the baranov museum

Pamiruru

An interesting study of objects focused on the Russian trapper and the Alaskan relationship. The building is one of the oldest in Alaska and shows how life evolved over the years in the home with different people occupying it.

JanC837

The Baranov Museum, run by the Kodiak historical society, is housed in a lovely building that's the oldest wooden, Russian-built house in Kodiak. While it covers the history of settlement in the area generally, it also has a particularly good, interactive display about the 1964 tsunami that devastated the area. The museum also has a lovely little gift shop that includes a number of hand carved, hand painted Russian items, including matryoshka (nesting) dolls, along with interesting indigenous craft items and the usual array of books, jewelry, and whatnot, including a nice selection of children's books.

TXtraveler67_71

Good size museum that has a nice history of the Kodiak Island and city history. Covers a variety of aspects of life up to the present day. Russian History is covered and well as history since becoming US held. Enjoyed the binders with pictures, many including history of other areas in Alaska.

konstanzj

The Russian history and the fact that this building was a family home was interesting. The staff were informative and the displays interesting.

RAFtexas

History of how the Russian Orthodox Church became an integral part of Kodiak history. The good and the bad.

pm1msd

This museum gives dimension to the Russian history of Kodiak. There are a lot of artifacts to look at, but I would have enjoyed it more if the displays gave a bit more context to what I was looking at.

MarciaSimpkins

Our group took the afternoon of from fishing and we are so glad we did. This small historical site is well worth the visit. There was an interesting collection of Native Artifacts, Russian historical objects and photographs and oral history related to the 1964 earthquake. The highlight of the trip was the guide/cashier Hannah Grace. She was very knowledgeable about the collection and Alaska history in general. If i had one thing to change about our four day stay in Kodiak it would be to visit the Baranov the first day and allow more time. This is a little gem.

nonas0

The Baranov Museum had a small but interesting collection about the Russian history on Kodiak Island and the period afterthe turn of the last century. The building (Built in 1808 as a storehouse) is worth looking at as it is the oldest structure in Kodiak and has survived over 200 years through changes in history and the 1964 earthquake. The drawback to our experience was that we had questions about Baranov and the history of the establishment of the settlement - it turned out that we knew more than the young women inside. At best, this very nice friendly person could run a cash register and sell trinkets from the gift shop. She was not knowledgable about the museum and did not display any enthusiasm or interest in the collection or where she worked.

Marianneza

The museum is located in a lovely building that was once a family home. That in itself is worth a visit since you can get a sense of what the housing was like in earlier times in Kodiak. I loved looking at the kitchen as it had a variety of appliances, cooking utensils, etc from various periods in history. The historical exhibits, particularly the one on the Good Friday earthquake, were not extensive but were well done and informative. Nice gift shop too.

AlaskaFile

I spent about an hour in this lovely old building and very much enjoyed the arrangement of the displays and progression from one room to the next. I learned a lot about whaling that I hadn't known before, and felt bad about the whale bones that my grandmother had used in her corsets.

Okvik1

Small local museum located in a building that dates from the late 1700'sSome interesting displays of artifacts as well as very good display of baskets from the AleutiansLots of historical photos to go throughThe staff is friendly and helpfulDefinitely worth a visit

407susannef

We visited here not knowing what to expect, but were impressed with the extensive collection of historical photos taken in and around Kodiak. The museum has shelves filled with albums covering natural history, settlement, and the history of the town - our personal favorites were the whaling and Katmai albums!Also, this museum is where I learned that Benny Benson didn't die as a child right after writing the state flag song.

Travelerlu

This museum had great displays of the Russian history of Kodiak. The building itself has been there for over 200 years and used to hold animal pelts for trading. The museum focuses on the Russian era, the buying by American, and then the Alaskan territory. They also have a nice gift shop. I believe entry is $5.00. This makes for a very interesting hour or so.

166MarkW166

For a modest $5 admission, the Baranov Museum offers overview of Kodiak history and culture. After the overview, proceed to the close-by Alutiiq Museum for an outstanding, in-depth appreciation of indigenous culture and its contemporary re-discovery and revival.

JeanetteC281

I'm not much of a museum person so that will affect my rating. The museum is a good option on a bad weather day. It was an interesting mix of natural things (animal displays) and history of the house and region. Tons of photo albums with old photos showing all eras and major events on Kodiak. It's really small--two-three rooms but it's a small price to get in (I think $5 each). If you're in the area, it's worth stopping by.