Celebrate Connecticut Open House Day in New Haven County 2026

Come to the Harrison House Museum and receive a free tour of the historic Harrison House, the barn, and the gardens. Learn about life during Colonial times and about Branford's history. The Harrison House tour is appropriate for all ages.

Enjoy complimentary admission to the Barker Character, Comic and Cartoon Museum and get ready to take a trip down 'Memory Lane'!

Featuring a private collection of over 80,000 toys, collectibles, and memorabilia; it does not matter if you're a child, or just a child at heart, get ready for an afternoon filled with laughter and joy as we celebrate over 100 years of play!

Calling all detectives, treasure seekers, and puzzle solvers!  Join the quest for the Giant Golden Chalice at the Osborne Homestead Museum on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 12noon to 4pm. Learn about history, art, and more with a map and clues that will lead you to the hidden treasure! Bring your thinking caps, skills, talents, and A-game to find the missing golden chalice!  This is a free, family-friendly event, and participants can play the game at their own pace.  

Enjoy free trolley rides at the Shore Line Trolley Museum during Connecticut Open House Day from 11am-1pm. Travel along a scenic stretch of the Farm River aboard a historic electric trolley and discover how public transportation shaped Connecticut’s communities. Explore exhibits, visit the museum shop, and experience a unique piece of living history.

Come to the Dudley Farm where we will be providing free tours of the historic Farmhouse Museum and of the Quinnipiac Dawnland Museum. Learn about life on a farm during the Victorian Era in the Farmhouse and about the indigenous population that lived on the land in Dawnland Museum.

Free admission to Connecticut's oldest house with a unique behind-the-scenes experience seeing how the Whitfield House is being preserved for future generations. Most of the collection has been moved out in preparation for a rehabilitation project that will include repointing stone walls and replacing antiquated electrical wiring. The project commemorates America's 250th, funded in part by a federal Semiquincentennial grant administered by the National Park Service.

In honor of Madison's 200th anniversary of incorporation, the Madison Historical Society is pleased to host a Flag Day Celebration on June 13 at 11 am at its historic schoolhouse, Lee's Academy. This event is free to the public. It will feature patriotic music by the Scranton Strummers, a Presentation of Colors by the American Legion and the Fourteenth Regiment, Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, and a ceremonial flag raising by the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The program will also include a reading by Madison's poet laureate, Ed Lent, along with remarks from local and state dignitaries, followed by a ceremonial proclamation recognizing the historic occasion. The Scranton Strummers will conclude the ceremony with additional patriotic Selections. Following the ceremony, the public is invited inside the schoolhouse to the MHS's Madison Center for History & Culture. There, they can enjoy light refreshments and view an exhibit of Revolutionary War artifacts, along with historical flags from the Society's collection.

We're throwing open the studio doors and you're invited! Join us at Eventful Splat & Craft Studio Connecticut's newest (and messiest) place to get creative.

When: Saturday, June 13 | Drop in anytime between 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Where: Eventful Splat & Craft Studio, 1371 E Main St, Meriden, CT

Special - 10% discount on all craft projects and the Splat room. Reservations required, sessions sell out. EventfulCraftStudio.com.

Hands-on Studio Crafts for adults and kids
Access to the Splat Room (yes, it's as fun as it sounds)

Come say hi, make a mess, and help us kick things off with a splash (of color, of course)!
 

The New Haven Museum is a vibrant center for exploring the people, places, events, and ideas that shape and define the Elm City! Open 12 p.m.-5 p.m. with free admission on Open House Day.

Make Your Own Chocolate Bars and Free Mini-Tours !!

Fascia's regular Chocolate Experience has been enjoyed by tens of thousands since 2013.  For Open House Day, participants can take advantage of the Make Your Own Chocolate Bar part for just $7 each, 40% off the regular price.    

Then, enjoy a free version of the rest of the Experience and learn all about chocolate. It's fun and perfect for all ages.  Register at ExperienceYourChocolate.com

Our two history museums will be open from 11:00 am - 3:00 pm. These museums are filled with a variety of artifacts from Wolcott history.  The Stone Schoolhouse museum located at 155 Nichols Road is 205 years old and features school history, tools and kitchen and farm utensils.  Our Center School History Museum located at 154 Center Street contains military and farm history as well as information on two well-known residents who were born and grew up in our town, Seth Thomas and Amos Bronson Alcott.

The Amity and Woodbridge Historical Society will hold a Witness Stones plaque-laying ceremony honoring the lives of the enslaved people who lived and worked at the Darling Farmstead and History Museum.