Kelton House Museum & Garden – Columbus, Ohio
This 125+ year old home in the grand Victorian style has a rich and interesting history to share.
The museum gives a great snapshot of 19th century life with its treasures of Victorian times from the lavishly embellished Victorian silverware to the unusual items such as a woven-hair brooch.
There is a scrapbook which was kept by Anna Kelton from 1860 – 1870 giving a glimpse of the thoughts of a young woman of the time. There are pressed flowers from summer vacations (which was a common practice of the time), society page articles, news clippings and letters describing the Civil War as well as a telegram relating her brother Oscar’s death at the battle of Brie’s Crossroads, Guntown Mississippi.
When Grace Kelton, the last remaining heir, died in 1975 she entrusted the Kelton property to the Columbus Foundation with the stipulation that her family home be preserved and used for educational purposes. In staying with that directive the Kelton House offers an ongoing program of house tours, special events, and educational opportunities. There is an active volunteer program providing training for individuals interested in historic preservation, the decorative arts, American history and museum management.
The Kelton House is the only "house museum" in the city of Columbus where the history can be seen and felt. The same furnishings, plates, silverware, clothing, and books that were used by the actual occupants of the house are still there giving the house a realistic feeling rather than re-created which is necessary in some of the other museums. Docents, dressed in period costumes, help make the home come alive on the tours and the telling of stories of the Underground Railroad and life from 1850 to 1900 are well worth the time to visit this museum.
The garden has been restored to Grace Kelton’s essential design. The parterre beds behind the Carriage house are filled with the kind of showy annuals beloved by the Victorians. The crabapple trees are beautiful in April when they are in full bloom. There are wildflower beds, azaleas, and rhododendrons. There are sculptural pieces in the garden which were collected by grace during her travels to Europe and Asia.
You will be able to take a tour of the home and learn how things were done in the 19th century. You will begin with presenting your ?calling card." Sophia Kelton will be our personal guide to the home she and her husband Fernando built in 1852. You will see her Rococo Revival furniture and the family portraits. You will see her needlework and fans as she shares her family’s secret life as conductors on the Underground Railroad. You will be able to meet a runaway making her way to freedom in Canada. This tour is 1.5 hours to 2 hours long and costs $11 per person.
You can take the above tour and conclude it with afternoon tea with finger sandwiches and trifle for just $4 more.
Tours Days and Times:
Monday through Friday between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.
Sunday between 1 and 4 p.m.
Saturdays from November through March between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Contact: Georgeannne Reuter at (614) 464-2022 or by email at keltonhouse@cs.com.
Location: 586 East Town Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215
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