Grey Towers National Historic Site kicks off summer tour season

Grey Towers National Historic Site is offering limited guided tours and open house of the first floor museum featuring the Victorian-themed great hall, historic library and large sitting room with a painting of a Dutch seascape from 1799 in a home once occupied by the family of Gifford Pinchot, the Forest Service’s first chief.

Guided tours are available at 11 a.m. Fridays-Mondays through Nov. 1. Tickets starting July 10, are $15 per person 16 years and older. Open house tickets are $10 per person 16 and older. Anyone 15 or younger are admitted free of charge with an accompanying adult. Those who present their America the Beautiful pass will receive a $5 discount on the expanded amenity fee for both the guided tour and the open house.

“The monies collected for these programs remain on-site and assist with the long-term stewardship of Grey Towers National Historic Site,” said Katherine Armstrong, director of Grey Towers. “We are keeping the Pinchot legacy alive through our programs, our partnerships and bringing together people from across the U.S. to learn about the origins of conservation and to connect with nature.”

Grey Tower’s 2026 special exhibit, “Where Forest Teach,” highlights historic letters, forestry tools and a reproduction scrapbook created by a Yale forestry students that visitors can flip through.

Museum goers also can enjoy four fee-free days in 2026: Forests250 Family Fun Day on Saturday, June 27; America’s birthday celebration on Saturday July 4; Ice Cream Social on Saturday Aug. 9; and Festival of Wood/National Public Lands Day on Saturday, Sept 26.

For more information on the museum, go to fs.usda.gov/greytowers or call 470-296-9630.