Rufus Porter Museum of Art and Ingenuity
Local youth Rufus Porter became a leading folk artist, painting murals of rural landscapes and harbors inside New England homes in the first half of the 1800s. Several museum rooms bear examples of this then-on-trend decor, but as visitors learn, Porter was also an “ahead of his time” inventor and writer and founded Scientific American magazine. An eye-catching 1830s former residence on Main Street has exhibits about Porter, including early issues of the magazine, his miniature portraits, and models of inventions such as a corn shucker and a revolving rifle whose design and production rights he sold to gunmaker Samuel Colt. In the excellent gift shop, you'll find books by and about this ingenious man. The late-1700s, barn red, Cape Cod–style Nathan Church House, moved here in 2016, has two rooms with unsigned Porter murals. Among his apprentices was his nephew Jonathan D. Poor, whose art adorns two rooms and a hall in a barn like 2024 building: the muraled walls were moved here from a home elsewhere in Maine. Clustered together, the buildings have permanent and changing exhibits, many interactive and kid-friendly.
