage
351 Homer Avenue
Palo Alto, California 94301
+1-650-321-1004
Open from 11am to 4pm on
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
FREE General Admission (donations gratefully accepted).
For more details on the Repair Cafe, click here.
