Vermont Museums Showcase Rockwell, Chairs and Gambling in 2026
May 13, 2026
Vermont museums are gearing up for the 2026 season with new exhibits highlighting Norman Rockwell, graffiti art, chairs, and Vermont vices.
Read on to learn about summer and fall exhibits at nine Vermont museums across the state.
-Shelburne Museum is open for the 2026 season. Photo courtesy of Shelburne Museum.
Shelburne Museum
Norman Rockwell: At Home in Vermont, opens at Shelburne Museum June 20. The exhibition explores how, during his busy years in Arlington from 1939 to 1953, Rockwell painted Vermont as the perfect place to escape to when times were tough. As the country faced the Great Depression and World War II, Rockwell showed Americans a Vermont that was self-reliant, orderly, and beautiful.
Founded in 1947 by Electra Havemeyer Webb, the Shelburne Museum includes houses, barns, a meeting house, a one-room schoolhouse, a lighthouse, a jail, a general store, a covered bridge and the 220-foot steamboat Ticonderoga. The museum is open for the season through October.
Shelburne Museum, 6000 Shelburne Rd., Shelburne; shelburnemuseum.org. Open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A new exhibition at the Bennington Museum will showcase the colorful and complex history of Vermont, including gambling at the old dog track in Pownal. -Courtesy photos.
Bennington Museum
A new exhibition, Vermont Vice, opens May 30 at the Bennington Museum.
Often seen as a rural paradise, Vermont has a colorful and complex history of vice, from rum running and gambling to shifting social boundaries. Vermont Vice explores how ideas of respectability and transgression have changed over time, revealing stories that still resonate and entertain today.
The Bennington Museum is open for the 2026 season.
Bennington Museum, 75 Main St., Bennington; benningtonmuseum.org; Open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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-From 1793 to 1961, Rokeby was home to four generations of Robinsons, a family of Quakers, farmers, abolitionists, artists and authors. Photo courtesy of Rokeby Museum.
Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburg
The Rokeby Museum opens for the season with Help Each Other, a season-long exhibition featuring the work of artist Todd Drake.
Drake makes relief prints and puts them up on walls and buildings in New York City and other places. He started doing this during the pandemic, when many people left the city and businesses shut down.
Rokeby Museum, 4334 Route 7, Ferrisburgh; rokeby.org. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. May-October.
The former Estey Organ Company in Brattleboro. Photo by Joshua Carnes. Courtesy of Brattleboro Historical Society.
The Estey Organ Museum in Brattleboro
The Estey Organ Museum showcases the history and heritage of the Estey Organ Company, makers of reed organs, pump organs, melodeons and pipe organs.
During its heyday, the company was producing 700 instruments per month. It continued manufacturing organs through two world wars and the Great Depression. In 1960, the company (then rebranded as Estey Electronics, Inc.) closed its Brattleboro location and moved production to California. Estey Organ Co. produced over half a million organs over 109 years.
Land on the hill behind the factory was made available to employees to build their homes. The area became known as Esteyville. In 2002, the Brattleboro Historical Society opened the Estey Organ Museum on the premises of the old factory.
The museum is opens for the 2026 season.
The Estey Organ Museum, 108 Birge Street in Brattleboro, esteyorganmuseum.org; Open Saturdays between May and October.
-The Museum of Everyday Life is a self-service museum in Glover.
Museum of Everyday Life in Glover
The Museum of Everyday Life in Glover will open a new exhibition, Chairs, on June 6, 2026.
The Museum of Everyday Life, 3482 Dry Pond Rd., Glover; museumofeverydaylife.org; This is a self-service museum open daily 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Turn on the lights when you enter and off when you leave. The space is not heated, so wear a coat if it’s cold.
-The Henry Sheldon Museum in Middlebury opened in 1884. Photo courtesy of the Henry Sheldon Museum.
Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History in Middlebury
The Henry Sheldon Museum, the oldest community-based museum in the country, has welcomed visitors and researchers since 1884.
The museum opens for the season on May 20, 2026.
Henry Sheldon Museum, One Park St. Middlebury; henrysheldonmuseum.org. Open Wednesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
-The Saint Albans Museum offers educational exhibits, youth education programs and cultural events. Photo courtesy of the Saint Albans Museum.
Saint Albans Museum
The St. Albans Museum preserves and shares the history and cultural heritage of St. Albans, Franklin County, and northwestern Vermont through exhibitions, educational programs, performances, and community events.
Located in a historic 1861 school building, the museum offers engaging exhibits and experiences that connect visitors with the stories, people, and traditions that have shaped the region.
The Saint Albans Museum opens for the season on May 16, 2026. with a grand opening party, “The Decades.”
Saint Albans Museum, 9 Church St., Saint Albans; stamuseum.org. Open Wednesday and Thursday from noon to 4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
-The Old Stone House Museum tells the story of Alexander Twilight, the first African-American college graduate and U.S. state legislator.
Old Stone Museum and Historic Village in Brownington
The Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village tells the story of Alexander Twilight, the first African-American college graduate and state legislator in the United States. He built the museum’s Old Stone House, which he called Athenian Hall.
Inside the museum’s 30 rooms are more than 75,000 objects, including furniture, paintings, tools, textiles, and folk art, that tell the story of Orleans County. In addition to the Old Stone House, the museum includes a collection of historic buildings from the 19th century.
The museum opens for the season on May 23, 2026.
The Old Stone House Museum and Historic Village, 109 Old Stone House Road, Brownington; oldstonehousemuseum.org. Open Wednesday- Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. *To go inside the Old Stone House you must book a guided tour either in-person on arrival or online before your visit. Tours are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. 1 p.m., and 3 p.m.
-The Birds of Vermont Museum features beautiful bird carvings and walking trails.
Birds of Vermont Museum in Huntington
The Birds of Vermont Museum features lifelike bird carvings of over 200 species by master carver Bob Spear. Make time to explore the museum’s walking trails, open from dawn to dusk. Upcoming events include bird walks and a needle felting workshop.
The museum is open for the 2026 season.
Birds of Vermont Museum, 900 Sherman Hollow Road, Huntington; birdsofvermont.org; Open Wednesday-Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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