The DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum is Williamsburg's home for American and British antiques from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. The collection includes extensive galleries features clothing, furniture, tools, firearms, ceramics, silver, textiles and more. Special presentations and performances are sponsored at various times throughout the year, and the Public Hospital exhibit is a favorite among visitors. This exhibit details the various procedures and sometimes brutal practices regarding mental illness that were the norm at the first mental hospital in North America until its destruction by fire in 1885.
An on-site shop allows visitors to take a bit of the experience home with books, gifts, jewelry, music and other accessories. The museum also features a cafe, making it convenient and easy to spend an entire day explore colonial life at the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum. Note: The DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum will be closed from March to mid-May 2006 for system renovations.
