Blue Star Museums Free Admission for Active Military Families

If you live hear in the DC, Virginia, Maryland area, you likely know a military family or two, or may even be on active duty yourself or have a spouse that is. I wanted to share a great program for active military members and their families to enjoy free admission to museums: Blue Star Museums! It is a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and over 2,000 museums across the US. Blue Star Museums grants free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families starting Memorial Day, May 27, 2013, through Labor Day, September 2, 2013.

All active duty, National Guard and Reserve military personnel can get free admission to participating art centers, museums, and exhibits. That means FREE, family fun (plus learning) is in store for military families this summer. Below are some of the nearby participating museums in DC, Virginia & Maryland:

Washington, DC:

• Anacostia Community Museum
• Corcoran Gallery of Art
• Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
• Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
• The Kreeger Museum
• The L. Ron Hubbard House Museum
• Luther W. Brady Art Gallery, GWU
• National Air and Space Museum
• National Archives
• National Building Museum
• National Guard Memorial Museum
• National Museum of African Art
• National Museum of American History
• National Museum of Natural History
• National Museum of the United States Navy
• National Museum of Women in the Arts
• National Portrait Gallery
• National Postal Museum
• National Zoological Park
• The Phillips Collection
• Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
• S. Dillon Ripley Center International Gallery
• Smithsonian American Art Museum
• Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle
• Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian
• Tudor Place Historic House and Garden
• Woodrow Wilson House

Northern Virginia (and some outlying areas):

• Carlyle House Historic Park (Alexandria)
• Gadsby’s Tavern Museum (Alexandria)
• Lee-Fendall House Museum & Garden (Alexandria)
• Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum (Alexandria)
• National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Chantilly)
• Museum of Culpeper History (Culpeper)
• Fairfax Museum and Visitor Center (Fairfax)
• Historic Blenheim and the CiviL War Interpretive Center (Fairfax)
• National Firearms Museum (Fairfax)
• Fredericksburg Area Museum & Cultural Center (Fredericksburg)
• Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop (Fredericksburg)
• James Monroe Museum and Memorial Library (Fredericksburg)
• Mary Washington House (Fredericksburg)
• Rising Sun Tavern (Fredericksburg)
• Loudoun Museum (Leesburg)
• Morven Park (Leesburg)
• Gunston Hall (Lorton)
• The Manassas Museum Syste (Manassas)
• Historic Occoquan/Mill House Museum (Occoquan)
• Newtown History Center (Stephens City)
• Heritage Farm Museum (Sterling)
• National Museum of the Marine Corps (Triangle)
• Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) (Winchester)
• Old Court House Civil War Museum (Winchester)

Maryland:

• University of Maryland University College (Adelphi)
• Hammond-Harwood House (Annapolis)
• National Cryptologic Museum (Annapolis Junction)
• American Visionary Art Museum (Baltimore)
• B&O Railroad Museum (Baltimore)
• Baltimore Heritage (Baltimore)
• Baltimore Musem of Art (Baltimore)
• Baltimore Museum of Industry (Baltimore)
• Evergreen Museum & Library (Baltimore)
• Homewood Museum, Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore)
• James E. Lewis Museum of Art (Baltimore)
• Jewish Museum of Maryland (Baltimore)
• Mount Clare Museum House (Baltimore)
• National Electronics Museum (Baltimore)
• The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum (Baltimore)
• The Walters Art Museum (Baltimore)
• Hays House Museum (Bel Air)
• Hays-Heighe House at Harford Community College (Bel Air)
• The Historical Society of Harford County (Bel Air)
• National Capital Radio & Television Museum (Bowie)
• The Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum (Chesapeake Beach)
• Surratt House Museum (Clinton)
• College Park Aviation Museum (College Park)
• Academy Art Museum (Easton)
• Historic London Town and Gardens (Edgewater)
• B&O Railroad Museum Ellicott City Station (Ellicott City)
• National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (Emmitsburg)
• Fort George G. Meade Museum (Fort George G. Meade)
• The Museum of Frederick County History (Frederick)
• National Museum of Civil War Medicine (Frederick)
• The Roger Brooke Taney House (Frederick)
• Frostburg Museum (Forstburg)
• Dorsey Chapel (Glenn Dale)
• Discovery Station at Hagerstown Inc (Hagerstown)
• Mansion House Art Center @ top of hill (Hagerstown)
• Washington County Museum of Fine Arts (Hagerstown)
• Havre de Grace Maritime Museum (Havre de Grace)
• Montpelier Mansion (Laurel)
• St. Mary’s County Historical Society (Leonardtown)
• Benson-Hammond House (Linthicum)
• Bayside History Museum, Inc. (North Beach)
• Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum (Ocean City)
• Riversdale House Museum (Riverdale Park)
• Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (Saint Michaels)
• Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art (Salisbury)
• Sandy Spring Museum (Sandy Spring)
• National Museum of Health and Medicine (Silver Spring)
• Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum (St. Leonard)
• Historic St. Mary’s City (St. Mary’s City)
• Darnall’s Chance House Museum (Upper Marlboro)
• Carroll County Farm Museum (Westminster)

West Virginia:

• Arthurdale Heritage, Inc. (Arthurdale)
• Campbell Mansion (Bethany)
• Beverly Heritage Center (Beverly)
• Clay Center (Charleston)
• Huntington Museum of Art (Huntington)
• Children’s Discovery Museum of West Virginia (Morgantown)
• Morgantown History Museum (Morgantown)
• Museums of Oglebay Institute – Mansion and Glass Museums (Wheeling)

To find a complete list of participating museums by state, visit the Blue Star Museum site here. Please share this with any military families you know so they can take advantage of this great offer!