greenbelt museum

The greenbelt museum is actually pictured in the lower right. We spent an afternoon listening to historical information from the two great hosts of the museum. Then you get to tour one of the small homes in this historic area. It might be a small museum but it has some great advantages over some bigger ones. More personal attention and wonderful personal tour of one of the original homes. Be sure to check times of the museum. Usually limited to only a first Sunday if ever month. Don't miss it though

Stop b this museum and see if you have what it takes to live in a little home. And by little I mean approx 700 sq feet. Many still do in a planned community that this museum is located in. Ask questions, listen to stories from seasoned homesteaders. Ikea could learn a thing or two about design after touring our museum.

If you have a few hours to spend in the area this museum is well worth the time. Even though it is scheduled to be open only Sunday afternoons I contacted the staff and Stacy was very accommodating. We met on Thursday morning and she provided me with so much information about the New Deal time… Her Dad was one of the Greenbelt pioneers!

We did'nt realize that the actual museum is only open from 1 -5 P.M. on Sundays, so we really did not get to see it. However, we did visit the Greenbelt Community Center which was sort of interesting and has exhibits about how this was a planned community during the 30's as part of the New Deal plan by FDR. Lot's of old interesting photo's with explainations. Also, several artifacts on display. Not very interesting for children though.

If you want to know the history of Greenbelt, this is the place to go. The area is just right for an hour or two stroll and exploration. If you are in the area, it's great to pay a visit to this place to educate yourself.

This museum is a little piece of the past in Historic Greenbelt. It is a home set up to demonstrate life in 1937. The kitchen and bathroom and furniture are original to the period. Visit on a Sunday afternoon and be sure to see the film about the origins of Historic Greenbelt, a planned community that still thrives today.

In the late 30's and early 40's President Roosevelt and his wife envisioned a nation of planned cooperative communities. They (especially Mrs. Roosevelt) were vital sponsors of this concept. Mrs Roosevelt herself played a critical role in funding and establishing one such community; Greenbelt, Md. This was to be the Gold example of what New Deal America was to be. The house at 10B Crescent Rd in Greenbelt is a trip back in time to a time when the Great Depression still weighed heavily on everyone's minds, yet the Second World War had not yet consumed America. Our docents lead us on a thoroughly enjoyable trip back in time. My wife and I are blessed with a 9 year old who is fascinated by history. The three of us had a wonderful time exploring this house complete with stories of what it was like to grow up in this unique community. Since it is at the end of the Metro Green line, Greenbelt is an excellent place to stay for a weekend trip to DC. MLK and President’s Day are both federal holidays and the three day weekends make a great opportunity to see DC without the crowds. Since the house is only open Sundays, plan accordingly. If you are bored with stories of “when I was young” don’t bother, but if you enjoy that kind of thing this was well worth the 1-2 hours!

The town of Old Greenbelt was the first of four "green towns" planned by the federal government as part of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal plan to get the economy going again during the Great Depression. Eleanor Roosevelt helped lay out the town. This museum is in one of the original Old Greenbelt houses--a small townhouse furnished in 1930s style with exhibits about the town's construction and lifestyle then. If you're NOT interested in urban planning, art deco architecture, life in the 1930s, or the New Deal, you may not find much here to enjoy. It's within walking distance of the town center with a Community Center with more exhibits, as well as restaurants and a movie theater.