The tour of the Oliver mansion was interesting. There are stairs involved, so be warned. Overall... read more
The tour of the Oliver mansion was interesting. There are stairs involved, so be warned. Overall... read more
The museum itself is very good and interesting. But the highlight is definitely the tour through... read more
I visited South Bend for an AAGPBL (the baseball league from "A League of Their Own") reunion. One of the activities planned was to tour the history museum. They are one of few museums to have a permanent AAGPBL exhibit on display, and it was outstanding. I visited the Baseball Hall of Fame earlier in the year, and this exhibit blew the one in Cooperstown out of the water in regards to AAGPBL memorabilia. The staff were nice enough to open their archives for the former players so they could relive the glory days of their careers. I highly recommend a stop in.
We visited the museum on June 9. There is free parking in front of the museum (on Thomas Street). You can purchase a single ticket or a combo-ticket for 2 dollars more and you can visit the Studebaker museum on the same site. There are 3 levels. You can use the elevators. When you arrive, ask when the next tour of the mansion will be. If I am not mistaken there are only tours at 11 am, 1 pm and 2 pm. The mansion is not accessible by wheelchair.
Interesting history of Indiana and particularly this area. Many items on display. The information on this area of Indiana during the Civil War was very fascinating. Glad we came here.
Visited there for company function. Spent about 4 hours wandering thru it but wished I had more time. Not the attraction that I would usually go to but it was much more interesting than I would have expected. Great place to spend a few hours while in SB.
The museum contains well done exhibits of South Bend's rôle in the development of modern transportation. Be sure to look at the hall exhibit of Vincent Bendix' life on the way to the Oliver Mansion carriage house. The Oliver Mansion tour itself is delightful in a beautifully preserved house detailing how the rich lived about 125 years ago. We will return again so we can make a day of it by combining the Center for History with the Studebaker National Museum & having lunch at the Studebaker Mansion.
We stopped to see the Studebaker National Museum, but were sold the combo tickets that included the Center for History. The Center for History Museum was not that great, less than exciting small town museum. (The Studebaker National Museum was great, will review that separately).
The guy who sold us the tickets did not do a good job of explaining the Center for History, or whether or not I had the option to just get the Studebaker National Museum tickets.
When we bought the tickets the man asked if we were going to tour the Oliver Mansion. Luckily I said, yea, whatever. Wow, what a place!
If you want to see the lifestyles of the rich and famous from the 1800s, you really need to tour the Oliver Mansion, a very impressive home, and a great history lesson.