JLMH OPEN FOR TOURS

Regular Tour times:

On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday tours take place at 10 am, 11 am, 12 pm, and 1 pm.

On Saturday tours are at 1 pm, 2 pm, & 3 pm.

All museum tours are free of charge.

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Walk-ins welcome! Please call ahead for groups larger than 6 people.

All tours are guided. Museum not open for individual walkthrough.
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Public tours are not offered when school field trip groups or other pre-scheduled groups are on-site. Please call 919-833-3431 to check on tour availability.

November 2025

Wednesday, Nov 19th - Private tour at 10am. All other times available.

Thursday, Nov 20th - Private tours at 10am and 11am. All other times available.

*We will be closed for Thanksgiving* There will be no tours on the 27th, 28th, or 29th of November.

December 2025

Saturday, Dec 6th - Christmas Open House! Site is fully open to walk through from 11am-3pm with demonstrations and crafts. Please note there are no guided tours.

Wednesday, Dec 17th - Private tours at 10am and 11am. All other times available

Thursday, Dec 18th - Private tour at 10am. All other times available.

JLMH is closed for the last two weeks of the year (Dec 22, 2025-Jan 6, 2026). Tours will resume on January 7th, 2026.

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Museum Store

The Visitor’s Center/Gift Shop is open for weekday perusal from Wednesday to Friday. The shop is open from 10 am to 2 pm.

Help the Joel Lane Museum House

You can help us bring history to life by donating to JLMH!

Donate

...Or, volunteer your time and talents!

Volunteer

Joel Lane Museum House

Joel Lane Museum House, pre-2020 paint colors

Volunteers and Docents bring history to life

The Birthplace of North Carolina’s Capital

Visit the Revolutionary world of early North Carolina

Explore the beginnings of Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina, and the United States—from the colonial era, through the Revolutionary War, into the first years of a new nation. Discover history as it’s rarely taught: compelling human stories, told with accuracy and compassion by costumed docents who personalize each tour for our guests.

All tours are guided. The museum is not open to individual walkthrough.

Tours begin in the Visitors Center at 160 South Saint Mary’s Street, Raleigh, NC 27603.

Our Mission

To bring American history to life by providing a rich understanding of regional North Carolina history and the struggles, sacrifices, and achievements of all those who lived in Piedmont North Carolina in the 18th century, with particular emphasis on the life and times of Colonel Joel Lane, his family, and the 43 people enslaved on his plantation.

Accessibility

The Visitors Center and Museum Store are accessible by a ramp.

The Lane Museum House and the “Kitchen” building can only be entered by climbing about 5 steps. The second floor of the Lane house can only be reached by climbing a set of about 20 stairs.

With advanced reservations, a guided virtual tour is available for those who cannot enter the inaccessible buildings. Strollers are prohibited in the museum buildings. Infants and young toddlers must be carried. Only service animals are allowed inside the historic buildings.

Upcoming Events

Jun

2025

“Becoming Lunsford Lane”, with Prof. Craig T. Friend

Join us on Thursday, June 12th, 2025, from 7pm-8:30pm, for a talk with Professor Craig Friend about his biography “Becoming Lunsford Lane”.

Sep

2025

Ray of Light: The Joel Lane House Kitchen

Join us for an evening lecture on Thursday, September 25th about the history of the Joel Lane House “kitchen” building - which was originally a home built in the 1790s.

Oct

2025

“Things That Went Bump in the Night in the Early United States” with Craig Friend

NC State Professor Craig Friend will take a look at how Americans viewed the supernatural in the 19th century, and how Halloween evolved as a holiday.