9 Places in the US Where You Can Explore American History with Kids

Discover kid-friendly historical attractions in the US that bring the past to life for young explorers.

Making the country’s rich and often complex past accessible to children requires knowing the most engaging places to visit. Not any old museum will do. You want family-friendly historical sites in the US that will capture young imaginations so you can explore American history with children in a way they can understand. These nine top historical sites for kids in America are just the solution.

Whether you have a budding Revolutionary War enthusiast on your hands or a child fascinated by 19th-century maritime culture, you’ll find something here to captivate them. Here are some of the best US historical destinations for kids.

1. Colonial Williamsburg, Williamsburg, Virginia

Journey back in time to the founding of America in Colonial Williamsburg.

Like the mesmerizing mascots at any theme park, the costumed reenactors at the living-history museum of Colonial Williamsburg bring the 18th century to life. But it’s their interpretations of the Colonial-era trades, including carpentry and wigmaking, that make this destination unique for kids.

Explore American history through Williamsburg tours or specialty programs such as “Fashioning a Future”—a performance that depicts the Hunter sisters, who owned a millinery shop, navigating their business. Alternatively, during the hands-on immersive program, “Shoulder Your Firelocks,” children can be introduced to the tactics of 1700s military drills.

Colonial Williamsburg changes their programming frequently. Check the site’s event calendar for up-to-date schedules.

2. Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum, Boston, Massachusetts

Get a little rebellious at this immersive floating museum in Boston.

The Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum interprets one of the most important rebellions of the American Revolution. Although it’s a historical place to visit with kids in the US, it keeps its exhibits firmly planted in the future by using modern technology such as holograms. Picture it: As you enter the wharf, two Colonial women appear seemingly out of nowhere, transporting you to Boston circa 1773.

And the high stakes action doesn’t stop there. Kids are encouraged on the tall ship tour to toss some tea, reenacting the fateful day when Patriots chucked 342 chests into the harbor. (And while in Boston, you should also be sure to stroll the Freedom Trail.)

3. Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington DC

Embark on an immersive tour through Black heritage at the Museum of African American History and Culture.

Another great place to learn about American history with kids is at the Smithsonian museums in Washington DC. The 4-story African American History and Culture Museum offers an interactive space filled with hands-on exhibits. In the Lunch Counter Experience, for example, you can sit at a recreated Woolworths, the site of many sit-in protests against racial segregation; then, using touchscreens, young people can respond to questions about the Civil Rights movement. Book a tour with museum admission in advance.

Insider tip: Download activity books, such as Understanding and Celebrating Juneteenth, designed for early readers, which can be printed at home in advance of a visit.

4. Fort Sumter National Monument, Charleston, South Carolina

See where one of the most defining conflicts in American history began.

Located in Charleston, one of the most historically significant cities on the eastern seaboard, Fort Sumter National Monument explains one of the bloodiest conflicts in American history. Your journey begins at the Visitor Education Center at Liberty Square with a Junior Ranger booklet to guide kids through the museum’s exhibits. Arriving at the island fortress, kids can join a guided Ranger tour before enjoying the freedom to explore the site, touching cannons and climbing the ramparts.

Insider tip: You should book admission with a 30-minute ferry ride, narrated by an audio recording that highlights points of interest, and includes the chance to spot dolphins.

5. Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, Dayton, Ohio

Prepare for take-off at this vibrant set of sites dedicated to pioneers of aviation.

Learn about pioneers of aviation, Orville and Wilbur Wright, at the 5-site Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park in Ohio. This imaginative American history site for kids is dedicated to the aviators’ groundbreaking work, which began with them tinkering with bicycles. At this creatively designed historical park, children can explore a replica of the Wright Cycle Company, immersing themselves in the world where the Wright brothers' innovative ideas took flight.

From there, head to the Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center to see incredible artifacts such as the Wright Flyer III in which Orville made that fateful first take-off. (Note that ranger-led tours are only offered during the summer.)

6. Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Seattle, Washington

Seek your educational fortune at a museum dedicated to Seattle’s role in the Alaskan gold rush.

Roughly 100,000 hopeful miners set off for Alaska between 1896 and 1899 in search of gold. A majority of them passed through Seattle, where they provisioned themselves before the trek north. The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park lets kids imagine their quest, starting with two family-friendly video presentations.

Of particular interest to children is “Gold Fever: Race to the Klondike,” which depicts what happened to even the youngest fortune seekers who trekked to the Yukon. Here, kids can also spin a wheel to see if they would strike it rich, use a scale to weigh gold, or study maps deciding on which route they’d take north.

7. The Alamo, San Antonio, Texas

Remember the Alamo with this captivating site tour.

The Alamo existed as a fort under the flag of five different nations, so absorbing 300 years of history in one visit is pretty ambitious. Instead, introduce kids to the site’s most pivotal moment: the 1836 Battle of the Alamo, resulting in the birth of the Republic of Texas.

Guided tours (including the historically rich city of San Antonio) take you through the former mission while learning about heroes such as Davy Crockett. Children can also learn via interactive activities, and a living history encampment introduces them to life at the fort with hands-on displays including leather working. Time your visit to see a cannon fire demonstration.

8. Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, Tallapoosa County, Alabama

Consider the Indigenous experience at this important military park.

The plight of Indigenous peoples in America is made apparent perhaps nowhere as vividly as Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, the site where 800 Red Stick Creek warriors died in 1814 when Major General Andrew Jackson’s army attacked during the final battle of the Creek War. The Alabama park is a somber place to engage in uncomfortable truths, but the National Parks Services has an easy-to-follow short film for young people to understand these tragic circumstances.

Inside the visitor center, displays depict Creek life with replicas of a life-size canoe as well as a diorama of the warrior village. And a Junior Ranger program engages children in the museum, while a walking trail follows the important sites in the battle.

9. Mystic Seaport Museum, Mystic, Connecticut

Say “Ahoy!” at this entrancing outdoor seafaring museum.

Head to the charming town of Mystic and introduce your kiddo to their sea legs at the Mystic Seaport Museum, a preserved 19th-century shipyard with all the old-timey trappings. Climb aboard the original whaleship Charles W. Morgan and see where blubber was rendered. Then step onto the Nellie, an oyster sloop that would have been common along the Great South Bay in the late 1800s.

And because early education is so important to the site, the youngest visitors have a space all their own: The Susan Stucke Funk Children’s Museum. Here, children can play pretend in a cook’s galley, swab the deck, move cargo, and enjoy storytime while they daydream of one day becoming a swashbuckling sailor.

The museum also features a planetarium. Plan on extending your visit if you plan to see a planetarium show or decide to take a boat ride along the Mystic River.