Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vermont is the legacy of Electra Havemeyer Webb who, starting in about 1911, collected, well, everything - quilts, waterfowl decoys, carousel animals, circus memorabilia, early American furniture and decorations, Impressionist art - Mary Cassatt was a friend of her parents, horse drawn carriages and much more. Her first purchase was a cigar store Indian. She was one of the very first to recognize the importance of American folk art.

The collection of more than 150,000 objects is housed in 39 buildings on 45 acres. Many of the buildings are themselves part of the collection and have been moved from their original locations to the museum and also serve to house other parts of the collection. The most impressive of the things moved to the museum is the steamship Ticonderoga, a 220 foot, 892 ton sidewheel Lake Champlain steamer.

The Smithsonian has been called the nation’s attic. I think of Shelburne Museum as the far northeastern corner of that attic.

For greatest detail and clarity view in "original" size (see size options under each image).