Penfield Homestead Museum

Penfield Homestead Museum is dedicated to the history of Crown Point, NY and its people. To that end we are the trustees of the Ironville Historic District as well as the Homestead, Church, Parsonage and the farm outbuildings of the Allen Penfield family and the remnants of the once vital Crown Point Iron Company and Railroad.
PHM hosts events through-out the summer season that feature FREE tours, local historians and artisans, walking tours along Penfield Pond and family friendly activities. We are open on weekends for guided tours of the homestead, church and farm outbuildings.
Our Research Center is open, by appointment, year round and includes local family surname files, business, civic, military and church records. Our collection contains photographs, documents, letters and vital records from Crown Point and Southern Lake Champlain. Season and Hours Open
early June through early October In season – weekends 11am – 4pm Research/special needs by appointment
Don’t Miss This When Visiting
Our newly built “Pioneer Forge at Penfield” which recreates a replica of a working cold-blast iron forge that operated before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. The Homestead highlights daily life in the mid 19th century and the Crown Point Iron Company featuring a replica of Joseph Henry’s (the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution) “Electro-Magnet”. It was Henry’s invention and Allen Penfield’s vision that gave Ironville its historic designation as “The Birthplace of the Electrical Age”. Along Penfield Pond visit our two walking trails – the Historic Crown Point Iron Company trail and the Champlain Area Trail System hike. Our Research Center is open to answer any questions you may have about Crown Point families, businesses, churches or military involvement.

Related Sites Or Experiences
The Iron Center Museum at 16 Park Place, Port Henry, NY 12974 518 546 3587

Ticonderoga Heritage Museum at 137 Montcalm St Ticonderoga NY 12883 518 585 2696

Ticonderoga Historical Society at 6 Moses Circle Ticonderoga NY 12883 518 585 7868

Schroon-North Hudson Historical Society at 1144 State Rte 9 Schroon Lake, NY 12870 518 532 7615

Identify And Describe The Management Organization
Penfield Homestead Museum is a not-for-profit 501c3 corporation and is Chartered by the New York State Education Department. There is a Board of Trustees along with the museum and research center staffed by volunteers.

Suggested Further Reading
Adirondack Mountain Adventure by Arthur L. Bensen

The Papers of Joseph Henry

Captain James Penfield 1863-1864 Civil War Diary, 5th NY Volunteer Cavalry Company H

E.M. Johsnon’s Reminiscences of the War.

Additional Notes And Comments
The Ironville Historic District is located in Crown Point, NY. It encompasses the area associated with the mid 19th century Crown Point Iron Company & Railroad and the modest wooden dwellings of the hamlet. Ironville is known as the “Birthplace of the Electrical Age”, being the site of the first industrial application of electricity in the United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

Fees
yes
ADA Accessible
yes
Tours Are Offered
yes
Site is Child-friendly
yes
Site is Pet-friendly
yes
Comments
would love to visit

alan penfield, 2/5/2018