Loudoun Heritage Farm Museum: Living History & Primary Sources

Enjoy a full day interactive experience at the Loudoun Heritage Farm Museum. In the morning, journey into America’s past and think outside the classroom by rotating through instructor-led interactive and hands-on activity stations including our Waxpool General Store, 1909 rural kitchen, one-room schoolhouse, blacksmith forge, Workhorse Collection and other buildings in the Lanesville Historic Area.
In the afternoon, take a deeper dive into primary sources and artifact studies. Choose your favorite track:
- Loudoun’s First Farmers: Indigenous Foodways Along the Potomac: Learn about 10,000 years of human occupation in Loudoun by examining American Indian lithic tools, projectile points, and pottery sherds recovered from the banks of the Potomac River. What do these artifacts tell us about what indigenous Loudouners ate, and how they used the landscape?
- Freedom and Community in Loudoun’s African American Villages: Explore themes of freedom, entrepreneurship, and empowerment through the lens of two historically black villages, Willisville and Nokesville. Who first lived in these villages? How did Reconstruction and Jim Crow affect their communities? How are their stories being told?
- Restoration in Progress: Visit our Restoration Specialist to see how artifacts are preserved for future generations. Restoration takes patience, expertise, and sometimes a lot of elbow grease. This station includes voluntary hands-on work that might get messy!
This Educator field trip provides a dynamic blend of hands-on experiences, access to primary sources, and insights into innovative historical interpretation and preservation practices, enriching teaching with real-world knowledge and resources. At the end of the day, enjoy a happy hour with local Loudoun County libations.

Host or Publisher Virginia Council for Social Studies (VCSS)