If you love learning about the world around you, spending the day in a museum is a day well spent. And, while we love to give you things to do outdoors in Maine, we know that a rainy day is inevitable. To prepare you for those days AND give you something to do for a little education, we're telling you all about the L.C. Bates Museum in Hinckley!
Located in Hinckley, you may know the L.C. Bates Natural History Museum as the place with all the weird stuff!
Some refer to it as a "Museum of a Museum," due to the many bizarre things they have amassed over the years.
There truly is not much that you can’t find here!
Exhibits range from artifacts from all corners of the globe to taxidermied animals to the gemstones and rocks.
In fact, it’s these rocks that were the reason for the existence of the museum.
The L.C. Bates Natural Museum got its start in the late 1880s by children’s activist George Hinckley.
There were only a few items on display to start: a fossil, a chunk of sulphur, and a stalactite.
But soon the museum grew to include all sorts of incredible wonders.
Exhibits included preserved animal, such as birds and fish as well as the collection of rocks and gems that continued to grow.
You can still find Ernest Hemingway’s famous Marlin on the wall!
By 1920, the museum had amassed so many incredible items that it was forced to move to a new building - where it exists today.
The building was funded by Lewis Carlton Bates, whose name was added to that of the museum.
Today the museum has multiple rooms and exhibits, the most exciting of which are the oddities and rarer finds.
The museum has stayed true to its roots as being as educational as possible for children and you’ll find tons of fun events and activities at every visit.
This is a wonderful place to enjoy a day, learning about and experiencing things that will inspire you to continue the lifelong journey of understanding the world around you.
The L.C. Bates Museum is located at 14 Easler Road in Hinckley, Maine. You can reach them on: (207) 238-4250. Or check them out online by clicking here.
For more cool (and strange!) museums in Maine, check these out!
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