historic general dodge house

The architecture is interesting, and the period furnishings are wonderfully preserved and arranged. But despite these plusses, there were some major short-comings in my opinion. The biggest: a prohibition against photography inside the building. Unless you are an expert in antiques, you'll probably remember little of your visit. Also, the staff was friendly, but their knowlege of the structure and furnishings was sometimes a bit lacking. Be aware, too, that the staircases are long and steep, so if anyone in your party has mobility issues, this might not be the best experience for them.

Beautiful historic home with knowledgable docents. Well worth the money. Decorated beautifully during the Christmas season. The gardens are beautiful. Lots of history here.

I was amazed at how nice it was,how easy it was to get to, and the level of professional staff that they had on hand. I would definitely take the time to see this!

My husband and I really enjoyed our tour of the Dodge House. It began with a very interesting video that gave us good information on General Dodge's life and career. The house itself was furnished with beautiful antiques. We especially loved the lighting fixtures. The auto tour was very informative. This is home has 3 floors and a basement. The stairs are historically accurate (narrow and steep) which might be a consideration for some people.

When the employees/volunteers dress in period appropriate attire, the kids love it. Our daughter likes looking through the house at all the fixtures and decorative features.

We toured the Dodge House and were absolutely thrilled. What a gem of the Council Bluffs and Omaha environs! To tour this house is to literally experience the very essence of General Dodges' American optimism and 19th century can-do railroad building acumen. When you combine the tour with a visit to the Union Pacific Railroad Museum nearby you've got a winning doubleheader. Thank goodness the citizens of Council Bluff had the foresight to preserve this national treasure. General Dodge is a bone fide American Hero and our children should study him in school. Also, it seemed the grand home was built for Gen. Dodge's family, rather than to merely impress. It was lovingly and thoughtfully constructed. Wow! We LOVED IT!

Ok so I love old houses and old things and beautiful craftsmanship. I was so pleased to have toured this house during my three day stay in Omaha. Well worth the $7 and time. I loved that the house had family heirlooms and additional wonderful antiques to see. We went from Dodge house to Joslyn Castle in Omaha only to be so disappointed finding myself constantly comparing Joslyn to the Dodge house. If you ever have to choose one over the other to see I say go to the Dodge house. Yes the other house is beautiful but has no furnishings and it seems to being restored slowly. The Dodge house is a wonderful treasure to this city. I only could choose one thing to do in Council Bluffs and I believe we so picked the perfect thing to do!

One of the paces to definitely not miss while visiting Council Bluffs or Omaha. Tour price was under $10 includes a short video on General Dodge and audio tour of the house.

Wonderful opportunity to visit a well maintained, historic home. Beginning with a brief film history, we thoroughly enjoyed detailed tour with fun, interesting tidbits shared by the guide. There were people of all ages included in our tour and the guide made it interesting for all. Very impressive tour.

I love touring historic architecture so it's no surprise I enjoyed this house tour. The good news is that the others in our group, including a ten year old, enjoyed it as well. It is a self-guided tour so you can take as much time as you'd like. Plan for 30 to 45 minutes. There is a 10 minute documentary film about General Dodge which is very interesting. The basement houses a nice collection of old photographs of the family.

A lot of history involving General Grenville Dodge and President Abraham Lincoln. Very well kept. They decorate Christmas trees for visits during December.

The history behind the structure, the family, General Dodge and his military and railroad contributions all make for a very interesting tour. This is a lovely and well-maintained home. Tour tickets are purchased at the adjacent Beresheim home which is worthy on its own.

Council Bluffs goes all out decorating this house for Christmas with a decorated tree in every room. Civic organizations do a wonderful job decorating their trees around the period of the house. It's a wonderful tour

I love touring old houses, and this one was beautiful to see and interesting to hear about. We began the tour with the 15-minute introductory video in a neighboring house then continued with the guide on the main floor of the Dodge House. She gave lots of information about the history and the items in the house, some original, some just from that time period. It was nice to hear little snippets about how certain items were recovered through auction or donation by previous owners.For the remainder of the tour (second and third floors and basement), we were given recorders to listen to at our own pace. You type in the number of the room you want to hear about and listen to the history. At the end of most of them, you could choose from between one and three additional recordings to hear, further customizing the tour to your time and interest. We had our 6 and 9 year old children with us, and they listened to every recording. We took the time to point out a few additional things to them, and they really enjoyed it. The only part that lost their interest was the basement, which is mostly a mini museum of family and period artifacts, which were not as interesting as the rest of the furnished house.I definitely recommend the General Dodge House if you are in the area. It was one of our favorite activities.

A natural extension of your visit to the Union Pacific Museum in Council Bluffs. The homes original owner, General Grenville Dodge, was the chief engineer of the original Union Pacific.