Museums

Rich in history and culture, Lake County’s two museums, the historic Courthouse Museum in Lakeport, and the historic Schoolhouse Museum in Lower Lake, are preserving the past for future generations.

Lake County Historic Courthouse Museum

255 N. Main Street
Lakeport, CA 95453
Wednesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4:00 p.m.
(707) 263-4555
www.co.lake.ca.us

Pomo Basket Collection

Nearly 12,000 years ago, the Xa-Ben-Na-Po Band of Pomo Indians, whose descendants live here today, called Lake County home, as well as Wintun, Wappo, and Lake Miwok Indians. Thousands of stone tools and more than 300 superb examples of Pomo basketry have been acquired by the museum since the 1930s. The main gallery of the museum showcases many artifacts and displays of the Pomo lifestyle.

Victorian Parlor

In the Victorian Parlor, furnishing, clothing and ladies accessories, take the visitor back to a bygone era when streets were not paved, electricity was non-existent, and the mode of transportation was on horseback and carriage.

Courtroom

In 1897, famous British actress and socialite Lillie Langtry, who purchased Langtry Estate & Vineyards in the 1870s, received her divorce in this courtroom. In 1917, the landmark California Supreme Court case that granted the right to vote to Ethan Anderson, a Lake County Native American, as the first Native American in the US to win the right to vote, was decided here.

Rock and Mineral Room

Gems and minerals are abundant in Lake County, and in the state-of-the-art rock and mineral room, a 94-carat faceted Lake County Diamond is on display. Visitors will learn about these unique gems, as well as fossils, opal, jade, stribnite, onyx, jasper, and many other minerals found in the county.

History and Mystery of Clear Lake

The permanent exhibit entitled the History and Mystery of Clear Lake has as its centerpiece a large scale satellite map of Clear Lake and the surrounding area and explains the origin of our ancient lake.

Joe Waite Gun Room

Visitors learn about the early days of hunting and camping in Lake County with some very special firearms on display. Of special interest is "Old Fremont" a Revolutionary War Rifle that made its way across the plains with the Hammack party from Missouri in 1853.

Lower Lake Historic Schoolhouse Museum

1634 Morgan Valley Road
Lower Lake, CA 95457
Wednesday through Saturday, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
(707) 995-3565
www.co.lake.ca.us

This magnificent two-story, three-room, schoolhouse was built in 1877 from locally kilned brick, had a French roof, a 70 foot bell tower, served as the area school until 1935, and today is designated as a California Point of Historical Interest. The upstairs auditorium was used for town meetings, funerals, traveling shows and other social events. The bell tower was damaged in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and was removed, and the roof then restyled from French to Mansard, with the building then covered with a thick layer of stucco. 

Visitors can see history come alive on living history days, when people dressed in period costume demonstrate pioneer implements such as the spinning wheel, treadle sewing machine, butter churn, and player piano.

Schoolroom Exhibit

A replica of an early Lake County schoolroom lets children try out desks from various eras, write with chalk on real slates, and see toys and books from days gone by.

Weaver Auditorium

Not only a school, the auditorium on thesecond floor was used for town meetings, funerals, traveling shows, and other social events. The auditorium is still in use today by the community for theater productions and other events.

Mining and Pioneer Artifacts

The museum’s main collection consists of pioneer artifacts from local families including furnishings, clothing and more. There is a large Lake County Diamond display and a rock and mineral display featuring a sample of rock containing gold flakes from the Homestake gold mine thatwas active throughout the 1980s.

Research Room

Lake County historian Henry Mauldin’s 10,000-page indexed history of Lake County is the centerpiece of this room, as wellas historical plot maps, birth and death records,cattle brands, and more.

The Stone House Museum

18174 Hidden Valley Road
Hidden Valley Lakes, CA 95467
www.hvla.com
(707) 987-3138

A California registered landmark, the Stone House Museum is the oldest building in Lake County, erected between 1853 and 1854. Tours are available by appointment.